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 by ncfg
I will mention you three express buses that i usually utilize to go to Lisbon or other big towns in my country.
On the pic you can see Turilis express bus, it has connections from the North of Portugal to South.
When i go to Lisbon it stops on Viana do Castelo, Esposende, Povoa de Varzin, Vila do Conde, Porto and Lisbon.
The same line is follow by Avic EXpressos, and you can find information in www.avic.pt.
Other express bus company is Rede de Expressos that do another line: it stops on Braga, Famalicao, Porto, Coimbra, Fatima and Lisbon. For more information take a look at www.rede-expressos.pt . Leave a Comment Theme: Bus
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 Fiat Punto by Bwana_Brown
I was not sure what size car to rent because of the size of our two main suitcases. In the end, we went for a low-end Compact with unlimited mileage, which turned out to be a Fiat Punto. The two suitcases only just squeezed into the hatchback rear, but there was also room for our backpacks off to the side of them when necessary.
The Punto had manual transmission, no air conditioning and no CD player. However, it was fun to drive, economical on gas (pump price was E1.07/litre or US$4.65/US gallon), could handle the 130-kph superhighway speeds and was small enough to handle the tiny streets in some of the villages that we visited. I was very happy with the Punto, especially when I got it back to the airport in one piece 2530 km (1550 miles) later!
The quoted price at the time of rental was E295 including taxes but, by the time they tagged on some extra insurance and the final tank fill-up, the charge came to E366 (US$450) for 10 days of useage. Not bad for total freedom! The photo was taken in the Serra da Estrela mountains near Covilha. Leave a Comment Theme: Car/Motor Home
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 The N332 near Alcafozes by Bwana_Brown
The sign-posting was great on these highways, but you still better have a detailed Road Map! It was fun to drive along in no great rush, pulling over every now and then to let what little traffic there was to simply go on by. The other beauty of these roads was that we could easily find a secluded spot to pull off under some trees for a lunchtime picnic in the car. Just open the doors and enjoy the sounds and smells of nature for a while! The photo was taken on the drive from Monsanto to Covilha in the upper third of Portugal, near the Spanish border. Leave a Comment Theme: Car/Motor Home
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 The Classical Rossio Station by Bwana_Brown
Built in 1886/87, this Neo-Manueline style building was designed by Jose Luis Monteiro. One of its strange features is that the actual platforms from which the trains leave are located high above the street-level Moorish style entrances that you see. We took the escalators up to the top level, whre we had no problem finding which train to take to Sintra. Round trip tickets for the two of us only cost E5 (US$6) and the modern and spacious train was soon underway in the tunnels that lead out of the city.
The trip to Sintra was great as we got our first look at the Portugese countryside during the half-hour trip. When we reached the end of the line, we were within walking distance of all the attractions of Sintra. It was just as easy returning to Lisbon later in mid-afternoon. Definitely worth doing!! Leave a Comment Theme: Subway/Metro
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 Vasco da Gama Bridge by Bwana_Brown
When we finally did get our car, we headed out of the city as fast as we could, heading south for the Algarve across the spectacular Vasco da Gama bridge at the north end of the city. We snapped this quick photo through the windshield to capture at least a bit of this longest bridge in Europe. At 17-km (10 miles) in length, with its cable-stayed main span (visible ahead as we approach it) to allow ship traffic to pass on the Tagus (Tejo) River, this bridge was opened in March, 1998 on the 500th anniversary of Vasco da Gama's arrival in India.
At the very end of our trip, we had to drive into downtown Lisbon for an appointment at the Canadian Consulate. The morning traffic that we experienced verified our earlier decision not to bother with a car. After fighting our way into the centre of the city, while my wife went inside, I stayed with the car on a small street off Ave. da Liberdade where cars were Triple-parked!! Leave a Comment Theme: Car/Motor Home
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 Tractor-trailer Fire on the
IC1 Highway by Bwana_Brown
We noticed a great deal of construction going on as more of the 'A' series roads were being built. There appeared to be a large amount of money pouring in from the European Union to help modernize Portugal's infrastructure. In fact, on two or three occasions, our big Road Map of the country did not even show the new highways that we would suddenly come across!
There were only a couple of times where we were held up, for about a half-hour in each case. One was due to a back-hoe knocking huge rocks loose during an upgrade of the IP5 between Viseau and Aveiro and the other was this tractor-trailer fire on the IC1 as we were leaving the Algarve. It had been a hot day and the truck had become overheated hauling its load up a hill. Fortunately, the rig managed to pull off onto a layby beside the highway before it burst into flames. We watched as the fire trucks raced by our stopped line of traffic. Leave a Comment Theme: Car/Motor Home
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 Standard Taxi by Bwana_Brown
After I had dropped our rental car off at the airport, we took a taxi back into the city for our final night and the driver said that, for another E10, he could be booked and waiting for us in the morning when we had to catch our flight home. I declined the offer and, in the morning, took my chances on the street in front of the hotel. In no time at all, a passing taxi pulled in and we managed to make it back to the airport for only E5. Sometimes it pays to just freelance I guess! Leave a Comment Theme: Car/Motor Home
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 Lisbon train station to
Cascais by hopangLeave a Comment
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 Tourist Cruise Boat 'Douro
Azul' by Bwana_Brown
These cruises sometimes come from Spain and can take 8 days or so, including visits to the Port wineries and vinyards for which this river is so famous. Others may be a day-trip up-river from Porto to Regua where passengers are bussed back to Porto or you can select a short cruise out of Regua itself. The 'Dora Azul' usually departs from Regua for an all-day cruise up the river, traversing the locks at three dams as it continues past Pinhao. Transportation back to Regua is by train. Costs for these cruises vary greatly depending on which option you choose! Leave a Comment Theme: Ship/Boat
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 The 'Passaro do Sol' by Bwana_Brown
When it came time to go, she said that due to the number of passengers, we would be going on another tour operator's boat - the 'Passaro do Sol'. The eight other passengers were already waiting for us as we stepped into the stern of this inboard-engine driven boat. A few minutes later we were off, speeding out of the harbour for the roughly half-hour trip out the the islands. We bought our ticket from 'Nevada Pesca e Passeios Turisticos Berlengas', but I'm not sure who actually runs the boat that we took!
I should also mention that there is a regular, much larger, ferry that makes the crossing. It only does one round-trip per day (and we missed it) during May, increasing to two trips per day in peak summer season. Our afternoon on the Berlengas was one of the highlights of the entire trip! The photo shows our craft returning to pick us up from the small harbour area on the main Berlenga island. Leave a Comment Theme: Ship/Boat
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