In 2008 I visited Lisbon while studying abroad. I loved exploring the many locations that make up the Lisbon area so I was excited to go back with PJ, who had never been there before. PJ made a great discovery
and found Lisbon Serviced Apartments, which are located in Baixa-Chiado and are
extremely affordable, clean, and in a perfect location. We traveled to Portugal
for the 4th of July 4-day training holiday and stayed from a Wednesday
night to a Sunday night.
Some facts about Lisbon:
In November of 1755 a massive earthquake struck Lisbon
[roughly a 9 on the Richter scale]. The city was practically leveled, and with
the tsunami and fires that followed, they city was destroyed. 85% of the
buildings were destroyed, including the royal library.
The Vasco da Gama Bridge is the longest bridge in Europe
[56,381 feet long]
Over half of the WORLDS cork is made in Portugal!
Day 1 was spent exploring the Lisbon area. We walked through Baixa-Chiado, Bairro Alto/ The West and along the waterfront. Baixa-Chiado is home to the Carmo Convent, which was ruined during the 1755 earthquake. The
ruins of this Gothic style church still remain. The convent was founded in
1389 and was never fully rebuilt after it was destroyed. It served as a
military quarter for a brief time. Unfortunately, PJ and I were not able to
venture inside on this trip, but I am hoping to be able to the next time I travel there. The flying buttresses were later added in 1399.
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| The Vasco da Gama Bridge |
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| Cherry vender |
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| Praça Luís de Camões |
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| Tiled facades |
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| Santa Justa Lift |
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| Rossio Square |
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Carmo Convent |
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| Carmo Convent |
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| Rossio Square |
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| Rossio Square |
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| Praca do Comercio |
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| Rossio Station by José Luís Monteiro |
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| Rossio Station by José Luís Monteiro |
Day 2 was spent exploring the neighboring areas. We traveled by train to Cascais and Belem and spent some time on the beach.
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| Cascais |
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| Cascais |
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| Cascais |
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| Portuguese steak |
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| Cascais |
While we were in Lisbon we also decided to do a tour of the area. We had looked into catamaran tours, which looked great but we were a little too last minute. Instead, we booked a tour with a company called We Hate Tourism Tours. The tour was fantastic and I would highly recommend them to anyone traveling in the Lisbon and surrounding areas! Our tour guide was a local from the area and the company just became legal a few years ago, even though they have been giving tours for much longer. Our guide took us by Jeep to many places that he and his friends and family go to, such as to a great restaurant tucked away outside of the downtown, and some beautiful hidden lookout spots. The food was delicious and I was able to try sardinhas assadas, along with many other local dishes made fresh by this mom and pop restaurant.
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| Looking out over Parque Eduardo VII and Lisbon |
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| Wall of tiles |
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| We Hate Tourism Tours! |
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| Águas Livres Aqueduct |
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| Lisbon Cathedral |
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| Lisbon Cathedral |
For food I would recommend:
Traditional Portuguese steak [even though it is really no big deal to the locals I thought it was delicious!]
Pastel de Nata
Bacalhau [Cod]
Sardinhas assadas
Francesinha
Alcatra
Drink
Vinho Verde
Port
The city also has a lot of activities and things to do throughout the night. We would recommend:
Nectar wine bar
Cervejaria Trindade
And if you want a more college experience...an area between Rua do Loreto Travessa da Queimada which is full of restaurants, bars and people crowding the streets.
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