A broad abroad: LISBON, PORTUGAL

This is the second writing. After having this almost completed I had uploaded a number of photo's and was going to continue writing when I accidentally hit the trash instead of the pen and the whole draft disappeared. Needless to say I was upset, mad, and fustrated and so Sharon and I left the house and walked around another area of Lisbon and burned off the steam. Getting control of one's emotions is not easy but I recongnized that the only thing I could do was start all over and I decided I'd just do a quick overview of the first day and get it over with. I want to get all the pictures on the page because I must delete them from my phone and iPad to make roome for more photos.

Once again, probaby a lot shorter version but... We left Avignon early on Wednesday, January 7th. David and Phillippe , the manager and owner respectively came to the apartment to take us to the train station. They were so good to us. The train left on time and we had no problems getting to the airport. Once there, and again we were really early we had time to sit and wait until two hours before our flight to check in. We enjoyed a coffee or two in the airport cafe. A nice little place.

Two hours before our flight we went tot the check in desk and stated we wanted to check two bags. The attendant asked us if we didn't want to take one onboard. "Oh no", we replied. She tagged both bags and sent them on their way and sent us over to another desk with a piece of paper and told us to come back for out boarding passes after we had paid for that second bag. I mean, how much can a second bag cost - well, to be exact $88.00. Too late to change our mind so we paid our billl. got our boarding passes and headed through security. No problem there. We headed to the passport priority lounge to await our boarding time. After leaving the lounge we found that our flight was delayed an hour. Not bad.

We arrived in Lisbon and got a cab to the city center. Now, our new landlord and the guide books said it would cost between 10-15 Euro to get from the airport to the center city so when our very nice, very friendly cab driver took out his little sheet and said it would be 35 euro's I almost choked. I told him it should be 10 to 15 euro's. He said no and he won. What does one do.

Ms. LLda checked us in and gave us a good orientation of the apartment and the nearby area.

After unpacking and getting settled in we went to the supermarket and got a few things for breakfast. We were fading at this point and so went for an eary dinner in a restaurant in our neighborhoos.

We had a local Portuguese dish of fried pork and potatoes which also had some pickled vegetablle mixed in. It was delicious. The house wine came in a little pitcher. Reminded me of Paris, 25 years ago when they would do that. Now they charge you 6 euro's for a glass instead of 4 euro's for a pitcher. The price of food is very cheap here. We had wine, two dinners and a salad for under 20 euro's.

The next day we got up and were excited about getting out and exploring the city. We decided to go left out of the apartment instead of right today and headed to the Praco do Commercio to see what was there and pick up some information at the tourist information office.

This is Rua Augusta, just a few streets over from our street. This is the Baixa district The sidewalks or mosaic cobbled in this area and all over Lisbon were first cut and laid by 19th-century prison laborers. There is a monument in Lisbon to the many generations of calceteiros, the men who made these traditional sidewalks.

The Rua Augusta Triumphal Arch. You can take an elevator to the gazebo at the top of the arch and get a breathtaking view of the city. Inside yuo can also learn about the hitory of the arch, from the start of its construction after the earthquake of 1875.

This square is also known as the palace's square. The royal palace was located here until the great earthquake of 1755. The royal family moved to Belem ( another district of the city) and the new buildings acted as the port of entry to the city.

Statue of King Jose I showing him on horseback wearing his emperor's mantle . The statue was built on the other side of the River and it is said that it took over 2000 men to bring it to the square.

Most of the government offices that once surrounded this square have been taken over by restaurants with outside tables. The oldest cafe, in Lisbon dating from 1782 ,Cafe Martinho da Arcada ,is located here.

We left the square and ddcided to go to Rossio to get a Viva Viagem card. The card costs .50 and then you can put any amount on the card at the metro and then just use the card to ride the metro, bus, trolley, or funicular by just swiping the card . You can top off the card at any metro when you've used up the amount. A one way ride usually costs about 1.25 Euro's . Cheap!

