Tuesday 23rd April – Lisbon

I had hoped to sleep late, but once again I was woken by my room steward, who parks his cart just outside my door and rummages in the ice to fill up the buckets as he cleans the rooms. (I have asked if he can park his cart somewhere else tomorrow, but he can’t move it very far along because of the layout of the corridor.)

Unfortunately the dancing and continual activity have caught up with me, along with the asthma and the cold. I really did not want to do much.

I took the free shuttle bus to a central square. While waiting for the bus to fill, I stood in the sunshine and talked to the driver. He suggested that I take the 737 bus up to the castle (and even got out of the shuttle bus at our destination to point it out to me) and then a tram to another area. I went to the castle but found I had to walk uphill on cobblestones. It felt like miles!

Inside the castle complex I sat on a stone bench in the sun for about an hour. The forecast temperature was around 18 degrees, which is perfect when the sky is blue and the sun is shining. I took a few photos and then soaked up the sun’s rays and decided I didn’t want to do anything else, so walked back down to the bus. The sunshine was wonderful after the UK's bleak winter.

In the square I found a McDonalds and bought some water so I could use their internet. (If you ever want to know the best places for the internet at a port, you either ask or follow the crew! They go to the free wifi spots and skype home.)

Back on the ship I read on my couch for a while and then lay on the bed and almost dozed. I don’t think I slept for more than 5 minutes at any one time, but at least I was resting.

Perhaps it was fortunate that there was a mistake in the programme, and the 7:45 to 8:30 dancing segment had not been included. I went along at 8:00 but no one was there! I made it to the 9:15 segment, but left shortly after 10:30. I had been admiring the discipline of my new friend Frances, who leaves about that time every night so she can get sufficient rest. After leaving early myself, I admire her discipline even more! (I will miss Frances after the cruise. We have had a lot of good laughs together.)