Lisbon

We arrived in Lisbon early in the morning and made our way by train to Alfama where we would be staying in an apartment.  We had coffee and pastry at a local café, where we also met the owner of the apartment.  Thank goodness she agreed to meet us because we would not have been able to find the apartment, much less get our luggage up the hill and then three flights of stairs, without her help.

The apartment was modern but in an old building and had great views over rooftops and yet more hills. It was immediately obvious that Lisbon is hilly.

Our apartment was the double door with Juliette balcony

Such lovely smells of fish being cooked on the street below

During our time in Lisbon we made sure to have a bottle of Mateus Rose.  An ode to our parents and their friends who liked to drink it, and collect the bottles, in the 1970s.

Mateus, Mateus from Portugal

The first of May was a public holiday and as all the museums and galleries were shut, we decided to explore our suburb and neighbouring Castello, on the hill above.  We enjoyed walking through the narrow, cobbled (aka slippery) streets that wound ever upwards.

The building exteriors are decorated in exquisite tiles.  We loved this so much that we will post a separate bog entry with photos dedicated just to this.

We got great views of the city and the Tejo River from the Santa Luzia and Graca Lookouts.

The trams were packed with tourists from morning til night.  We walked everywhere instead

Along the way we stopped for coffee and our first sample of pastels de Nata (Portuguese tarts).

We walked back downhill through the central districts of Rossio and Baxia, passing through the impressive Dom Pedro IV Park.

 We had a lovely evening catching up with our friends Tony and Caity, who are living in a little town near the old royal town of Sintra, about an hour’s drive north west of Lisbon.

The museums were all open again the following day and we had a brilliant time visiting the National Tile and Fado Museums.  The National Tile Museum was fantastic.  It has a wonderful collection of tiles from the 15^th century up until today.   It is in a former convent and we loved the Madre de Deus Church because it was unusual to see so much tiling used in the interior decoration.  We will do a separate post of photos of this soon.

In the afternoon we visited the Fado Museum.  Fado is a Portuguese style of music and singing and is often described as mournful.  We were introduced to Fado back in 2009 when we were in Aix-en-Provence and our friend Manuela suggested that we go to a concert by a famous Fado singer, Ana Moura.  We loved the experience and have many Ana Moura CDs.  Yes, we still play CDs. And we bought 3 more at the gift shop.

It was fascinating to learn about how Fado as it is known today started in working class areas in Lisbon in the early 19^th century, was coopted by Salazar’s dictatorial regime and started to attract an international following in the 1950s.

After we finished our museum visits, we finished the day by enjoying an Aperol spritz in one of the squares near our apartment.

Next on our to do list was to visit Sintra and catch up with Tony and Caity again.

There is a lot to see in Sintra so we decided that we would focus on the Royal Palace and the gardens of the Quinta de Regaleira.  Like Lisbon, Sintra is also hilly.  The Royal Palace has more beautiful tiles.  Anything we decorate in future is in danger of looking like a Portuguese palace or church.

The large white towers were the chimneys of the kitchen

Go pies

The gardens at Quinta de Regaleira were lush and labyrinthine.

Tony and Caity picked us up in Sintra at midday and we drove to the seaside town of Ericeira.  It is on the Atlantic coast but has the look and feel of a Greek village.  It also reminded me of Bonafacio on the southern tip of Corsica.

Tony and Caity explained that a lot of digital nomads are choosing to live in Portugal and Ericeira is a favoured location.  Portugal has been encouraging people, who can work remotely, to move to Portugal.  There is a special visa and there are tax breaks.

We had a late lunch at a traditional bistro specialising in steak sandwiches called Prego.  They were sensational and we were able to choose from a huge array of additional fillings and sauces.  We also tried Portuguese Vinho Verde, a style of white wine.  It is often fizzy, but the bottle we had was not.  It was dry, fruity and very refreshing.

After lunch in Ericeira we drove to another stunning coastal town called Azhenas do Mar, which is perched across two cliff faces.  We walked up to the top of one of those cliffs to take in the views while enjoying some delectable port.

 

We had a lovely day and both fell asleep on the train ride back to Lisbon.  We were very fortunate to be able to catch up with Tony and Caity in their new home country.

We had a lazyish day, the following day, by indulging in some retail therapy in the nearby suburbs of Baixa and Chiado.

We did however also visit the Aljube Museum, which is also known as the Museum of Resistance and Freedom.  The Museum tells the story of the Salazar Dictatorship and is dedicated to the people who were imprisoned and tortured for fighting for democracy.  It is in the prison used by the regime’s political police.

It is a small museum packed with lots of interesting and moving information but was slightly marred by being very busy and noisy, when it required a lot of reading and reflection.

That evening we went to a nearby restaurant to experience a fado performance.  We were especially taken with the voice of the woman who sang two sets for us.  The male owner of the restaurant sang 3 sets.  He was charming and entertaining but his voice was nothing compared to his female colleague.  They were supported by two musicians, one of whom played a Portuguese guitar and the other classical guitar. We also loved listening to the interplay between these two very different types of guitars.

On our final day we wandered along the riverfront before taking a train to Alcantara to explore the LX Factory, where abandoned warehouses have been turned into shops, art studios, galleries and restaurants.  We made sure to have a break and enjoy a little chocolate cake. 

The Portugese CPAs perhaps?

 

 

On the way back from the station we got trooped

We had a great final dinner at a Mozambiquan restaurant.  The owner of our apartment had pointed it out on the first day and said knowingly and tactfully that we should try it out because Mozambique is part of the Portuguese story.  The food was great and the service was endearing.