Historians believe this was a Roman racetrack 2000 years ago. Today it is the historic center and bustling cultural heart of the city. It is home to the Dona Maria II National Theater. The porticco has 6 columns that were originally located at the Church of St. Francis which was destroyed in the 1755 earthquake. The column in th square's center honors Pedro IV- King of Portugaland emperor of Brazil. It was once the site of Lisbon's 16th century slave market and is now a meeting point for the city's black community, immigrants from former Portuguese colonies.

On either side of the square are two baroque fountains.

Notice the fine stone patterns in the pavement - evoking waves encountered by the great explorers - which once upon a time made locals sick..This pattern can be seen in many of the former colonies.

A very old and traditional cafe in the square.

We decided to take the Castelo elevator to the Castle. Because Lisbon is to say the least very hilly there are a number of elevators and as well as funiculars to take you to the various levels. Notice the tairs to the right. One can climb if one is so inclined.

We wandered around a bit still climbing looking for the castle entrance. Notice the tiles on t he buildings. Interestingly the use of tiles on the buildings was originally started in Brazil to keep the buildings cooler and reduce humidity, It was then brought to Portugal.

We did find the entrance to the castle but decided to wai, grab a bite to eat before we began our tour. We found this cute little restaurant named after the transportation company of Lisbon. It is made to look like a trolley car - very cute and the food was good!

On to the Castle de S. Jorge.

Stunning views!

Little seating areas to enjoy the wine - if we had gotten some. Too many steps and cobbled stones. Best remain very sober while walkig around.

There are a couple of very nice looking restaurants on the grounds. On our way out we inquired how you get to them since the castle closes at 1900 hours. We were told that a reservation was required and the names were then sent to castle security and they would let you in after hours. The castle has 24/7 security.

This was the beginning of a rather small little park within the castle area.

A lot of stiars to climb but beautiful views.

We had to go down stairs as well.

More stairs!

The entrance fee for this museum is included in the price of the ticket to see the castle. It included many of the items which have been found in the castle area.

The strolling peacocks remind visitors that exotic birds like these came to Lisbon originally as trophies of the great 16th -century voyages and discoveries.

D. Manuel I"O Venturoso" King of Portugal

This Portuguese knight Martim Moniz sacrificed his own life to stop the doors from closing with his own body, thus enabling the Christians to enter the Moorish-held castle.

We left the castle and headed down the hill. Let's face it your either going up or down a hill in Lisbon.

We came across this lovely old church and when we went inside we were greeted by a such a very nice man who obviousy was extremely proud of his church and its saints. The church is a national monument. This present building was situated next to the city walls, on the eastern side of town. It has gone through many alterations after the earthquake. There are two glazed tiles panals signed by the historical Viuva Lamego ceramics factory, representing Lisbon with scenes of the conquet from the Moors in 1147 and another one illustrating the Comercio Square before the big earthquake (1755).

Saint Luzia

Outside the church is a beautiful little garden area where older people were sitting enjoying the beautiful day. There is a little cafe up some stairs where you can drink some coffee and enjoy some magnificent views of the city.

After visiting the church and exploring the garden area we walked down the street and came across this wonderful old tree. I have no idea what kiind of tree it is.

This is the trunk of a tree.

Can you believe we found still another church to visit.

The Lisbon Cathedral, Santa Maria Maior de Lisboa, is the oldest place of worship in Lisbon. The fortress like facade of the Cathedral is one of the original elements of the church dating back to the mid 12th century when the construction was commissioned by the first king of Portugal, Alfonso Henriques, on the site of a former Mosque. Since its inauguration until now, the cathedral has been the seat of the bishopric of Lisbon, the first bishop being Gilbert of Hastings, an English crusader.

Baptismal font.

The tiled walls surrounding the font.

We were a bit exhausted at this point and although we saw these trolleys we decided to walk to our neighborhood.

We did stop to have a cup of coffee however and taste a "Pasteis de nata" - a Portuguese egg tart pastry. I wish I would not have tasted one. Once you have one you want at least one everyday. Not good for the figure.

That night we found a restaurant close by . The meal came with both rice and potatoes. I guess you need those starches and sweets to climb these hills!