Portugal Day 4: The Great Train Chase & Coimbra Charm

At long last…sweet, glorious sleep! After several nights of what could only be described as “toddler interval training,” we all managed a few real hours of uninterrupted rest. Joni did wake once, but this time we took the “ignore and ignore” approach, and miraculously, it worked. Victory!

We rose early, feasted once again at the hotel’s how-do-they-have-everything breakfast buffet, and prepared for the next leg of our adventure: the train to Coimbra. Picture, if you will, two adults heroically dragging two enormous bags, two smaller ones, a stroller, and a car seat, all while maintaining the illusion of competence. We were basically a traveling circus of luggage. 

To their credit, the Portuguese were absolute awesome, helping us find the right platform and even the right spot to stand. Once aboard, Joni slept peacefully, to the immense relief of every business-class passenger within earshot.

The peaceful ride through Portugal’s rolling countryside ended in pure chaos. When they announced our arrival, they apparently meant “we’re stopping in five seconds, run for your lives!” Cue the mad-dash-for-the-exit, a dramatic exit involving a stroller, dangling backpacks, and the tragic loss of one baby bottle (RIP).

After a brief recovery and check-in, we indulged in the two best things known to humankind: pool time and naps. Then, rejuvenated and slightly chlorinated, we met our delightful guide Eva, a real live Coimbra student though not dressed in the traditional black robes that make them look like magical scholars straight out of Hogwarts  (seriously look it up, they look straight out of the books though no photos here as it was forbidden.). 

Eva led us through the historic University of Coimbra, a magnificent maze of courtyards, towers, and ancient stone steps echoing with the sound of chanting freshmen. Apparently, it was ‘hazing season,’ which meant the streets were alive with gleeful chaos, new students in various states of embarrassment being shouted at by upperclassmen. It was like watching a Portuguese musical number directed by Harry Potter’s Snape.

Inside the Biblioteca Joanina,

the legendary 18th-century library, we half-expected a bewigged librarian to swoop down and demand silence in Latin. The air smelled like old books, beeswax, and pure magic. We whispered to each other that if Hogwarts had a study abroad program, this would be it.

After hours of enchantment, we wound our way down Coimbra’s sloping, cobbled streets, narrow lanes framed by ancient buildings, insane drivers, and the sound of distant laughter.   We eventually collapsed (in the best way) at a tiny tapas café (Tapas Nas Costas) tucked into a charming little square, where the sky turned gold and pink over red-tiled rooftops.

There, with sangria in hand and Portuguese guitar music in the air, we watched Joni charm every passing local, student, and pigeon alike. She waved, giggled, and somehow became honorary mascot of Coimbra. 

As the sun slipped away, we took one last stroll along the Mondego River, watching university students run, dance, and laugh under the evening lights.  Joni promptly fell asleep once we returned, and not long after, so did we, dreaming of robes, libraries, and that runaway baby bottle.