We Arrived in Lively Lisbon, But We Were Not So Lively . . .

There was some confusion, and our driver picked us up late at the airport in Lisbon. Walking as boldly to the exit as we could, our tired trio finally breathed in Portuguese air. In the front of the airport were trees I have never seen before. It was dusk, and the fading light mirrored our fading capacities.

As we drove through the busy streets to our hotel, the Hotel Lisboa Plaza, I noticed that there were streetlights that burned yellow rather than white. It gave off a more romantic feel. We were again awash in yellow when we went through a tunnel covered with yellow tiles. It struck me that I have never seen anything like that in the U.S.

There is tilework everywhere in Lisbon. The ceiling and all four walls of the elevator to our room were covered in tiles.

Along the main boulevard,, Avenida da Liberdade, crowds were lively out and about eating, drinking, or simply strolling. "Other people have so much fun," I thought. I felt defeated in my fatigue--like I would never be capable of having fun again. This flawed thinking happens to me when I am weary.

When we arrived to our room, it appeared just as it had on the Hotel Lisboa Plaza website with a sliding door divider between the bedroom and sitting room. "Deke" always favors a sitting room, but it somehow makes me feel guilty. I come from a large family, and I automatically think of who else could be staying in the unoccupied places like the hide-a-bed in the living room. This entertains Deke no end. These things never occur to him.

It was nice to have a bottle of port waiting.

It was nice to have a bottle of port waiting. I have not tasted much port. It is much heavier than most wines--I enjoy it.

The crowning glory of the suite is the bathroom. It is nearly all marble. The pictures below don't show how impressive it is live.

The only problem with the bathroom as I see it is that you see yourself everywhere, even on the bidet or toilet! There is a floor-to-ceiling mirror right by the bidet. Perhaps Europeans maturely assume that people have accepted their bodies completely. Not me.

The funny thing is, when we are young, we don't appreciate what have and are critical of ourselves. Slowly, maturity sets in and we have the capacity to accept ourselves more fully. The problem is that as we mature and accept ourselves, for the most part our bodies are in worse shape. It is like one big tease. Nature provides that constant challenge for us--And then we are dead. Not too many of us outsmart nature in that way.

I crawled into bed with such thoughts hoping that sleep would take me. I woke up at a decent hour for Salt Lake City time, and began my day in the middle of the night. Suddenly, I was seized with some of the worse pain I have ever experienced. It was a back spasm that went on for about 20 minutes. I was jumping around and cursing, ordering Deke to get me some Ibuprofen. I contorted my body in strange ways to get the spasm to stop.

Though my spirit was willing to awake, my body said, "You're not going anywhere." After the pain stopped, I fell asleep and woke up at a decent Lisbon, Portugal time.