11/16/2007 - Lisbon, Sintra and Cascais

RIP Joe Nuxhall. Head for home.

We started today with a tour of Lisbon. Lisbon is over 2000 years old. The Romans, the Moors and finally the Christian Crusaders controlled it. Currently it is the capital and largest city of Portugal with 2.4 million people living in the metro area. There is no official religion in Portugal. There are a few Muslims in Lisbon who are transplants from Goa in India from when it was under Portuguese rule. They came to Lisbon because they preferred the Portuguese culture.

We drove by Pombal Square that is dedicated to the Marquiss of Pombal who directed the recovery efforts after the All Saints Day earthquake of 1755. The earthquake measured an 8.5 on the Richter scale and it demolished most of Lisbon and caused terrible fires. When the people of Lisbon fled to the water so they could escape the fire they were drowned by a tsunami that followed soon after. The death toll was between 60 and 90 thousand. The Marquiss of Pombal decided to demolish the ruins of Lisbon and redesign things using modern design techniques. The quake was on November 1 and he had his rebuilding plan finalized and in motion by the end of the month. The 1755 quake was a big point in the history of Lisbon and it is continually referenced when discussing the history of the buildings because most of the buildings in the old section date from the time after the quake.

Our first stop was at Alfama. Alfama is a small village that sits in Lisbon by the water. It is a self-contained community that was founded by Jews and is populated by a mostly older population thanks to rent control. Alfama is a Moorish word that means “springs of water”. St. Anthony of Padua was born here but in Alfama they don’t pray to St. Anthony for lost objects like most people. They pray to him to find a husband. Typically what they do is buy a St. Anthony statue and turn it upside down. They then pray to him and say that if he wants to be right side up then find a husband for whoever is looking. It’s more blackmail than prayer but it seems to work for the Alfamians.

St Anthony of Padua Square



Alfama Commercial District



Typical Alfama street



What is amazing about Alfama is that everything is contained within about two blocks. You have apartments and then you have a church, cafes and any kind of store that you can think of all crammed into this small area. The whole place is just small roads and pedestrian walkways. People are born here, live here and die here without leaving the area. It is very old world and unlike any place I have ever visited.

The next stop was Belem on the Tagus River. The Tagus starts in Spain, runs west and meets the Atlantic eight miles out of Lisbon. In Belem we had a great view of the Tagus Bridge, which was built in 1966 and modeled after the Golden Gate in San Francisco. Directly across the river from the bridge is a statue called the “Memorial to Christ the King.” It is meant to resemble the “Christ the Redeemer” statue in Rio. There were other interesting things at this little park by the river. There was the Henry the Navigator memorial, the Torre de Belem, a replica of the first plane to cross the South Atlantic and the memorial to the fallen soldiers of Portugal. Also there were Gypsies everywhere. They were mainly selling postcards, sunglasses and scarves and they were fairly well behaved but I kept my distance. I wouldn’t be able to do that a few days later in Sevilla, but that is a story for another post.

Tagus Bridge



Memorial to Christ the King



After Belem we made our way to the Hieronymites Monastery or the Monastery of St. Jerome. This is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was commissioned by King Manuel in the early sixteenth century to celebrate the successful return of Vasco de Gama from India. In fact, de Gama is entombed there. There was no money spent by the Portuguese government to build the complex and construction took nearly one hundred years. The services and materials used in the construction of the monastery were donated by the finest engineers and artisans of the time. It is built in what is known as the Manueline style and it reflects a maritime theme.

Exterior



On the grounds of the Monastery is the Church of Our Lady of Bethlehem, where de Gama’s remains are interred. It is a beautiful, gothic cathedral that also contains the remains of the great Portuguese poet Camoes. It is a tradition for visiting heads of state to lay flowers at Camoes’ tomb. When we were there, a flower wreath in the shape of the flag of East Timor was on display.

Interior



Tomb of Camoes



The other notable part of the monastery is the cloister. The architecture and carvings here are extremely elaborate, and this place is used when Portugal has a large political event, such as when they signed onto the EU in 1986. The signing ceremony was held here.

Cloister





After the monastery we made our way to Queluz, Portugal to visit the Palace of Queluz. This palace was built in the eighteenth century and was the residence of the Kings of Portugal. The Portuguese monarchy ended after the 1910 Republican revolution but the palace still exists and is well maintained.

The interior of the palace is decorated with guilt wood and the traditional Portuguese tiles. There are many French influences in the design. In fact, the palace is known as the Portuguese Versailles. The gardens of the palace are filled with vases and statuary as well as many rows of hedges that are not well maintained. It seems that it is difficult to retain gardeners here because they aren’t paid much.

Interior



Grounds



We left the palace and traveled to Cascais for lunch. Cascais is located on the Tigus River and there is a spectacular bay area where many boats are moored.

Cascais Bay



After lunch we went to the old town area of Sintra, which rests in the Sintra mountain range. From the base in the Sintra Plaza Mayor you can see the towers and battlements of the Castelo dos Mouros toward the top of the mountains. The castle was built by the Moors in eighth century and was mostly destroyed a few hundred years later. Now the place is a tourist trap but the surrounding area is lovely and it is the site of one of the largest parks in the Lisbon area.

Castelo dos Mouros



After this it was back to our hotel for dinner and sleep. The next day will be mostly driving.