Lisbon actually kind of reminds me of san fansisco

fyi, view from pinetemare balcony. hell. yes.
plaza behind maria sofia
this is my, "quick, before the docents see" picture of a play-doughy version of the nike of samothrace, one of my favorite statues ever
centeral plaza or reina sofia
this was so cool; the inside of the black box thing you see above.

view from my reading bench
anna was sleepy, but the room was very cool.
i swear you can see my face when this is on the camera. i'll work on it on the computer. this was the view from lunch.
graffiti on the stairs up towards the castle. wahoowa?
view from the castelo
plaza of the castelo
peahen of the castelo (!) (i think)
looks like monty python and the holy grail could be set here
BLOOD ALONE MOVES THE WHEELS OF HISTORY!
rooftopish cafe and anna
I wasn't lying about the billowing sails

We're in lisbon! and it's so beautiful, I don't know what to do with myself. But let's backtrack a bit:

Yesterday, I was feeling a lot better, but still a bit low on energy, so I went and bought myself Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathon Safran Foer (because I knew I'd finish HP before the plane ride) and a Vogue and Elle from the English-language bookshop I found, went to the Centro de Arte de Reina Sofia (where Guernica is), and then went to the Real Jardin Botanico, where I read about the final adventure (?) of Harry, Ron, and Hermione for about five hours. It was just lovely. Then it was back to the hostel, to the train station, and we caught our overnight train to Lisboa (which falls somewhere between the other two overnight trains in terms of quality; it was like the zurich train but aged about 30 year). We arrived in Lisbon about 8:00, at the (really cool) hostel by nine, where we had to wait about four hours for our room to be ready. Anna passed out on the beanbags in one of the common rooms, and I had just enough time to finish my book. 600 pages, two days, basically twenty-four hours. woot for me. I won't give anything away, but if anyone else has read it and wants to discuss, i'm game. And, walter, if you read this, I can bring it to Peru when I come so that you can read it on the flight home.

After putting our bags in the room and showering so that we felt human again, Anna and I went to a little restaurante down the street from the hostel, where I had a delicious chicken dish and a pretty okay desert (prepackaged but yummy). The view from the outdoor table where we sat was spectacular, and the weather couldn't have been more pleasant. After lunch we crossed the city to another hill housing the city's castle. It was quite a hike, but well worth it. The views were spectacular, the setting peaceful, and there was a free font of water! After touring the remains of the castle, we went to this amazing and somewhat hidden cafe just a few dozen feet lower than the castle that was open and outdoor, with couches and lounge chairs and billowing sails for sun protection.

Tomorrow, I plan to go on a walking tour so that I can learn a thing or two about this city that seems so cool. Then, oh man, shopping! Because now I won't have to lug what I buy around (though I may have to buy a new bag, hmm . . .). I don't even know if I'll buy anything, but I love having the option.

Much love to you all and see you in TWO DAYS!!!