Mercure Figueira a Foz Figueira da Foz

... to confess that I'd never heard of it, but it must have been an important town as the ruins cover an extensive area and include some beautiful mosaic floors in an excellent state of preservation. Once again we had to admire the Romans' building skills. The site was very well presented, with an excellent museum, and as an added bonus entry was free because we happened to go on a national holiday, 25th ...

We had our longest journey -should have been 7 hrs but turned out to be 10 after the highway was closed. We had lunch in Salamanca and I want to go back. Superb architecture and one of the oldest universities in Europe with signs of enlightened learning on every corner. We shared an amazing dinner of local fare ...

Day 4 – 25/12/08

LISBON-EVORA-ALCOBACA-B ATALHA-FATIMA-COIMBRA

We left early after breakfast. The GPS proved to be blessing for 'wrong' drivers like me. As it was Christmas there was less traffic on the roads & we had a smooth drive to Evora. There we saw the Roman Temple, the church & the Chapel of St.Francis. The sleepy town had narrow lanes ...

... and long staircases, smell of a fresh Galao (café latte) and history on every corner. My favorite activity in Coimbra was simply walking through its narrow streets and watching the red sunset light on its old city walls. As for the places, this is my top list: - Se Velha (Old Cathedral). It's definitely one of the most beautiful buildings you will find in Coimbra that dates back to 1139. I used to go ...

Okay, so I definitely did not expect to stay in Coimbra for more than one night, it is a very small city totally centered around a very old, very beautiful university and should only take a day or two to see. Got in on the train from Oporto at night and was floored by the massive hills. My pack has gotten a bit heavier since I started, close to 30 lbs, so I was not too keen on walking to the ...

... 18-15 against Sameer and Nasser. We then swam in the pool, had strawberries and showered. In the evening, we drove to a nearby restaurant where I had the best Sea Bass (Rubalho). That night, Nasser, Feba and Anaisa drove back to Lisbon. Nasser and Anaisa had to work the next day and we were scheduled to go with them, but plans changed last minute and we decided to go to Porto the next day.

16 km kaugusel Coimbrast asuvad Conímbriga varemed, mis on vanimad nii hästi säilinud Rooma varemed Portugalis, ühtlasi nimetatakse seda ka National Monument. Varemete kohta saab ajaloo ja piltidega tutvuda ka muuseumis, kuid me saabusime sinna suhteliselt hilja ja jõudsime napilt ainult varemetes luusida. Kuigi Conímbrigat teatakse eekõige roomlaste tõttu, on tegelikult olemas ka andmeid, et seal tegutseti ...

... sajandi kellatorn, mida kutsutakse a cabra (kits), sest igal aastal toimub seal esmakursuslaste rebasteks ristimine. Ristimine ei seisne mitte füüsilises, vaid vaimses piinamises. Noored tudengid reastatakse kellatorni juurde üles ja seejärel hakkavad vanemad kursuslased neid sõnadega mõnitama ja alandama seni, kuni ristitavad panevad padavai kodu poole jooksu, ehk siis nagu kitsed kabuhirmus.

Praegu elatub linn kolmest T-tähega allikast: tanning, textile, tourism ...

... of alcohol, well actually more than a dash and its good times for all! The perfect receipe for a soap. Scene 1. The Nightlife Adam and Hastie go to the casino. Adam is very poor and decided that the best way to keep off the streets is to gamble his last few euro in the hope of that one big win. There was wins and Adam was rich! Adam however went to the bar chatted to some randoms and Hastie for a bit then feeling full of courage, goes back to the ...

... a friend, and on the bus we met two nursing students who live there. They were very friendly, took us to their house, fed us dinner, and gave us a place to sleep.

Now I'm in Coimbra, and I came here to see a forest. I should actually be going now to catch my bus. If this internet connection weren't so slow this letter would be longer. It took me a whole hour to read the 15 letters I had (50 minutes waiting, 10 minutes reading). More later