farewell to Lisbon Portugal, hello Madrid Spain!

The hotel I was staying in Lisbon, the Ritz Four Seasons (http://www.fourseasons.com/) had large, quiet spaces and was tranquil. The hallways are three times the size of a "normal" hotel and the rooms are just huge! The service attitude was impeccable although I must admit that servers being too proactive about watching your next bite of food to ask if there is something else you want/need before you have even taken the last bite or sip is alittle disturbing. There is good attentive service and then there is service that is just too much. It had me on edge. The guide we had in Lisbon was fantastic and certainly one of the top 5 ever for me. Her name was Sonia Santos. I would certainly book her for any future groups/needs. I will tell you honestly that the food in Portugal was not so interesting; no spices or intriguing flavors. We had great soup and simply prepared seafood. I had a few very good meals; Casino Estoril for duck confit, Villa Italia, but most importantly was Tavares restaurant (http://www.tavaresrico.pt/) I am a steak snob, liking only very good filet. I have found only a few restaurants that get my "beef" attention; Chicago & Manhattan, any Morton's, Ruth Chris or alike but this restaurant just took the EU cake for me. Dating back to the 18th century... yes, that would be 1784! The interior was awe-inspiring, like being royalty at Versailles (ok, I know, different country but you understand). I can not encourage anyone visiting Lisbon enough to take one very fine meal here.
Now, I am here in Madrid as a stop on my way to Barcelona. All first time experiences. The Hilton Airport hotel does not look like much from the outside but the sleeping rooms are very comfortable and hip with all glass bathrooms (the rooms are not meant to be shared by co-workers or platonic friends unless you have a triste planned). I don't think I will get to see many sights here as the stop is too short and I really needed to rest & recover from the very long days in Portugal. I will come back though, I can already sense that. I like Madrid (except the attempted pick pocketing on the Metro. Glad I wore pants with snaps).