To the south of Graca you find very popular Alfama which is the oldest neighborhood here. The 1755 Lisbon earthquake did not destroy the Alfama, which has remained a labyrinth of narrow streets and small squares. It's amazing to climb around the maze of hilly narrow cobblestone streets (I was told by a local that this was intentional to slow down invaders) and past the variety of little shops (including some selling an amazing variety of the most gorgeous tins of sardines you've ever seen). It's much more congested in this area, but if you go early in the day it's not bad. Otherwise you just have to go with the crowds and realize everyone is trying to enjoy this amazing experience. There are a few incredible places to gaze out over the red rooftops to the Tagus River. We even discovered an escalator next to a long set of stairs which was a welcome sight!
One day we headed to the Santa Cruz neighborhood (which is North of us) to see a few cool things we had noticed on the map and to get to a wonderful little English used bookstore - Bookshop Bivar - that I had found online where I stocked up on a few more books. This area is quite a bit different than Alfama with blocks of large apartment buildings and several parks like the one that has the Fonte Luminosa, dating to 1940. On our way back to Graca we wound around to catch the views at Miradouro de Penha de França.
After Jordan headed back to the apartment I plopped down at a chair, with a book, and soaked up the views at a small cafe located on a terrace at the top of quiet Miradouro do Monte Agudo.
Another day we briefly visited the harbor area and walked through the Praça do Comércio (Commerce Square) which faces the Tagus River and was completely remodeled after the 1755 earthquake. We also saw the Cais das Colunas, which used to be the noble entrance where heads of state and other prominent figures arrived to the city (like Queen Elizabeth II). The two columns are replicas of those thought to have been in Solomon's temple and represent wisdom and devotion. This area is quite impressive and we plan to return and walk around it more thoroughly.
We ended up at a small vegan place called A026 where we had this scrumptious cheeseboard made entirely from nut cheeses!
That yellow tram!! 😍 So cheerful. That picture of the escalator in the middle of this super old city has me laughing hahah it just looks so out of place! Some beautiful statues and architecture that remind me of other eastern European cities we've been to. And those fountains! ❤️
I haven't had the time (time with energy) to look at the last several posts, but am catching up now but from most recent to earlier. Backwards, but it doesn't matter. I always love every post. Thank you again for sharing. I loved this one. The city wandering is very interesting as are museums, but I get exhausted more easily exploring those venues than I would on a on a long hike in a less congested area. It is nice to be able to do both and know your needs and limits, which it appears you guys do. I am drooling over the food shots...