Lisbon

A beautiful starting point of our cruise vacation. The night before our cruise starts we're staying at the Vip Eden hotel. The hotel has a roof terrace with a swimming pool and a magnificent view over Lisbon. Today and tomorrow morning we have some time to explore Lisbon. Tomorrow afternoon we'll start our cruise on the Rotterdam.

The VIP Eden hotel has a typical, somewhat strange frontage.

A beautiful view from the roof terrace of the hotel.

Another view from the roof terrace. In the background you can see the Castle of St. George.

The entrance from the Comercio Square to the Rua Augusta, known as the triumphal arch.

In the center of the Comercio square is a statue of King Jose I showing him on horseback, wearing his emperor's mantle.

Lisbon is the capital and main port of Portugal. The city and port is situated 7 miles inland on the banks of the Rio Tejo river.

A view from the top of the Santa Justa Elevator.

Rossio is the liveliest square in the city, where people stop to sit and relax, or for a drink at the several atmospheric cafes.

This weird construction is known as the Santa Justa Elevator. It's designed by architect Raoul de Mesnier du Ponsard, an apprentice of Gustave Eiffel (yes, from the Eiffel Tower in Paris). It connects downtown to Bairro Alto (the lowest and highest points of the city).

The elevator was originally powered by steam and is 147 feet (45 m) high. From the top you have a nice view over the city. This is the elevator viewed from the top.

At the top of the elevator you are close to the ruins of the Carmo church, devastated by the 1755 earthquake.

A view on the modern city through an old arch of the Carmo church.

A typical way to go to the higher points of the city without getting tired.

A nice way to do some sightseeing is to take the tram, the "Eléctrico de Turismo".

There is a choice of four different tram tours, each marked with its own color: green, red, yellow and blue. The tram takes you through narrow streets.

A typical building in Lisbon, with all the mini-verandahs. You can find many of these buildings in Lisbon.

During the tour you can listen to some commentary in your own language.

Through the triumphal arch which you can see in the background you enter the city and its typical streets and nice squares.

There she is...the Rotterdam. Time to get a'board for our 2,829 nautical mile cruise.

The ship will leave Lisbon at 6.00 pm. You shouldn't be late. The ship won't wait.

Before we get to open see we have to be present at the mandatory life boat drill.

And there we go, under the Vasco da Gama Bridge that spans the Tagus River. It's 11 miles (17 km) long. Our cruise has begun!