In 2023 my wife and I were in Amsterdam, Malta, and Luxembourg. Even though there was a temptation to go to Latvia to visit family at the end of the year, we decided to make a trip to Portugal finally. I admit, December is not the most common time of year to visit this southern state, but airplane tickets and hotels were cheap. Furthermore, we knew there would not be many tourists, thus it may not be crowded. That was true to some extent. Lisbon seemed not that crowded, although during the evenings people flooded the streets. We visited Faro as well. This small southern town was almost empty. Maybe due to a lack of tourism restaurants tended to be less strict on terms when certain food ingredients are due. Which in turn might explain how my wife managed to get food poisoning.
Enjoy my photo report from the wonderful Lisbon and the underwhelming Faro. I will try to provide a few explanations here and there. Look out for an A.I.-generated poem as well.
Below is the first batch of photos from the first day. We arrived in Lisbon without a plan, just a hotel reservation and Google Maps in our pockets.
Two of the pictures above have a castle in them. The Castle of São Jorge, commonly known as São Jorge Castle or Lisbon Castle, is a historic castle located on the highest hill in the historic center of Lisbon, Portugal. The castle’s commanding position provides panoramic views of the city, the Tagus River, and the surrounding areas. It stands as a symbol of Lisbon’s rich history and has become an integral part of the city’s cultural and architectural heritage. It is not only a historical site but also a scenic destination that offers a captivating blend of the past and the present. We managed to enter and explore it. Worth the visit. Also, the journey to get there is a real workout, thus be prepared.
Certainly, the highlight of the day was the National Pantheon. The National Pantheon (Panteão Nacional in Portuguese) in Lisbon, Portugal, is a historic building that serves as the final resting place for some of the country’s most distinguished individuals. Originally, the building was a church known as the Church of Santa Engrácia, but it was later repurposed as a national monument and pantheon.
I will leave food pictures for later since the food was a major disappointment on this trip.
On the second day, we visited Belem. Belém (often spelled Belem) is a historic district located to the west of Lisbon’s city center along the Tagus River. It is known for its rich maritime history, cultural attractions, and iconic landmarks. One of the most famous structures in Belém is the Belém Tower (Torre de Belém in Portuguese). Also known as the Tower of St Vincent, is a medieval fortress and watchtower situated on the northern bank of the Tagus River. It was constructed during the early 16th century as part of a defense system to protect the entrance to the city’s harbor. The tower is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is recognized for its historical significance and architectural beauty.
Unfortunately, we did not manage to enter the Belem Tower because on Monday it is closed to the public. But we did enter the Monument of Discoveries. Padrão dos Descobrimentos, translated as the “Monument to the Discoveries” in English, is a prominent historical monument located along the bank of the Tagus River in the Belém district of Lisbon, Portugal. This monument celebrates the Age of Discoveries during the 15th and 16th centuries when Portuguese explorers played a crucial role in global maritime exploration.
Lisbon is known for its abundant use of tiles, particularly the traditional Portuguese ceramic tiles called “azulejos.” My wife was very fond of them, often stopping for pictures when seeing a beautiful facade made entirely out of tiles. To be honest, I was not that particularly amazed. I believe that I have said this before but I am more in favor of European-style architecture than Arabic/Southern. Thus Belgium/Brussels and Luxembourg to me is more beautiful than Malta and Portugal. Having said that, Lisbon also had plenty of beautiful and my type of buildings. See below the beauty and the ugly.
Let’s move to Faro now. Why Faro and not Porto? Because we wanted to see the ocean. Even though we did manage to see it in Lisbon, we were hoping to catch a boat in Faro that would take us to the ocean which is more raw and more closer. Unfortunately, it did not happen.
We went to Faro by bus. Although some good people in Brussels said that going by bus in Portugal would be painful and long it ended up being the complete opposite. The buses were nice and comfy, the roads were smooth and scenic, and we managed to go across one of the longest bridges in Europe.
Like I said Faro did not pan out as expected. Food was terrible, and the one day when we did manage to go exploring it had clouds and rain. Whereas both days with an abundance of sun were spent either in bed or on our way back to Lisbon. Thus Faro left us with a bitter aftertaste. Nevertheless, it was an experience and we did manage to see another town in Portugal.
I bet you want to see what we ate in Portugal, right? A couple of firsts. We drank our first sparkling wine made in Portugal. We tasted a white port, note that before tasting it we were living with the notion that port is made only red. Only two percent of all ports are produced white, thus our chance of tasting one in Lisbon proved as one of those unexpected adventures. My wife ate cod which proved to be a disaster. Although cod cake with cheese was remarkably delicious. We tried sardines. They were also bad. I tried Portuguese steak two times. The first time it was delicious, pork instead of beef, potato slices instead of crisps. No comment for the second experience. Last but not least, Portuguese breakfast. As far as I could tell it consists of ham and cheese toast, pastel de nata, bad coffee, and orange juice. For the first three mornings, I liked it, then in Faro, I took a cheeseburger that had long black hair in it. Then during our last two nights, we opted for a hotel breakfast which was quite good. Yes, we also tried Portuguese McDonald’s. I was surprised to see an eggs Benedict burger on the menu. I did not try it. I did not dare. We tried an Italian restaurant in Faro with mixed results. Almost forgot. We also tried Portuguese green wine. Please do not try it. We tried it so you do not have to. Of course, unless you know what it is and you like it. We managed to find oysters as well. Thankfully, they were amazing.
Surprisingly or not, during our last days in Lisbon and after coming back from Faro, I began to see Lisbon differently. Maybe due to the location of the hotel or maybe due to the contrast between Lisbon and Faro, but the last 36 hours in the capital were great. We found a specialty coffee shop. We visited the Museum of Ancient Art. Note that during our first stretch, we visited the Museum of Money. Which was equally impressive.
You are probably wondering whether the Museum of Ancient Art had any clocks on display. Of course, they had. Yes, I did take pictures.
My best friend said that to him Lisbon is one of the most beautiful places in Europe. Its rich history, its buildings, steep streets, its restaurants, and social life, and its people create a mix that is hard to find anywhere else. Probably due to his comments that Lisbon is wonderful and due to other people saying that you can do no wrong by going to Portugal, we had a lot of expectations. Even though many of those expectations fell through, I now sit with the thought of going to Portugal again. Maybe not shortly but soon(-ish).
How did we end our trip to Portugal? With a game of pool. We unexpectedly found a pool hall, and we managed to play three games. That was a lovely ending. During our week-long trip, I bought in total five new playing card decks, one deck I bought at the oldest operating bookshop.
There you go. Our trip to Portugal with ups and downs both literally and figuratively.
Lisbon's hills embrace the sun's warm kiss, Azulejos whisper tales of bliss. Fado echoes through cobbled streets at night, A city's soul, in Lisbon's gentle light.
Almost forgot. Yes, we did manage to see the Atlantic Ocean. At least on Google Maps, it said that this is the Atlantic Ocean. You be the judge.
Kind regards,
Olaaf
