Zamora to Lisbon

On our last night in Zamora we visited the Capitol Restaurant in the centre of the town. This proved another of my theories in that it is possible to obtain a craft beer anywhere in the world. In this case it was one called Mesopotamia from a local craft brewery.

It really was excellent; it just proves that the craft beer revolution is in full swing. The meal was equally good; I had slow roasted suckling pig, while Marion had a veal steak. May of the buildings in Zamora were illuminated as returned through the town centre.

The drive from Zamora was largely along deserted motorways and was notable for passing through the large areas of devastation caused by the forest fires that Central Portugal suffered earlier in the year. At some points the blackened stumps spread for a far as the eye could see. It was really shocking.

We navigated through Lisbon to our hotel fairly successfully; the hotel has a boutiquey feel and has a lovely lounge on the top floor with a terrace, overlooking the River Tagus. There we saw the Costa Fortaleza depart with over 3000 passengers on board. Marion was not reassured when I told her that it was a sister ship of the ill-fated Costa Concordia.

I found tonight’s restaurant through the reader’s section of the Guardian.

All comments are welcome, ha ha. It was not far from our hotel and had the feeling of a neighbourhood café. We were early, but by the time we left there was a considerable queue to get in a real sign of a successful place. Marion pronounced her sea bass the best food that she has had on our trip so far. It also had a very friendly feel and was probably the most typical Portuguese café that we have visited so far. The bill was also amazing coming it at under €40 including wine and beer for us both. The pictures are of us enjoying our meal and of the outside.

However the evening was spoilt when the ATM that I used dispensed €20 rather than the €200 that was promised. I am not quite sure what I am going to do about this.