I’ve read many traveler reviews that wrote off Lisbon as merely a poor, dirty city. Yes, there are seedy and grungy parts (like any city in the world) but I think Lisbon possesses an old world charm – and an incredible place in history.
Here I spend a little time talking about Lisbon's history (at least through the middle ages) because it provides an insight to the meaning of its many buildings and monuments.
Lisbon has been inhabited since pre-historic times. It eventually came under Roman rule for 200 years, followed by Moorish rule for nearly 400 years. Lisbon was taken from the Moors in 1147 as part of the Christian Reconquest of the Iberian peninsula. Portuguese maritime exploration began in the early 15th century in search of alternative trade routes because the Ottoman Empire had blocked off traditional routes through Europe. By the 16th century, Lisbon had become an important trading center for all the spices, textiles and other goods brought back from Africa, India, the Far East and Brazil.
Unfortunately, Lisbon's grandness was short-lived. An
earthquake in 1755 destroyed the city's infrastructure and killed a huge chunk of its population. Can you believe this happened:
Eighty-five percent of Lisbon's buildings were destroyed, including famous palaces and libraries, as well as most examples of Portugal's distinctive 16th-century Manueline architecture. Several buildings that had suffered little earthquake damage were destroyed by the subsequent fire ... The Royal Ribeira Palace, which stood just beside the Tagus river...was destroyed by the earthquake and tsunami. Inside, the 70,000-volume royal library as well as hundreds of works of art, including paintings by Titian, Rubens, and Correggio, were lost. The royal archives disappeared together with detailed historical records of explorations by Vasco da Gama and other early navigators.
Following the earthquake, downtown Lisbon was rebuilt differently - this time using broad squares, grid-patterned streets and neoclassical buildings that is now seen in today's Baixa district.
Flash-forward to 2011. Our base camp was in Baixa. From there, we began our uphill trek to Alfama, the oldest district in Lisbon.
The air was damp with a salty breeze coming in from the Tejo River. Early in the morning, the streets were quiet except for the occasional ramblings of the trams, the sound of the church bells tolling, and the flapping of seagulls.
Cobblestone sidewalks that hugged narrow streets.
Cable car tracks and wires cut through the neighborhood to make way for the trams.
Skinny houses and apartment buildings with lovely orange tile roofs.
Clothes tied onto balcony grills, fluttering in the wind. Crumbling and peeling facades covered in mossy growth.
Building exteriors adorned with
azulejos - blue painted tiles that depict cultural and historical aspects of Lisbon and Portugal.
We stopped to peek inside inside the Sé Cathedral, the oldest church in Lisbon. Built in 1147 following the reconquest, it has since has survived multiple earthquakes and fires. It really does look old.
Crowning the highest point in Lisbon is the Castelo de São Jorge (Castle of St. George). The Moors built it in the 11th century to house military troops and to serve as a last-ditch fortress in the event of an attack. After 1147, the castle became the residence of Portuguese royalty...until the earthquake. The castle has several towers, ramparts, false doors and traitor gates, expansive courtyards, and cobbled paths. And of course, it commanded magnificent views of the city and the Tejo River.
The museum is worth checking out because you can see archaeological artifacts from times past, and even see a computer-generated model of what the castle looked like and was used for during the Moorish period.
After enjoying a panoramic view of the city, we headed back down to explore. Tram 28 will take you through a scenic route of the city, but it's most enjoyable when you're walking it.
We saw bits and pieces of Portuguese life in the little things, in places where English was not required.
We passed residents going about their everyday life - one carrying a crate of fresh fruit to his store, another sweeping his alley clean; sat on the steps of an unknown church alongside kids hanging out during break time; men and women in suits talking on their cellphones on cobbled sidewalks.
We perused through antique books and pencil sketches of Lisbon in a couple small bookstores in Bairro Alto.
Grabbed a quick lunch at a small, forgotten sandwich shop in Alfama. Bought pastel de nata (egg custard treat) from a hole-in-the-wall bakery and ate them at the Miraduouro de Santa Luzia (which has a nice view of the river and the area's brightly colored houses).
We trekked up hilly streets to find pockets of quiet neighborhoods with great miradouros (viewpoints), then descended to the bustling areas of traffic jams with cars honking incessantly. Went through some seedy areas with lots of graffiti. We met the occasional beggar - one of them tried to get our attention by speaking in three different languages.
We paid the 5 euros to go up in the famous Elevador de Santa Justa, which connects Baixa to Bairro Alto. Up the elevator, then up a skinny, spiral staircase. It had great views of the castle, the surrounding neighborhood and the river. Definitely worth it.
Even though all the guidebooks say English is widely spoken here, we encountered many people who spoke little to no English. I spoke very basic Portuguese and picked up just enough from the locals to make easy transactions.
Despite my linguistic ineptitude, the locals were very kind and seemed to appreciate the effort. (I only broke out “Fala ingles?” at the cabbies, which is another story.)
We didn't get the Lisboa Card (which would've made transportation much easier) so we spent a lot of time being confused with which train to take and how the ticketing system worked.
After figuring that out, we hopped onto a train to Belem, a suburb half an hour west of Lisbon. There we visited some of the famous monuments built in honor of the Age of Discovery.
The Monasterio de los Jeronimos (Jeronimos Monastery) is considered the pinnacle of Manueline architecture. Its construction was ordered by King Manuel I in honor of Vasco de Gama when he successfully returned from his voyage to India. Construction began in 1502 and it was funded by a tax on spices brought back from the east. It took 50 years to complete. The monastery is a treasure - lots of intricate carvings around doorways,
azulejos on some of the walls, arched cloisters leading to a courtyard, airy, vaulted ceilings and stained glass windows. Vasco de Gama's tomb rests in this place, too.
Nearby is the 100-foot Torre de Belem (Belem Tower), built right by the mouth of the Tagus River before it meets the ocean. It was used to defend Lisbon and also considered to be the starting point for many sailors heading out to explore the world. Facing the river is a statue of Our Lady of Safe Homecoming as a symbol to protect these seafaring men. Many years later it would be used as a political prison for the king's enemies.
Both structures are decorated in Manueline style, which have a lot of nautical carvings like corals, algae, ropes, cables and ships.
Across the street from the monastery, along the river, is the massive 170-ft. Monument to Discoveries, which was originally built in 1940 for the Portuguese World Fair and then rebuilt with concrete in 1960 to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the death of Prince Henry the Navigator, sponsor of the Portuguese explorations. The monument was carved into the shape of a ship, and the people depicted on both sides of this monument include navigators, scientists, mathematicians, missionaries, and royalty who were considered heroes of that time. We didn't get to go into the museum inside, but it's worth a visit if you want to learn about Lisbon's history and get some pretty awesome views of the river and nearby neighborhoods.
Being the geek that I am, what I found cool as well was the world map mosaic on the pavement next to the monument, indicating the routes taken by the explorers and the places they discovered.
I absolutely loved Lisbon - for its temperate climate, fascinating architecture, and absolutely rich and interesting history. There are so many other things about this place that are worth noting, so this is just something to whet your appetite. I personally love reading about the history of exploration in general so being here was like being like a kid in a candy store!
From 711 to 1249, the Algarve was ruled by the Moors. The word is derived from Al-Gharb (meaning "the West") which meant it was the western edge of the Islamic empire. The region was the last Moorish stronghold until it was captured by the Christians in 1249.
