I will be traveling to Lisbon & Porto in November. What should I not miss? Are there other areas I should consider? I will be there for 3-7 days after a 7 day Madrid/Seville trip. Help!

Carol, <BR> <BR>This is a re-paste of a message on the "bullfighting" thread - - I thought it might not cross your radar screen. <BR> <BR>[I]... suggest that you strongly consider going to a bullfight in Lisbon (Thursday nights only)... [instead of Spain]. <BR> <BR>They don't kill the bull in Portuguese bullfighting, and the whole thing is quite a show of horsemanship and pageantry, all completely bloodless. There are multiple "players" - - in some ways similar to bullfights in Spain (though I have never actually witnessed one of those). In the final "act", there is one "main" toreador (not a MATAdor - - from the verb "matar" - - to kill), and roughly six assistants. The main toreador has to "charge" the bull, confronting him face on, grabbing each of his horns in right and left hands, while the assistants rush in on either side of the neck, thereby immobilizing by brute strength alone. I suppose that occasionally, this "finale" is not successful on the principal attempt - - which must be very dangerous. I didn't see one that was NOT successful - - three bulls made up one night of this most intriguing spectacle. <BR> <BR>

FYI, even though the bull is not killed in the ring in Portugese bullfighting, it IS killed later.

I thought that the objection to bullfighting was that gore was glorified. <BR> <BR>I enjoyed my night of the bull fight in Lisbon. <BR> <BR>That's all I have to say. <BR>

To Monica <BR>FYI ALL bulls in the world ARE killed sooner or later, unless you wish to raise one as a pet animal <BR>xyz

Re bullfighting in Portugal. My understanding is that the bull is killed for meat if judged cowardly and put out to stud if judged brave. I never went to a bullfight in Portugal, partly because my Portuguese relative there (an elderly man) was adamantly opposed to the bullfights, on the grounds of cruelty to animals. Next time over, I may see for myself . . . <BR> <BR>Carol, I really liked these places and would not have wanted to miss them. <BR> <BR>Cascais and Sintra (both to the west of Lisbon): Cascais is a pretty, relaxing town on the water. It was once a fishing village, and although those days are over, it's not entirely resort-like either. It has a lot of charm. Sintra is inland, with a Moorish castle overlooking its narrow, winding streets and shops. The view from the castle is fantastic. You really should not miss Sintra. <BR> <BR>Monsaraz and Marvao-- both fortified hilltop towns near the Spanish border. Evora, near Monsaraz, is also worth checking out. It's a busy place, though. (Park outside the town walls and walk in. You won't regret it.) <BR> <BR>Batalha and Obidos (north of Lisbon)--the Batalha Monestary is gorgeous; Obidos, a small medieval town, is great for a dose of its cherry liquor and boutiques--has a nice castle too. <BR> <BR>We did a circuit of central Portugal, which was easy on the driving and very interesting. (We had around 10 days to work with, though.) I'd check out a travel book on Portugal and see what grabs you. Also, if you're traveling north-south, be sure to take some time to skirt the coast. It's beautiful. <BR> <BR>I hope this helps a bit. Have fun!

Hello, Carol <BR>My husband and I spent almost three weeks in Portugal and found the people lovely, food great, and countryside the best! <BR>We loved the small seaside town of Sintra that has a nice old castle in the city center and a more interesting castle with strong moorish influences just outside called the <BR>"Pena PAlace". We actually stayed in a small town on the ocean just 15 minutes west of Sintra, in great hotel with our own balcony that overlooked the ocean. You'll see soaring cliffs and some of the stongest waves in the world. This area has become known as the new surfer paradise. In fact, we would watch them at night from our balcony. You should really drive that stretch of coastline. This area Praia (means "beach") de Mar <BR>offers good restaurants. We ate the 2" thick salmon steaks which arrives loaded with vegetables and potatoes smothered in a garlic butter. All the fish is good and fresh. Joas is a very well known restaurant in Lisbon. Very popular with the locals. Portuguese wine is very nice, try the local wines in each area. Portugal is famous for the hand-painted tiles that covers the entire facade of their buildings. It makes Lisbon quite beautiful. We had <BR>some tiles handpainted for our home while we were there. <BR>We loved Portugal, it has remnants of it's great history, Jeronimous museum, the coach museum, both I strongly recommend. You'll find it lacks the pizazz that Paris or MAdrid offers, but, if you really engage the people and dig into what they are about, you will love Portugal. <BR>We were there two years ago. This last March we were in Barcelona and Madrid and then rented a car for another week and toured the countryside. We stayed at an old restored inn that had been an <BR>olive oil producing farm. It was spectacular. It was outside on a hill, where the sun setting on Toledo was magnificent! Again, we had our own balcony, drank the local wine and had a fabulous time! <BR>LEt us know is you want the specifics on our hotels, all varieties, all prices, as welll as other more specific info. <BR>Bon Voyage! <BR>Gloria and Mike <BR>

Gloria & Mike <BR> <BR>I don't remember Praia de Mar. By your description (15min W of Sintra) it should be either Praia das Maçãs (Apple's Beach) or Azenhas do Mar (Sea's watermill). <BR> <BR>In the same area, there is Praia Grande (Large Beach) and Colares.

to the top, for Pankaj... <BR> <BR>Postscript: If this forum had an easier way to locate and direct readers to a specific (previous) posting by a unique identifier (timestamp), it would not be necessary to "top" (and repeat) information so tediously. This is my new crusade, and I am thinking about adding this postscript (when applicable) to every new reply I make here. If you agree with me, then please write to Danny Mangin or David Downing - - [email protected] - - and encourage them to move forward with this improvement (and any others they have up their sleeves) to this best-on-the-web travel forum! <BR> <BR>