We just returned last week from an amazing trip to Lisbon, Portugal! I think I’ve mentioned before, but Ireland has Monday bank holidays in May, June, August, and October, which are basically long weekends, and if you tack a few days on either side of the weekend, it makes a great opportunity to travel. For this May holiday, we wanted to go somewhere within a reasonably short flight time that would have some sun, interesting culture, and plenty of sites to explore. Lisbon fit the bill perfectly. Apparently, Jeff has always had an urge to visit Portugal, though he’s not exactly sure why. It had never really been on my radar or top on my list, but the more I read and learned about it, the more excited I became to visit!

Lisbon felt like a cross between San Francisco — with its hills, its trolleys, and even a bridge identical to the Golden Gate — and Tel Aviv with its outdoor cafes, seaside promenades, and Mediterranean feel. It is filled with magnificent squares covered in unique black and white tiles (basalt and limestone), as well as beautifully colored tiled buildings — entire buildings covered with these gorgeous tiles! We just loved walking all around the city taking in the architecture and the mood, which felt very joyful and carefree. Everywhere, people were sitting outside in cafes, sipping the delicious (and cheap!) coffee, watching the many street performers, and just generally enjoying life.

Our hotel, Hotel Santa Justa, was located in an ideal spot for exploring the city. It was right off the main tourist thoroughfare and just a block away from the famous Santa Justa Elevador, which is an ornately designed wrought-iron elevator, more than 100 years old, that can transport people from the lower neighborhood (Baixa) of Lisbon to the upper neighborhood (Bairro Alto). We were also very close to where the trolleys picked up to take people to the castle or to the neighborhood of Belem (more about these later!) The hotel, which was a nicely designed boutique hotel, was probably not the best choice for us, as the four of us were crammed into a pretty small room with lots of potential things for the boys to break like cool lamps and light fixtures and an espresso machine (it would have been a perfect choice for a couple to stay in, but with two rambunctious boys…not so much). 🙂 But, regardless, the staff were very accommodating and friendly, and the amazing location made it worth it, as we could go for an outing in the morning, come back and rest a bit, and then go back out again in the late afternoon for exploring and dinner.

On our first full day, we took the famous old trolley (#28, also known as “the tourist trolley”) up the hill to Castelo de Sao Jorge (St. George’s Castle), which overlooks the city and has stunning views out to the water. The trolley winds its way through the old cobblestone streets of the Alfama neighborhood, which is the old medieval area of Lisbon. It’s one of the few areas of the city that wasn’t destroyed by a huge earthquake in 1755, so the older architecture is preserved here, unlike in other areas of the city that had to be rebuilt. When we got off the trolley, we still had a bit of a ways to walk to reach the castle, so we wandered through the streets and alleyways, taking in the views and the colorful tiled buildings with laundry hanging off most balconies. I went a bit crazy with pictures (as I did throughout the trip) because there were just so many picturesque scenes! So apologies in advance for the many photos!

Once we finally reached the castle, we were ready for a snack and the boys were ready to run around and stretch their legs. So we bought some delicious juicy strawberries just outside the castle gate and enjoyed them in the courtyard of the castle. There were once again incredible views across the whole city. We wandered the grounds of the castle and even saw a bunch of peacocks that live there! We learned a bit about the history — that it was a Moorish castle used to defend against the Christians (until they finally took over in the 12th century). A palace was built that housed the monarchy for many years, and the area around the castle, in general, was where wealthy people of the city lived. Today, what remains of the castle is pretty much the outer walls and ramparts, which were fun to climb and walk along.

Another awesome area of Lisbon to explore is the neighborhood of Belem. A bit outside the city center, it can be easily reached by bus, train, or trolley (which is how we chose to get there). This is the part of Lisbon where you really get a feel for the Age of Discovery, the Portugese heritage of exploration. I hadn’t fully realized that Portugal was a leading empire back in the day, and that their explorations truly stretched around the world, with colonies in Africa, India, China, and of course Brazil. Magellan and Vasco de Gama were two of the famous Portugese explorers, and the Monument to the Discoveries (in Belem) commemorates these explorers and their voyages.

Standing at the Monument to the Discoveries, you look out into the water and have a fantastic view of the 25th of April Bridge, which is identical to the Golden Gate Bridge. It’s named after the date in 1974 when the (relatively peaceful) revolution took place that overthrew the Portugese dictatorship, ended Portugese colonialism in Africa and East Timor, and saw the beginning of democracy in Portugal. So it’s a very important date that is celebrated every year, and which the bridge commemorates.

