The rest so far (including the holy land!)

Fiona: On our last day in Madrid we decided to have a look at the cathedral after breakfast only to walk in a minute before mass was starting - we hadn't actually realised it was Sunday - so we were very good and decided to stay. The cathedral was gorgeous with lots of light pouring through the stained glass windows and the old organ was being put to good use during the mass - a lot of which was sung. After mass Gerard wanted to see the Bernabeu stadium - a big block of concrete if you ask me (Gerard agrees). The sun finally came out though for us in the afternoon and we had a wander down the main shopping street which lead to the Museo de Prado.

The second night train wasn't as good as the first and I didn't get a lot of sleep but it was fine - still comfier than a normal train.

The hostel in Lisbon is very nice and the owners are so friendly. We both absolutely love Lisbon! We have been on two tours of the old town (which we are very close to) which were amazing value for money because we were the only people who showed up on both days and this morning we had two guides as well. The first tour explored the Western half of the city and we saw places we wouldn't even have known existed including a Jezuit church which is incredibly ornate on the inside but very plain outside so you would think it is nothing special. There is a lot of history in the buildings and there are many ruins dating back to the Roman empire. This morning's tour included the castle and cathedral (among other monuments) and when we were finished we asked our guides to recommend somewhere for lunch. They took us to a fantastic little restaurant in the middle of a deserted side street where we had the best meal we have had so far. Gerard had pork in a mushroom sauce and I had pork wrapped in cabbage parcels with rice (very traditional food).

On our tour yesterday afternoon our guide also took us to a pastry shop for custard tarts. This place must make hundreds of these a day, and he also took us for a drink of (this is spelled wrong) ginging - a cherry liquor made from brandy, caramel and cinnamon - very sweet and very strong but also dirt cheap. It was the only thing this little shop sold.

At 7.30 last night (just as I was about to make dinner for us in the hostel) Gerard discovered that there was a way to get to Estadio National by train, and as it was a traveling day for us on inter-rail we would get there for free. So off we went on empty tummies (Gerard a tad more willingly than me).

Gerard: First things first, we as Celtic fans have been duped. How can anyone say that the final was played in Lisbon? - it is miles away! The train to the station took around 15 minutes and the walk from the Station to the stadium was about the same (despite dragging an unwilling girlfriend). The good thing about the walk was that it increased the anticipation because the floodlights towered over the forest that hid the stadium. 15 minutes later, we turned a corner and there in front of us was the stadium.

Many don't know but the stadium is still used today for the Portuguese Cup Final (our tour guide informed us that this year Porto won) so one would expect not to be able to get into the stadium. Wrong. We literaly walked right through the gate where I then took far too many photos and stood below the actual spot where Billy lifted the trophy (I would have stood on the exact spot but the area was cordoned off). We then left the stadium by walking onto the pitch and through the gate we opened.

Fiona: This afternoon (after our great lunch) we took the tram out to Belhem and saw the tower built on the water and the Monastry. This is also a lovely bit of the city right on the coast as the river meets the sea and there is a great view. We didn't really go inside the monuments because we felt that we'd already spent enough money but Lisbon is absolutely somewhere we would like to visit again.