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alright. finally, here I am with photos from my trip to Madrid and Portugal. It was kinda last minute. I didn't know I was going till the week before I left for SG. That last minute. And we didn't book air tics till the week before I left of course. And the hotels, and the other flights and stuff. Yes, we went free & easy. Which was abit of a pain - which i'll explain along the way.
1-3] Leaving SG airport
4-6] Look at how freaking dirty the metro was!
7-8] In Madrid already!
9] The official symbol of Madrid - the bear and the Madrono tree
1-9] It was just 2 days before Christmas and the streets were packed with people, with buskers, with Christmas decorations and with funny photogenic things.
And we came across this market and along the way there, there were many people wearing all kinds of wigs - afros, yellow plaits, neon wigs, hats, and other stuff. yes, I couldn't resist. I HAD to buy an afro. I wanted the big afro - which is more real. But my family rejected the idea - i could only get a small afro. Now I regret not getting the real BIG one.
Look at all the Christmas decorations and lightings! yeh, they had the 3 kings sitting there for photo-taking. I've never really seen people taking the 3 kings so...importantly to make them the ones to sit there and take photos! I mean why not Jesus, Santa, joseph and mary or something? the 3 kings?!
1-3] There was a LONG queue outside this shop - because most bags And shoes were going for 6euros. Which was almost S$13 only! well, my sister and I gathered 5 shoes + 1 bag. But no, we didn't get it on the night we took the photos, we had to go back there the next morning. The queue was just impossible on that night.
4-9] The next morning..abit of a bad hair day.
Look! All the big brands in Madrid! (yes, zara was cheaper there...)
And then that night, we took a flight over to Lisbon, Portugal. Arrive at like 11pm and we had to take the metro and walk to the hotel - my sister was trying to save every cent - we weren't allowed to take a cab. =( I was gone by the time we reached the hotel. But we had the gift exchange that night..in the hotel room as we stepped into Christmas day! Haha..
1-3] The next morning in Lisbon on Christmas Day. Most shops were closed...but we found this cafe in the next street. They were selling plenty of Portugese egg tarts + Christmas Cake.
4-6] Some of the metro stops
7-9] The streets were practically EMPTY.
The one on the right is in Lisbon's (Portugal)metro station. LOOK at how clean it is compared to Madrid's on the left! OMG. And I thought Madrid was a big developed city that would have taken care of cleaniness!
If I didn't yell out for food...I think we wouldn't even have stopped to buy something to eat. mygosh. u don't want to travel with my sister..it was worse than bootcamp. u don't get to rest, u don't get to eat, and u are out the whole day, walking...by the end of the day it was just shower, bed. u've got no energy to do anything else.
The tram's pretty famous in postcards/photos that's why there's quite a few tram photos.
There was even a queue outside Macdonalds! Cause it was Christmas Day, they are only open for 2 hours - and of course, why not! FOOD. And I was so amazed and amused by my perfectly round filet-o-fish that I had to take a picture. I was hungry so my mouth was too fast to bite into it before I had a chance to take a picture of it. Many people have mistaken it to be a butt. You're not the first.
1] The Compass Rose
2-9] The Discoveries Monument
The tower of Belem
What a cute little tot right!
Continued Tower of Belem + Jeronimos Monastery just opposite it.
The inside chambers of Jeronimos Monastery. Look at all the ceilings! Manueline style.
This is the famous Pasteis de Belem. They are famous for their patisseries especially the portuguese egg tarts. YUM. really cannot compare to anywhere else. They usually eat with icing sugar and cinnamon.
Casteolo de Sao Jorge (St. George Castle)
It's a real castle! super big and with all the fortified walls and such.
Alfama
1-3] Dinner at this restaurant in Lisbon. The fish soup was FABULOUS. Seafood in Portugal is pretty good everywhere. We loved the fish soup, the grilled fish dishes but apparently the chicken dish was too saltish, but the potato crisps at the side was pretty good.
4-6] On the way to Sintra.
7-9] Arriving at Palace Nacional de Pena (Palace of Pena)
Palácio da Pena, or "Castelo da Pena" as it is more commonly known, is the most complete and notable example of Portuguese architecture in the Romantic period. The Palace dates back to 1839, when the King Consort Dom Fernando II of Saxe Coburg-Gotha (1816-1885) bought the ruins of the Hieronymite Monastery of Nossa Senhora da Pena and started to adapt it for use as a residence, according to his Romantic taste.
If you've noticed alot of wall decorations consist of these tile repeats. It's quite distinctive of Portuguese-style.
6] I noticed a mistake in the tiling! OMG!
The Palace would serve as a summer residence for the royal family. They also turned the surrounding area into a park, which they spent hours in.
6] The Queen's favourite spot
There was another Castle in the area called Casteolo de Moures. But we had no time..so we skipped it. And we headed straight for Cabo de Roca.
Cabo de Roca (Cape Roca)is a cape which forms the westernmost point of both mainland Europe and mainland Portugal. It is in the Portuguese municipality of Sintra, west of Lisbon district.
The next day..in Lisbon still.
Then, as the day went by, I felt colder and colder. I had the fever chills. And by nighttime, I know I was having a fever. I didn't tell my family at first cause I thought it'll be over in a while maybe..but it got worse then i told them la..then we had to sit a train over to Porto. So, I got to rest in the train..but couldn't sleep well. (i can't really sleep in planes, trains etc) And we had to lug like our luggages everywhere. sian. and so..then reach hotel sleep immediately! I was so feverish, lethargic and in need of constant tissue supply. It was FLU.
But sadly, the next morning, I couldn't make it out of bed. I was too drained of strength and still feverish. so sleep in bed is the best. so I opted out of the day's activities and would join them later. They went on a douro river tour, like river tour! and like a tour of the city etc. I missed out on all that. And they had a fabulous lunch. without me! sobs.
Look at that soup! that was apparently the pot that won their hearts. 
apparently that ferris wheel is like free, and so my parents went on it countless times, opting not to go to the top of some tower to see the scenery. The ferris wheel operator was like, "You will regret!" haha.
Finally the next day, I had to get out. It was the last day before we went back, so of course needed to see the famous douro river and the bridge! I was still kinda more vunerable to the cold and such - that's why u see me all wrapped up. 
And we went to sample some wines at both Croft and Sandeman. Porto is well-known, of course, for their Port. Port is a sweet, Portuguese, fortified wine. Apparently, they found it hard to export their wines and therefore, in order to stabilize them for shipment, merchants added "a bucket or two" of brandy to the barrels of wine before sending them off. So Port wine is sweet with a high alcohol content. The wine fermentation is being freezed before the fermentation process is complete actually. 
And so, they have like vintage versions, and different varieties of port wine too. But the whole wine in oak cases and how they do stuff is very cool.
My cousin was there too if you were wondering why I had mentioned I had only 1 sister. 
I have 3 花裤 in this collage! WAAAHH~ 
Labels: leavingOZ08, madrid, portugal
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1:48 AM
In Christ Alone
I place my trust
And Glory in the Power of the Cross
