Monument to the Discoveries

Early in the morning we entered the mouth of the estuary and continued to gently nudge our way 10 miles further up the River Tejo to our mooring berth very near the centre of Lisbon. Following another delicious breakfast of porridge and fresh fruit we joined our coach and guide for an hour's journey, travelling north east through luscious vineyard lined valleys, to the mediaeval town of Obidos. The town, the traditional bridal gift of the kings of Portugal to their queens, sits high above the surrounding valley and is enclosed by a well preserved wall. Only a handful of local cars are permitted into the town with its narrow cobbled streets and whitewashed houses framed with bright blue and yellow borders. A delightful morning was spent wandering around the town and poking into little shops where I bought a superb soft cork holder for my sun specs. A tour of the city followed and then back to the ship.

A light salad lunch followed by a swim in the sea water filled pool was most welcome, as the temperature had soared to 28'.

Leaving the mooring berths is always a fascinating spectator sport and then we watched as Lisbon's interesting architecture slipped slowly away. The blip today is of the wonderful Padrao dos Descobrimentos, which is a concrete monument situated on the embankment in the shape of a caravel. It was erected in 1960 to commemorate the 500th anniversary of Henry the Navigator. Henry is the figure at the prow and lined up behind him are other Portuguese heroes of discoveries. Inside the monument is an exhibition on the city's history.

We are now bound for Southampton with 2 days at sea.