Portugal
If you’ve never flown Ryan Air, it can be a bit of a mystery. We’ve flown this airline several times and it is still a challenge! First, Ryan Air is the epitome of a ‘discount’ airline. When they say no frills, to Ryan Air that includes seat cushions. Everything is an added expense. Take your boarding pass, for instance. On Ryan Air you can check in for your flight 6 weeks in advance if you are a priority customer! A priority customer has paid not only for their ticket but also for a checked bag, 1 only; a carry-on bag, 1 only; a seat, yeah, 1 only; and priority boarding. Bag weight and size is strictly controlled and checked and if it doesn’t pass, there’s a supplement.
Ryan Air also charges to print out your boarding pass, 40EUR! If you fail to read their emails you will miss the fact that they think the world uses too much paper so they’re doing their part to help cut back.
So, you’ve paid the extra 50-80EUR per ticket for all these ‘priorities’ and now the time has come to board the plane. To save money, Ryan Air doesn’t use a boarding gate, instead they bus you out to the plane. That’s fine, lots of airlines do that. Check-in for the bus ride is where things get interesting. The priority line is next to the ‘not-priority’ line which is 2 inches from the standing area. IF you can see the sign, you’re lucky because it’s nothing less than a mass horde in front of the attendants.
They begin ‘priority’ check-in by shuffling you into an area against the door that is defined by a rope barrier. Once that area is full, they start packing in the ‘not-priority’ group on the other side of the rope. So, while you all stand there, packed against each other like a deck of cards, the bus pulls up and it’s a bum-rush to get on board. The priority bus pulls away and heads for the plane with the not-priority bus in hot pursuit. Once at the plane, the doors open and it’s anybody’s game as to who gets on first. All this and you didn’t pay full fare!
The flight is just as entertaining. Ryan Air flight attendants are on a non-stop selling spree during the entire flight. You can buy anything from liquor to jewelry to lottery tickets, my favorite. For those less adventurous souls, you can also purchase water, drinks or something from their fine selection of prepared sandwiches.
We get to Lisbon somewhere close to our scheduled arrival time and retrieve our bags. Our shuttle driver is waiting so no worries bout getting to the apartment, it’s a quick 20-30 minute ride up and down all of the seven hills that Lisbon is built on.
We arrive, and to our surprise there are two elevators to take us to the 5th floor apartment. Pleasant surprise because that wasn’t included in the apartment listing. This is a two-bedroom, two bath apartment looking out onto one of the main streets in the Chiado (pronounced, ‘shaw-doe’) district. This area is known for shops, cafes and lots of street performers so at night, it can get a little noisy, but that’s what double-pane windows and shutters are for, keep out the noise.
Dining area
Kitchen complete with clothes washer
View of Saint Georges castle from our apartment
Living room area
Bedroom #2
Bathroom #2
Master bedroom
Lisbon Cathedral from apartment
Rua Garrett street
Bathroom #1 complete with water fountain next to toilet
Now it’s time to unpack, find a grocery store and settle in. Justin and Nicole will arrive tomorrow evening around 8pm and will be ready for a glass of wine and to get some sleep. It’s been a fun time by ourselves but we’re looking forward to sharing the rest of our trip with the kids.
Til tomorrow.