Lisbon, Portugal: Rough in the Center

Actual date of this event: 7-9 February

Smack dab in the center of the Lisbon is Baixa or the downtown. It is a high tourist area even though there really isn't much to see or do, but it is also swarming with locals. Lisbon isn't really a glamorous city, but the downtown is one of the nicest areas. Lisbon is the kind of city that restaurants don't open until about 7pm, but the central squares and the main pedestrian road have restaurants open all day long. Since we were tourists, we took a stroll through the area and came across a few things that were a bit "rough", but they still make us giggle today...

{Rua Augusta}

We started at Praça dos Restauradores, which is just below Miradouro de Sao Pedro de Alcantara and where the Gloria Funicular starts/ends. The square is huge with a big obelisk in the center and a beautiful cobblestone design. During our visit, it was very empty, but I would imagine it is the home to festivals or markets sometimes - or maybe not? Anyway, one of the statues on the obelisk reminded us of Kermit the Frog. :-)

{Gloria Funicular}

{the Kermit the Frog statue}

When we looked north from Praça dos Restauradores, we saw up Avenida da Liberdade which leads to Praca Marques do Pombal (a roundabout with a statue) and Edward VII Park. We never made it that far north, but it is listed as one of the miradouros of Lisbon as you can get a really great view.

Continuing our way south and toward the water, we came upon Praça de D. Pedro IV (more commonly known as Rossio Square) which is the most popular square in Lisbon. We debated on sneaking our way into a tour group of college-aged students, but I am pretty sure our thirty-year-old-selves would have stuck out of the crowd. The square has a column dedicated to Pedro IV, two large fountains, and a nice design on the ground. It was here that we - actually Luke - was first approached about buying some hashish. It took us a bit by surprise because that was the first time that anyone, while we are traveling, has offered it to us. After it happened, I looked around and there were several guys that looked as if they were also selling. No one else approached us in the square, so I guess they have their territories??

Just east of Rossio, we walked through Praça da Figueira which isn't much except for a traffic hub for buses and trams, a view of St. George's Castle from here, and another statue. I think Luke has a thing for statues... he is probably gathering ideas in his head for how he wants to pose in his statue when he passes :-/

We walked south down Rua Augusta which is the main pedestrian and tourist street. This is where lots restaurants, tourist shops and retail shopping is. It is really amazing how few people were in Lisbon. During the summer, this street is probably packed! But there weren't many people during our visit. As we walked, we were approached at least five times about buying hashish. One time was really funny - Seller: "Watch?" Luke: "No." Seller: "Hashish????" Luke: "No." All right all right all right, it may not read that funny, but it was funny at the time (and we still laugh about it). Also as you walk down, you can see the Santa Justa Elevator from a side street.

Rua Augusta leads right up to the Triumphal Arch and Praça do Comércio. The arch is also listed as a miradouro because you can go to the top (for a fee) and see everything in that area. The square in front is another extremely large square, and it is located just across the street from the water. 

{In case you don't know, WC stands for water closet aka toilets.}

From here, we made our way to Alfama which is THE reason why Lisbon has been placed as one of my favorite cities we have visited. Come back later to get lost in those pictures!! :-)

RANDOM FACT:
Most of Baixa was constructed after 1755, when a big earthquake devastated Lisbon.

Other posts on Lisbon: Sneak Peek, Belem, Miradouros, Alfama, Bairro Alto

Lisbon, Portugal: Miradouros

Actual date of this event: 7-9 February

Miradouros = Viewpoints

Lisbon is very very hilly! There are seven hills throughout the city and all of them offer some kind of spot where you can enjoy a gorgeous view of the rest of the city and/or water. The inclines and stairs can be exhausting, but it is definitely worth the effort. For some hills, you can cheat and take a tram, funicular or lift to get to the top though :-) There really isn't a whole lot "to do" in Lisbon, so these viewpoints are considered tourist attractions.

{Gloria Funicular next to Miradouro de Sao Pedro de Alcantara}

As we were avoiding going downhill (so we wouldn't have to go back uphill) in Bairro Alto on Friday night, we actually stumbled upon Miradouro de Santa Catarina. There was a great view of the bridge and Christo Rei, but we didn't get any decent pictures. The terrace looked like it would have tables set up during warmer weather, but during our visit, we just saw empty bottle of beer lying around. I promise it wasn't us!! But this was just a small glimpse of what we were to expect from the other miradouros we planned to see.

I marked all of the look out points on a map, so we spent Saturday wandering to various spots, but we only made it to a few of them. The first of our spots was near our apartment. Miradouro de Sao Pedro de Alcantara is located near Bairro Alto and looks out toward the castle. It has two levels, and the walkways have a beautiful cobblestone pattern. 

After some wandering through from Praça dos Restauradores to Praça do Comércio, we entered the old district of Alfama (which I will write a whole post about as it is the best part about Lisbon) and came up to

Miradouro de Santa Luzia. I am assuming this was due to it being winter, but this spot was really run down. There is a little pond or pool that was empty and the deck didn't look kept up. The pictures I have seen of it online look really pretty, so hopefully it is a nice area in the summer. The view is nice, but not so much for picture taking because TV antennas are in the way.

Right near Santa Luzia is another viewpoint, Miradouro das Portas do Sol, which has amazing views of Alfama and the water. We came across some "bracelet" men, but they were much friendlier than the ones we have come across in Paris.

The last of our miradouros on Saturday was much farther away than any others, but the billion stairs was worth it! We skipped passed St. George's Castle and Miradouro da Graça, and went to Miradouro da Senhora do Monte. From here, we could see the water, the bridge, the Christo Rei, and everything to Bairro Alto. It was a very cool spot!! 

{the shady trees show Miradouro da Graça }

On Sunday, it was raining pretty good. Our rain jackets were holding up, but our backpacks were getting pretty wet, so we decided to go to Santa Justa Elevator since it was covered. To go up and down the elevator, you have to pay, but it was included in our transport passes. It is a really neat lift, but reminded us both of Tower of Terror at Disney World haha :-) If you don't want to pay, there is a way to get to the viewpoint from the back side by Museu Arqueológico do Carmo. 

{oh, just staying out of the rain}

Lisbon has several other miradouros that we were not able to make it to, but we still got some really good views. We love being able to see the top of every city we visit, and always make an effort to do so. Lisbon makes it so easy to see their rooftops!

Click here for more information on Lisbon's miradouros.

RANDOM FACT:
Lisbon has three funiculars: Gloria (1885, pictured above), Lavra (1884, the oldest), and Bica (1892).

More posts on Lisbon: Sneak Peek, Belem, Baixa, Afama, Bairro Alto