As I had spent the last few days outside of Lisbon City centre, it's time to explore more of the inside. And explore I did, as I spent the entire day walking until my feet hurts! The below was my walking route, which almost covers the whole of Lisbon.
Lisbon is known as the “Cidade das Sete Colinas” (City of the Seven Hills), since a legend says that the city was originally built over seven hills, which also meant that all that walking also involves going up and down hills numerous times.
I clocked over 20km in the day and with over 30k steps.
LisbonCathedral
My first stop. I didn't bother to go in since there was a cost to enter
Miradouro de Santa Luzia
A viewpoint of Alfama and the harbour. There was a musician on his guitar when I arrived, which later was joined by another guy with a violin.
Besides the view, there were also these pretty mosaic walls.
Located just next to the earlier viewpoint, so the view is almost the same, but with an additional view of the Church of São Vicente
I continued my walk through the narrow streets of Alfama and saw the 28E tram go by a few times.
Trams are one of the key transport modes in the city, many of which goes through very narrow roads, shared also with cars and other traffic.
The tram #28 is apparently the most popular among tourists
Church of São Vicente de Fora
This involved going uphill, and mostly this was to see close up the church, since I was able to see the building from a distance from Portas do Sol.
Viewpoint of Monte Agudo
This was enroute to the next stop. Along the way there were a number of very cool looking views of the district.
The viewpoint however is somewhat disappointing as it was partially covered by the plants, and the view wasn't very interesting.
Bellalisa Valmor Lunch
This place came recommended by an Instagram follower - a novelty dish with linguine being tossed and coated inside a big wheel of cheese, before it gets scooped up and plated over a Porcini sauce base, and topped with chopped parsley, ham, tomatoes and Truffle oil, and later even a very generous portion of freshly grated parmesan. It can't get any cheesier than this!
In my opinion, it could have been done better with better quality Truffle oil, as the Truffle taste was almost non-existent, and even include some shavings of Truffle, especially for the price they are charging for the dish.
Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation
This place was recommended by Philipp, however I found the gardens somewhat gloomy. The ducks were fun to watch though.
The building also housed exhibits, mostly paid, so I didn't bother to enter as I would rather spend the time exploring the city on a fairly nice and sunny day
Parque Eduardo VII
This is probably my favourite park in Lisbon. Located just a few minutes away from Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, it was one of the easiest walk of the entire trip.
However as you can see from this pic, this place is built on slopes, and would had been equally tiring coming here direct from the hostel.
The view of the statue Estátua do Marquês de Pombal in the distance and the unblocked view of the sea, makes the walking through the day all worthwhile.
I sat here for quite a while just admiring the view and the breeze and people watching.
Principe Real
I was told of a Botanical Gardens at Principe Real, and since this was somehow on the way down, I thought I would go to check it out. I later realised there is a cost to enter, so I didn't bother.
It was a good decision too, since I was later told by Giulia that there isn't much to see at the Botanical Gardens.
I did however get a gelato here, which was claimed to be the number 1 gelato in 2021. The flavours pictured here are Pistachio and Hazelnut with salt. It was very good.
Basílica da Estrela
The walk to the Basilica was probably the toughest as it required going down hill and then uphill in very short space of time.
This is one of the starting points of the 28 tram.
Miradouro da Rocha Conde de Óbidos
This had a view point of the container terminal below, which is a little gringy.
But there was one street view nearby this viewpoint which I really liked.
The colourful buildings contrasted with the clock tower at the end.
It was time to head back to the hostel, and good timing too, because it soon started to rain. Having walked from 10am to 6pm, a well needed reprieve for the feet was strongly needed.
But not for too long as I soon popped out again, first for a Nata, and then to Tasca da Chico for a Fado show.
Fado is a music genre that can be traced to the 1820s in Lisbon, Portugal, but probably has much earlier origins.
It is a form of music characterized by mournful tunes and lyrics, often about the sea or the life of the poor, and infused with a sentiment of resignation, fate and melancholy. This is loosely captured by the Portuguese word saudade, or longing, symbolizing a feeling of loss
Tasca da Chico is one of the oldest places within Barrio Alto that offers Fado. A very small space that can seat about 40 people? I was sharing a table with a couple from Lisbon and their German friend that was visiting.
The Lisbon couple mentioned he had never been able to get a seat in here because they were always full, so he got lucky today with a reservation. I must be even luckier because I just walked in and there was a space for me.
You can stay as long as you want and as many sets as you want. There is no charge for watching the fado, only a minimum €10 spending per person. Fado starts at 8pm at this place and goes all the way till 2am (according to Google).
The Lisbon couple said this place used to only offer Fado in Wednesdays, but it is now available everyday
The singers usually sing about 3 songs in a row, and then they take a break for about 20 mins.
What a wonderful experience.
I was told there are 2 different styles of fado, one that is traditionally found in Lisbon and another style in Coimbra. So I guess I will have to check fado out again when in Coimbra!
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