Often overlooked by North Americans, Portugal and in particular Lisbon is a worthy destination. This past May I found a self proclaimed "Celebrity" shining shoes on the street near to the Restauradoes metro stop on Avenida Libertadores.

He has apparently been featured on several TV programs and has played a small part in at least one Portuguese film. With a pipe in the corner of his mouth he delivered a celebrity shoe shoe on the street, stopping only to make sure his umbrella kept the sun out of my eyes.

He used a very soft semi-liquid neutral shoe polish that brought up the color in my pebble grained loafers. Ten minutes and 3 euros later I was a fan.

My rating for Celebrity Shine Lisbon: 4.5 Brushes out of 5