Also in Belem is the incredible Jeronimos Monastery, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. It’s meant to be a symbol of Portugese wealth during the Age of Discovery, and what I thought was the coolest thing was the detailing in the architecture. This type of architecture is known as Manueline (because it was developed during the reign of King Manuel in the early 1500s) and it was greatly influenced by the art and architecture that was seen in places like the Far East (particularly East Indian temples) during the voyages around the world. It’s just really interesting to see how a style can be transported and incorporated into design in a place so far from where it originated! The Belem Tower is another famous symbol of Lisbon and is also built in the Manueline style. It was originally a fortress guarding Lisbon from invaders. Check it out:

I loved seeing the amazing monuments and views in Belem, but another quintessential part of visiting this neighborhood is going to the famous Pasteis de Belem bakery. If you know me, you know I can’t resist a good bakery 🙂 This one is home to the best pastel de nata in Lisbon. The pastel de nata is a traditional Portugese treat that is basically like a little custard tart. It’s hard to describe, but is so delicious (and I’m not usually a huge custard fan, but these were so good!) In the numerous pastelarias (bakeries) around Lisbon, you can find these treats, but the best ones come from the bakery in Belem. The line is out the door and often stretches down the block, but it moves quickly. If you ever go to Lisbon, you have to get to Pasteis de Belem to try these. We got ours to go and took them to a park across the street where the boys could play on the playground with some of the local kids.

We had mostly sunny days during our time in Lisbon, but on one of the days that it rained we decided to check out the aquarium, the Oceanario de Lisboa. It’s known as one of Europe’s finest aquariums and one of the largest in the world, and is definitely one of the top family-oriented attractions in Lisbon. I had heard it compared to the Monterey Aquarium in California or the Baltimore Aquarium (two of the best in the US), so I had high expectations. We waited almost an hour in line to get in, and while there were definitely some really cool fish and sharks, I have to say I was a little let down compared to how amazing I thought it would be. Still, it was a fun few hours out and a nice experience for the boys. And we got to see a different part of Lisbon and find our way there on the subway system, which was an adventure. Where the aquarium is located is actually in an area called Parque das Nacoes (park of nations) built for the 1998 World Expo, so it includes a lot of more modern looking sculptures and fountains, as well as a long elevated gondola type ride (which we didn’t end up riding because we were all tired) which looked cool.

On our last morning in Lisbon, the sun came out again and we took the Santa Justa Elevador to the top of the hill for some final amazing views of the city.

As I mentioned before, I had never really thought much about visiting Portugal and didn’t know too much about it before planning this trip. Apparently it tends to be a fairly overlooked tourist destination compared with the rest of western Europe (though we certainly felt there were a lot of tourists visiting like us), but I’m so so glad we made it there — I would love to go back someday, and I would absolutely recommend others to travel there too! Here are some of the top things that surprised/delighted me about Lisbon:

— the outdoor cafes/restaurants. The city is chock full of cafes/bakeries and restaurants lining the sidewalks, pedestrian streets, and squares, and you can easily sit and order a cafe com leite (coffee with milk) or an ice cream and just watch the world go by. We also appreciated dining outside because the kids could be loud or get up and run around and chase pigeons while we waited for food to arrive.

— the beautiful tiled buildings and squares. I had read about these but didn’t realize just how extensive they were throughout the whole city. Normally I like to visit a museum or two when I’m in a city, but here I felt that the city itself was a museum!

— the Portugese language. When I see Portugese written, it’s fairly easy to see its similarities to Spanish, and to understand many of the words (from my basic high school Spanish skills :)). But hearing it spoken it sounds almost like Russian! Lots of “ch’s” and “zh’s” and “sh’s” in the pronunciation. This surprised me.

— the gorgeous lighting throughout the city. There was something very cool about wandering around and seeing how the light made Lisbon look at different times of day.

— the diversity of people. As you walk around you really see people from all over the world — Africa, Asia, etc. When colonialism ended, a number of people from the colonies (such as Angola, Mozambique, Macau, etc) moved to Portugal, and so you see this diversity reflected in the population, which was very cool.

— the similarities to San Francisco. A laid back city on the water, with lots of hills, trolleys, and an identical bridge.

— the authentic character that remains. I was pleasantly surprised and pleased that, even in the heart of the tourist area, it felt that the heart of Lisbon remained. There are certainly chain stores and restaurants, but it didn’t feel as overwhelming as in some other cities.

Whew! It feels hard to adequately sum up or capture Lisbon in words. I think pictures do more to convey the feel of the city, so hopefully you’ve enjoyed seeing the photos. Here are some more from our meandering around the city that I’ll leave you with for now. Another post to come soon of our day trips out of Lisbon. Thanks (“obrigata” in Portugese :)) for reading!!