We spent two days under bright blue skies with 88 degree temperatures for our second visit to Lisbon. Although Lisbon is located on the Atlantic Ocean, it has the soul of a Mediterranean city with Moorish castles, pastel and white buildings, and orange-tiled roofs. It is set amid the hills and valleys of the northern shore of the Tagus River on the Iberian Peninsula. Lisbon is the capital of Portugal.
Lisbon is one of the oldest cities in the world, being ruled by a series of Germanic tribes from the 5th century. The Moors (arabs) controlled the area from the 8th thru 11th centuries. The Moorish influence can be seen in courtyards, arches, tiled facades, and crooked narrow streets. In 1755, an earthquake destroyed much of the city so the buildings we see today were constructed in the late 18th century. To preserve much of the history of the city, decaying buildings are modernized in the inside, but the facades are saved.
There are seven hills and to get from one side to another, you have to go up up up, twisting and winding, then down down down. We took a taxi to lunch with Christine and Barry, and let me say that the driver and Mr. Toad know how to do a wild ride. Crammed into the back of the taxi, up against the door, I was holding it so it wouldn't pop open. Driving on such narrow streets at highway speeds gives one a thrill up the leg (or maybe down if you can't hold your water). More about this later.
The buildings in the old city were painted mostly yellow and pink. Many had tile on the facade. There were trolleys and tuk tuks running all over town, and we saw funiculars that go up the steep hillsides. Many buildings were covered with beautiful "graffiti;" I call it art.
There were numerous plazas with statues and fountains. We even saw a castle! The roads and sidewalks were paved in patterns with black basalt and white limestone; one needs to carefully watch where one plants a foot as there were quite a few missing cobblestones.
Both Michael and I had escort duty today. I remembered the Tower of Belem from my previous visit, a fortress built out in the water to protect the city from the bad guys coming in from the ocean. To me, this looks like a huge sand castle. This also marks the spot from where Vasco de Gama set sail on a voyage of discovery around the Cape of Good Hope to India in 1497.
I also saw the stunning Monument to Discovery, with Henry the Navigator pointing the way.
I toured the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Jeronomos Monastery. This is the resting place of Vasco da Gama. I don't mean to demean this, but I have seen enough elaborate and gaudy churchs to last a life time. Yawn.
The highlight of the day was snack time. Belem cakes!!!! Oh, how wonderful these delicious pastries are. I remembered how good they were from our last trip; and I was not disappointed. A delicious custard in the flakiest of crusts. I have never had anything that had so many taste sensations. Smooth silky custard, with the light flakes of crust that melt in your mouth. I admit it -- I had two. I brought one home for Michael (and another one for me -- hehehe).
That was Saturday. On Sunday, we made arrangements to meet Christine and Barry at the shuttle stop at 12:30 pm (they disembarked the ship in the morning). They wandered around on one side of the drop off point and we wandered the other side (well Michael wandered, I sat on a bench in the shade). About to give up on finding them, I saw them go around a corner and sent Michael to catch them. Christine does her homework about local restaurants, like in Venice and Singapore, and now Lisbon. We took the aforementioned taxi ride to a local (not touristy) fish restaurant. Michael was skeptical we would find it since the taxi driver didn't know it and we didn't have the address. It turned out to be a wonderful adventure. Sea Me, Rua do Loreto, 21-1200-241 Lisbon; phone 213 461 564/65; www.peixariamoderna.com
My lunch before eating:
My lunch after eating:
After lunch, we walked uphill to the historic Sao Roque Church. It was built between 1590 and 1619, and is one of the earliest Jesuit churches in the world. Michael went there yesterday on his excursion, so I will let him tell you about this himself. I found it extremely gaudy. Christine and Barry decided to go back to their hotel because Christine all of a sudden didn't feel well.
We then walked down down down very slippery cobblestone sidewalks to get to the shuttle. I survived the day, but have escort duty the next 7 ports, plus bridge games in the afternoons. Hope I last! It was back to the ship for a shower and dinner, and get used to new people.
Bonus photos:
Funicular
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