Yes, this happened to my husband when seeking euros during our lunch at Taberna Rua das Flores. I had forgotten that it's cash only, so he went to the Pra�a Luis de Cam�es to the closest CTT Multibanco, which may be your closest one in Chiado, as I know you'll avoid those rip off, all over the city, ATMs. He knew better, but was distracted by the tricky, rather confusing language. The DCC is all over Lisbon, I'm afraid. A cautionary tail. We quickly learned our lesson.

A question - I checked the site to purchase tickets on May 11 for the Mosteiro dos Jer�nimos, but the day was whited out. The days before and after are available so we�ll just switch the order of our visit, but I was wondering what was happening on May 11 that is closing the monastery. I can�t imagine they sold out for just that day!

https://bilheteira.patrimoniocultural.pt/pos/event/list

No, the tickets wouldn't be sold out for May 11. I don't believe it's an official holiday, so there may be a special event??? Glad you were able to switch the order.

I think you mean that that is what happens when you do accept DCC. Sorry to see that scam is alive and well in Portugal - always do the transaction in the currency of the country, preferably with a card with no foreign transaction fees..

Yes, thanks for catching that, thursdaysd! That's what I meant.
My husband was in a rush to get back to our lunch at Taberna Rua das Flores (I forgot that it's cash only there), and although he certainly knows way, way better, the wording here was tricky, as if to indicate that if he didn't accept, the transaction would be cancelled, and he accepted the DCC by mistake. It was a costly mistake never to be repeated.
This was at a CTT multibanco, but the same applied to Banco Santander and every other multibanco we encountered. The DCC is alive and well, in Portugal as well as in Spain.

We were absolutely astonished at the number of Euronet "ATM" machines with horrible currency exchange rates that we saw everywhere we looked.
https://www.portugalist.com/euronet-atms/.

progol,
The only official Portuguese bank holiday in May is May 1.
https://economiafinancas.com/2021/fe...xcel-portugal/.

I really hate the DCC scam, it's preying on people who may be traveling for the first time. That is a truly extortionate mark-up!

Thanks, Maribel. I couldn’t find anything about May 11 but I’m glad I checked! With 6 days, it’s easy enough to rearrange our schedule so we can easily go to Belem on another day. And for now, I think I won’t reserve any tickets for the Jeronimos Monastery since we do need to commit to a particular day, and I’d like to see how the weather will be before we go. I did get tickets for the Sintra sites, though. And the rates are very reasonable, especially with the senior rates. There are at least some advantages to this aging business!

Those sr discount rates at Portuguese museums and monuments are indeed a nice advantage to us senior folks. The Monastery, as you know, is closed on Mondays (and that strange May 11 closure??) but open on Sundays, and sr tickets only cost 5 euros.

May 11 is our wedding anniversary!!! 48 years!!!!

Our favorite site in Lisbon was the Monasterio Jeronimos in the Belem area. The Manueline architecture is beautiful. The Coach
Museum is nearby as is the Monument to the Discoveries. The explorers ( Vasco da Gama) left to discover the new worlds from there.

KarenWoo,
Wow--48 years is a BIG deal! Happy early anniversary!

progol,
This is an interesting article about iconic Lisbon dishes, one of which (Pataniscas de Bacalhau) I had at Taberna Rua das Flores, comfort food at its best.
https://roadsandkingdoms.com/travel-...-in-10-dishes/.

KarenWoo - ditto to what Maribel said - Wow! That is wonderful! Will you be away to celebrate? Congratulations!

Maribel - the article looks great and I will happily devour it! 😁 Countdown begins….

HappyTravlr- I’m looking forward to Belem…as well as the rest. 😉

@Karen - many congratulations! I hope you have a wonderful day.

@Maribel - interesting. I happen to be reading Roads & Kingdoms' "Grape, Olive, Pig" by Matt Goulding on Spain and Spanish food. Nice that they have info on Portugal as well.

@thursdaysd,
We have "Grape, Olive, Pig" in our library. The chapter on the ancient Phoenician sustainable method of almadraba (net) blue fin tuna fishing on the Costa de la Luz (Barbate, Conil, Tarifa, Zahara) is quite interesting.

They've just opened a new "Lisbon Earthquake Experience" next to the Coach Museum in Bel�m. Not sure I'd want to attend (I was in a mild one on vacation in Mexico once and don't necessarily want to revisit that experience).
It's a trip back to the Nov. 1, 1755 Lisbon earthquake.

https://lisbonquake.com/en-GB.

Thanks, but I think I will pass on the quake experience too! Between the quake itself and the ensuing fires, it must have been absolutely terrifying.

I just finished the chapter on Jamon Iberico. It made me nostalgic for Salamanca, but even more for real jamon.

And the tsunami! Glad you're enjoying the book!

Progol, we leave for Greece on May 12 so I guess you could call that our anniversary celebration!

When do you leave for Portugal? I am sure you will have a wonderful time, and I agree living in NYC prepares you for the crowds and noise. Maybe April was so crowded because of Easter?

And also the "Spanish Invasion" of Portugal during Holy Week! Many families have that week off, or at least the long weekend, and more than one Portugal host of ours remarked about their Spain neighbors coming in droves to visit during Semana Santa.

Sounds like a wonderful way to celebrate 48 years of marriage in grand style, KarenWoo!

KarenWoo, what a lovely way to celebrate your anniversary!

We leave May 4 - I’m getting excited! I just paid the balance on my Lisbon apartment so I know its real. 😉 I’m really starting to look forward to the trip!

Yipe, progol, it's getting really close!