May 11, 2014 - May 14, 2014
In the spring of 2014 myself and my my travel companions (my other half and his sister) embarked on a two week trip to Europe. Lisbon was our official first stop of the trip.
Lisbon is one of the most favourite cities I've visited so far. There are a few contributing factors to that:
One - the city is very beautiful and full of history.
Two - our accommodations were absolutely amazing! Hostel where we stayed was the best hostel I've ever stayed in.
Three - our close friends were traveling through Europe at the same time as us, so we met with them to spend one amazing day with our close friends in Lisbon, and that's a bonus point in my books.
Lisbon is relatively small, especially the old part of the city, so walking from one end of the city to another was very cool. I loved narrow cobblestone streets that would tangle more and more once you get closer to the center if the city. Almost every building is adorned with intricate ceramic tile mosaic which Portugal is famous for. Every street is very picturesque and unique in its own way.
It seems that economical situation in Portugal is a bit unstable and as a result the city is extremely affordable. Delicious food and wine are very inexpensive, especially if you are brave enough to dine at a "hole-in-a-wall" kinda place. Most places around tourist attractions are pricy and the food is not that good. The best thing to do is to find a small place full of locals and you will be able to enjoy an authentic Portuguese meal that is out of this world. Traditional Portuguese dish is bacalhau (salted cod, potatoes and onions topped with eggs). Which is very tasty. Assortment of wine is also spectacular and it's a lot cheaper than at the LCBO.
The economical struggle is noticeable on the streets of Lisbon as well. Many buildings are abandoned and left uninhabited. The city can not afford to repair some old structures and no one else wants to take on the burden of keeping up with the crumbling apartment buildings, so there they stand half ruined with chipping paint and missing windows, covered in graffiti. Lisbon was covered in graffiti everywhere and not the cool "street art" kind of graffiti, but in very plain and aggressive type - "Hey, I got a spay paint can, let's write some angry words on this building!" - that kind of thing. There seemed to be a juxtaposition here where the classical old seemed to collide with the rough new. I found that to be very interesting.
Lisbon is filled with tourists and most people speak English, so getting places and asking for directions is very easy. There are a lot of tourist attractions in Lisbon. I visited most of them and my favourites are - the tower of Belem, Castelo de S.jorge, and just walking through the city streets.
Belem is located just outside of Lisbon, a short train ride away. The defensive tower of Belem was build in the 15th century and is now know as one of the most recognizable landmarks of Portugal. There is an old monastery in Belem where many centuries ago monks invented Portuguese custard tart which is a world famous delicacy. Right beside that monastery is a small bakery where I tried the most delicious custard tart ever.
Castelo de S.jorge is a huge castle and a defensive port where many royal families resided many centuries ago. It's located on the top of a mountain with an unbelievable view of the whole city - a spectacular city scape of Lisbon.
Overall, I had a lot of fun in Lisbon and would love to come back again.
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