Lisbon, Portugal

Lisbon is stunning; what a glorious city to spend a few days in. Its quirky restaurants, beautiful plazas, charming neighbourhoods and terrifying taxi drivers are all seared in the memory. But it didn't start auspiciously. I blame the Night Nurse!!

Just two simple pills and I'm out like a light, not waking until well past midday. I sit upright in disbelief checking my watch, the hotel room alarm clock and then my phone which has somehow switched itself off. But it's true, it's nearly twenty past 12. I've never slept that late in my life!! God, I must have been exhausted.

I wake Coman, who has been similarly zonked, and then check for messages. Sure enough Emily and Andy had both sent texts asking if we were meeting for breakfast but that is long past. It seems I'd set my alarm for pm rather than am, like an idiot so it had failed to go off.

Throwing on some clothes we race upstairs to the VIP lounge and the promise of complementary fabulousness, to be greeted by a coffee machine which proves unfathomable and a German guest watching motor-racing on the TV. So much for grabbing a free breakfast.

Andy and Emily are already off on an exploration prior to their flight home, so I make hasty arrangements to meet them back at the hotel at 4pm to check all is well and then Coman and I hit the streets.

Lisbon is built upon seven major hills and is a perfect aerobic workout for pedestrians. Fortunately it's downhill all the way from the Dom Pedro Palace to the centre so along we go, past the Parque Eduardo VII and down the wide Avenue Da Liberdade with its shady tree-lined pavements. Shops, cafes and hotels are all in abundance but it's at the end of the Avenue that we settle upon a restaurant for lunch, Valentino.

I sit, completely spaced out from the medication which has thankfully done the trick and tackled my symptoms, but left me so zonked I'm lacking in all conversation. A great lunch companion I prove to be! But fortified by a big bowl of pasta we both watch the world go by in a fluffy haze, feeling relaxed and chilled in the blissful heat of the sun.

We've got an hour or so before our rendezvous so meander through the Rossio, a central square housing fountains and statues and surrounded by the beautiful blue jacaranda trees that seem to be in bloom all over the city. Down the Rua Augusta we tread to the Praca Do Comercio a vast open plaza where Lisbon meets the banks of the river Tagus.

To our right is the Ponte 25 de Abril, a replica of San Francisco's famous Golden Gate Bridge and in the distant to the left lies the 17km Vasco da Gama Bridge, built in 1998, which crosses the massive estuary. While we drink in the view Andy texts to say he's back in the hotel so we jump in a cab and hightail it back up the hill.

We arrive before Emily so I order us all coffees and delicious pasteis de nata (custard tarts, a Portugese delicacy) while we wait and soon she appears having conquered Lisbon in just four hours. The list of sights she's seen in that time is colossal! With farewells completed I put them both in a cab and send them to the airport before I slump in the lobby exhausted. This cold is fighting back.

However we are now officially on holiday for the next two days. And with no responsibilities I can do what any sane man would do in my position - go to bed!

It's 8.30pm before we set foot outside the hotel and the evening is drawing in. Naturally our minds turn to just one thing; cocktails!! And where better than the Skybar on the rooftop terrace of the Tivoli hotel? It's a lovely location to laze on daybeds and watch the city below us turn a dusty shade of pink, with the castle nestled on the hilltop bathed in a sunset glow. Mojitos are ordered and chill-out music is played but the tranquility is disturbed by a very English sound; Essex.

Yes, an entire family who could be cast members from TOWIE are on the terrace. Over made-up and sunburnt girls with OTT frocks are hanging out with their slip-on shoes-but-no-socks boyfriends drinking lager, while a sovereign ring-wearing dad and bad highlights mum proudly look on. This being a classy joint they've dressed up for dinner but are effortlessly out-classed by the European types wearing cashmere sweaters and neck scarfs, drinking wine and smoking cigarettes with an insouciant air.

We, of course, look bloody marvellous but as the sunsets we realise we're not quite dressed for the evening chill so decide to leave and find somewhere fun for dinner.

Just a little further down Avenue Da Liberdade we stumble upon a funicular which ferries us, rather expensively, up the hill to the Barrio Alto district of Lisbon, famed for its riotous nightlife and fabulous restaurants. Sadly though, Sunday seems to be a little tame and the bars aren't throbbing and a number of the restaurants are closed. The best of the bunch are packed solid so finding a good place to eat means treading the streets but after a while we find one.

Imperio dos Santidos serves traditional fare at reasonable prices and my stewed Iberico pork cheeks in red wine with potato, bacon and cherry tomatoes is rather scrummy. Coman has Farinheira (pork pudding) risotto with tomatoes, peas, mushrooms and asparagus which is equally tasty.

But I'm still running on empty and our evening excursion has got the better of me. 10.30pm comes and we hail a cab back to the hotel. We want to be up bright and early for tomorrow, no over-sleeping allowed!!