solo in lisbon for 2.5 days

Just keep in mind that it's quite hilly in Lisbon. Taking one of the old trolley cars around is
another option to see parts of the city. Also, weather is obviously a factor, and an indoor vs
outdoor option is good to have.

We went to a show at O Faia - (Fado and dinner) - The show was so much fun - the guitar players and the singers all were great. Its an intimate setting, the service was outstanding and we left with big smiles on our faces. You can certainly check with them but I would doubt it would be a problem for a table for '1'.

Núcleo Arqueológico da Rua dos Correeiros - free archeological dig with an archaeological tour guide! Bank was building underground garage and came across three layers of Lisbon life back to the bronze age. It is so well done. Right up from Arco da Rua Augusta, it is a bit tricky to find but it is on Google maps.

TImeOut Lisbon is a great place for lunch with communal seating and a wide array of Lisbon restaraunts to choose from.

Hang out at as many miradouros (elevated look outs) as you can. There was always a small cafe at the ones we visited. Grab a snack and a drink and soak it all in. Our favorite was Miradouro de Sao Pedro de Alcantara.

Enjoy your trip! Lisbon is a terrific place and you will find yourself wanting to spend more time here.

I (mid-50s male) traveled solo to Lisbon last summer (2022) and used Rick's walking tour of the city. It was great. In general, I walked a lot, but also used the trolleys and subway occasionally. It's a hilly, beautiful, seemingly safe city.

I was just there last month (solo) and spent the majority of the day doin the RS walking tours and loved it. As has been mentioned, it is hilly and I did use the trolly's where appropriate and as the guidebook suggested to connect the two walking tours. It's a great town to go solo in. Lots to see and do. Enjoy!!

We also did the RS walking tour (extended version) a couple weeks ago.
Just to be clear, there are the RS walking tour(s) in the guide book, and then the RS walking tour(s) in the RS Audio Europe app. When there are both options available, we always choose the app version narrated by Rick and one of his travel partners. Bring your AirPods or headphones, and follow along without having to read from the guidebook. The Lisbon walk is two parts - the Baixa walk from Praca do Comercio (along the river), and then the Bairro Alto part that he adds on to make it a 1.5 - 2 hr total walk that can be broken in half.
Not all guidebook tours are in the app, but if they are, download them beforehand (or use mobile data on the go), and try them out. Also, they always start with a "check for latest updates" at the start of each audio tour, so maybe do that while on wifi. After that, the tours can be done with or without being on wifi or data. Extra tip - if you do bring AirPods (or equivalent) you can share with a partner - ie you get the left AirPod, and they get the right one - so you can stay in sync.
And try the Ginjinha - it was fun and surprisingly tasty. Both with and without the berry.

thanks everyone for great suggestions. excited for the weekend. I just hope the flight won't cancel/rebook/delay etc.... as airlines have habitually been doing recently!

I agree with doing the RS self-guided walking tours that are in his book. That said, I thought some of the maps weren't well done and could be much clearer. Seems like the gold standard for tour book illustrations is really the DK Eyewitness series. They have some walking tours too for Lisbon, but not as extensively described as RS's.

Also, I was thinking of doing my own walking tour on Sat. vs. doing a cooking course. Any thoughts?

Unless you are really interested in learning how to cook a particular Portuguese dish, I really would not do a cooking course. You only have 2.5 days in Lisbon and a cooking course could take up quite a bit of time, no? There's also Belem to explore which is a few tram stops away from central Lisbon.