RACE DAY!

This is the reason we are in Lisbon. Andrew and Dani ran the Lisbon Half Marathon. They each had a personal goal time to finish the race and they were both pleased that they did better than they expected. They got up early to catch the shuttle bus that takes them to the start of the race. I didn't have to rush so much, had time for a leisurely breakfast, then went to catch the bus to take me to the finish line. After waiting for half an hour and no busses, I walked around the corner to the metro/subway station. I had to change lines once and then walk a couple of blocks and made it in plenty of time for Andrew's finish. He was 39th overall out of 15000 runners and the first American to finish-time 1:18.30. Then we waited for Dani to cross the finish line in 2:27.30. It was pretty hot-upper 80s- and they were worn out, so we took the metro back to the hotel for showers and rest time.
We took a stroll on the waterfront before catching a bus back downtown for a special dinner out that Andrew had reserved. We wandered through a typical city neighborhood, up a hill with narrow passages and twists and turns. It was steep, but so interesting. The restaurant was O Corrido, a Fado restaurant. Fado is the music of Portugal 🇵🇹, traditionally an expressive singer accompanied by a portugese guitar and an acoustic guitar, performing in a fairly intimate setting , like a Cafe or pub. We had a 3 course dinner with music between each course. Food was good, as was the music and overall experience. Then a walk downhill back to the bus, back to the hotel to sleep before an early bus trip in the morning.Read more