Even after spending almost three months on this trip, we’ve realized that we just can’t see it all. There’s so much more history, culture and art left to experience. On our way back to Portugal, Carrie and I made a brief stop in Merida, Spain, which showcases some of the best Roman ruins in Spain. We could only see a few of the ruins, but the ones we walked through were fabulous. Merida (Emerita Augusta) was founded by the Romans in the 1st century B.C. as a home for discharged Roman soldiers, and it was outfitted with all the luxuries of home, such as a theatre and a fighting arena. One can easily imagine what life was like for those retired legion fighters in this sunny Spanish city.
Tomar, Portugal
From Merida, we drove back into Portugal, working our way towards Lisbon. Tomar has a major place in history as the last Templar Knights town to be constructed in the late 12th century. Although the Templars were disbanded soon after, and succeeded by the Order of Christ, this convent/fortress and city stayed viable, and played a role in Portuguese overseas exploration in the 15th century under Henry the Navigator.
Sintra
With just a couple days left in our adventure, Carrie and I headed to Sintra, which we seem to keep missing when we are in Portugal. Many guidebooks say that Sintra is best seen as a day trip from Lisbon, as it’s only about 30 miles west and has good train service. However, spending a night or two in Sintra is like spending time in a Disney fairy tale. One is surrounded by brightly colored castles, turreted buildings and narrow walled roads. There are more splendid eye catching sights and castles, gardens and tunnels to explore than one can do in just a day. In the day that we visited here, Carrie and I toured the extravagant mountaintop Pena Palace and then on to the fun Quinta da Regaleira house and gardens. There are many other worthwhile historical homes and museums to see in Sintra and we were sad that we couldn’t see more.
Carrie and I left Indiana 81 days ago, and while we love traveling, we are ready to go back home and see our family and friends again. We fly from Lisbon back to the US tomorrow. We have had a wonderful trip, making new friends and seeing places that we have always wanted to visit. But we will be happy to again be in the comfort of our home and start planning for the upcoming holidays.
Digital Postcards 
What an amazing trip! We loved your travel insights and photos as you shared the journey. Southern Spain and Morocco are definitely now on our list of future travels! Safe travels as you head back home.
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Thanks! We had a great vacation but are ready to go home for a while. It’s a big world out, so where to next? If you get down to Indy let us know. We’d love to see you guys again.
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