First Day in Lisbon, Portugal

First Meal:

After landing and dropping off our luggage at the apartment we were off to find lunch. We walked a short distance down the road to Avenida de Liberdade to find our first meal in Portugal. We chose a well-known seafood restaurant named Ribadouro, where you can pick your own live lobster right out of huge aquariums out front (see above).

We ordered a beef dish, garlic prawns and omelettes for our lunch and everything was a hit except the omelettes. Our girls were in the mood for breakfast foods, because their bodies were still on US time. The problem was, their taste buds were expecting a typical American style omelette, but the texture and taste of the eggs were not quite what the girls where accustomed to. This was a learning experience and a teaching moment for all involved. It was good for them to give it a try, but also to understand that things may taste very different than that we are use to at home. The kids are adventurous eaters, so they all did very good trying new things and finding foods they enjoyed during our time in Portugal.

Otherwise, the other two dishes were a big hit for the rest of us. We usually try a couple different dishes and share, but in this case honestly the prawns paired with rice and broccolini were the big crowd pleasers. The prawns were AMAZING, let me tell you! They were perfectly prepared in this robust  garlic and olive oil combination. You can't see from the pictures, but we would take the extra  and drizzle it over the rice then place the prawns on top. I couldn't see any seasoning on the prawn at all and it was baffling, so I have to guess that all the flavor came from how the prawns were cooked in the fresh garlic and flavorful olive oil. I didn't try the beef and vegetable dish, but my husband and son loved it.

Portugal Spring Break

What's good world! Life disappeared me from the blogophere last year due to a cross country move. Now I'm back! It's a brand new chapter in my life and I'm back on my bargainSwag thang; snagging great deals for my family around town, online and when it comes to travel.

One of my life goals is to give my kids the world via travel. So in pursuit of that dream the BargainSwag family traveled to Portugal and over the next couple of weeks we'll be posting about our experiences, deals and tips we used to make travel more affordable for our family.

Learning About Our Destination:

As soon as we decided on Portugal I picked up a book on Lisbon and one on Portugal to educate myself about our destination and plan as much of the trip as I could in advance. The books also came with maps, which came in handy during the trip as well.

Visiting the Hotel Del Coronado

Belmont Park

SLS Las Vegas

On this cold winter morning I woke up to school cancellations and a winter storm warning. As I snuggled back under the warm covers all I could think about was how much I wanted to have some fun in the sun. My mind went instantly to.....Vegas baby!

Dinner at Skylon Tower Revolving Dining Room - Niagara Falls

Who can resist a meal with an amazing view? We ended our Canadian vacation by spending our final evening visiting Niagara Falls. We arrived hungry around 4 p.m., just in time to take advantage of the early dinner special at the Skylon Tower's Revolving Dining Room.

Centennial Beach and Park - Barrie, Ontario, Canada

After enjoying an awesome lunch at THE WORKS, Gourmet Burger Bistro, we headed down to Centennial Park and Beach in the heart of downtown Barrie, Ontario, Canada.