The Alfama and Belem districts
Today, we decided to go on one of the free walking tours the hostel offers. At 10:30 we gathered in the lobby. Our tour guide came and we walked to two other hostels nearby to pick up more people. Then we walked to Praça do Pedro where we started the tour. Our tour guide, Tara, is actually Canadian. She came to Lisbon two months ago but fell in love with the city and never left. She really knows so much about Lisbon though.
Here's Tara talking about St. Christopher, who happens to be the patron saint of travelers
Our tour was around Alfama (one of the districts of Lisbon) and we were actually here yesterday (this is where St. George's castle is). But this time around we learned a lot from Tara so it was cool. Like Lisbon is actually on 7 hills! (Seven!!!) And Alfama is on one of those hills. We also visited this one spot of ruins and Tara told us about the 1755 earthquake. It happened on November 1 (on the 9th month, at 9am, and lasted for 9 minutes), which is All Souls' Day. So there were a lot of candles everywhere - people lighting candles for the dead - and so during the earthquake, fire spread. The people rushed to the river, but the earthquake was followed by a tsunami. 80% of the city was destroyed and 80% of the population died. So devastating.
During that time, the king wasn't much of a help but then this architect guy came in to save the city. He found ways to make the city more sturdy and "earthquake proof" and was able to get people to help him rebuild the city. When we walked to Praça do Comércio, Tara told us about the statue and the Arch.
The statue in the middle of the new Praça da Comércio (square/plaza) is of the King who was king during the earthquake, but it's of the king, on horseback facing away from the city. It symbolizes how the king fled from the people and didn't help them. And the arch is like their version of the Arc de Triomphe and symbolizes "triumph over national disaster." Really interesting.
After the tour, Ange and I grabbed some lunch then took the Tram 15 to Belem. Belem is actually part of Lisbon, but it's on the riverbanks and it's about half an hour by tram.
Me with one of the trams. Not the one we rode though
Belem is really beautiful. Most of what we saw was gardens/parks and the riverbanks. There were boats in the ports and lots of cool buildings and structures. We walked along and spotted the Mosteiro dos Jerónimos (monastery). It was so beautiful I wanted to just stand there and stare at it the whole day. Plus, it had a fountain in front which made it so picturesque.
The monastery. (Let me look for my shot with the fountain).
We walked along some more and came across a museum of contemporary art. I remembered reading about it on the bulletin board in the hostel. There was supposed to be a collection with Andy Warhols and Picasso. It was free so Ange and I went in. There were no Warhols so we were a bit disappointed. The museum was all modern art which is not really my thing (too weird!). So we just walked around a bit then left. (Good thing it was free. Hehe.)
We walked down some more and finally arrived at the Torre de Belem. I don't know how to describe this tower except that it's so cute! Haha. But it really is such a cute tower; it's only 30 meters tall. It's a UNESCO World Heritage Site and was used as a port, a fortress, and even as a prison.
The tower! It's so cute, right?
Right before heading back to the city center we tried some Pastel de Nata. It's this Portuguese egg tart pastry and the best ones are supposed to come from Belem. We haven't tasted them in other parts of Lisbon, but the one we had in Belem was really good! We thought it would be heavy and the crust would be hard but it's actually really soft, yummy, and light.
We got back to the city center and visited church. We're not doing much now. Hopefully Ange can have dinner with her friend (since we fell asleep last night!).
Edit: Ange's friends are here. And here at the hostel, you get one free shot at 11:30 pm. Haha.
Our tour was around Alfama (one of the districts of Lisbon) and we were actually here yesterday (this is where St. George's castle is). But this time around we learned a lot from Tara so it was cool. Like Lisbon is actually on 7 hills! (Seven!!!) And Alfama is on one of those hills. We also visited this one spot of ruins and Tara told us about the 1755 earthquake. It happened on November 1 (on the 9th month, at 9am, and lasted for 9 minutes), which is All Souls' Day. So there were a lot of candles everywhere - people lighting candles for the dead - and so during the earthquake, fire spread. The people rushed to the river, but the earthquake was followed by a tsunami. 80% of the city was destroyed and 80% of the population died. So devastating.
During that time, the king wasn't much of a help but then this architect guy came in to save the city. He found ways to make the city more sturdy and "earthquake proof" and was able to get people to help him rebuild the city. When we walked to Praça do Comércio, Tara told us about the statue and the Arch.
The statue in the middle of the new Praça da Comércio (square/plaza) is of the King who was king during the earthquake, but it's of the king, on horseback facing away from the city. It symbolizes how the king fled from the people and didn't help them. And the arch is like their version of the Arc de Triomphe and symbolizes "triumph over national disaster." Really interesting.
After the tour, Ange and I grabbed some lunch then took the Tram 15 to Belem. Belem is actually part of Lisbon, but it's on the riverbanks and it's about half an hour by tram.
Belem is really beautiful. Most of what we saw was gardens/parks and the riverbanks. There were boats in the ports and lots of cool buildings and structures. We walked along and spotted the Mosteiro dos Jerónimos (monastery). It was so beautiful I wanted to just stand there and stare at it the whole day. Plus, it had a fountain in front which made it so picturesque.
We walked along some more and came across a museum of contemporary art. I remembered reading about it on the bulletin board in the hostel. There was supposed to be a collection with Andy Warhols and Picasso. It was free so Ange and I went in. There were no Warhols so we were a bit disappointed. The museum was all modern art which is not really my thing (too weird!). So we just walked around a bit then left. (Good thing it was free. Hehe.)
We walked down some more and finally arrived at the Torre de Belem. I don't know how to describe this tower except that it's so cute! Haha. But it really is such a cute tower; it's only 30 meters tall. It's a UNESCO World Heritage Site and was used as a port, a fortress, and even as a prison.
Right before heading back to the city center we tried some Pastel de Nata. It's this Portuguese egg tart pastry and the best ones are supposed to come from Belem. We haven't tasted them in other parts of Lisbon, but the one we had in Belem was really good! We thought it would be heavy and the crust would be hard but it's actually really soft, yummy, and light.
We got back to the city center and visited church. We're not doing much now. Hopefully Ange can have dinner with her friend (since we fell asleep last night!).
Edit: Ange's friends are here. And here at the hostel, you get one free shot at 11:30 pm. Haha.
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