LISBON, PORTUGAL

 May 3 (Wednesday), 2023


Mostly sunny, 68 deg F


Our first time to set foot in Portugal.   Lisbon, the capital of Portugal,  is one of the oldest cities in the world, claiming a written history dating back 2700 years.   It is a large city built on seven hills and has a population of around 3 million inhabitants in its greater metropolitan area.   It has a very protected harbor entry that opens up into a lake fed by the Tagus River.  


Like most cities on the Iberian Peninsula, it has been ruled by different peoples over the years, including the Romans, Moors (Muslims) and Germanic tribes and hence there are remnants of distinct cultures throughout the city.   Its golden age was between the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the 17th century.  That is the period when Portuguese explorers discovered a sea route to India and established trade throughout the world.   Portugal is known to have colonized over 50 countries spread across Asia, South America and Africa.   


We took a tour of some of the more notable sites in Lisbon, including a monastery built in 1502,  a fort at the mouth of of the Tagus River used to protect against enemy invaders, the Monument to Discoveries, and the Old Town of Lisbon.   At the monastery our guide got us each a pastry from a shop that claims to have the original secret recipe for an egg custard tart called Pastel de Nata that monks created in the 16th century.   It was still warm and very tasty!   


We explored the Old Town on our own and walked back to the ship.


Lisbon seems to be an easy city to explore - very walkable and has a modern public transportation system.  It also seems to be more affordable than many of the major European cities.   Our first experience, although short, was a good one!


        Lisbon photo from an internet site


        Lisbon from our ship

                   Aqueduct completed in1744

           Jeronimos Monastery built in 1502 where the delicious custard tarts were first created.

                                               Tower/Fort used to protect against enemy invaders from the sea. An identical one was built 
  directly across the river, but it was destroyed by an earthquake.

                    Monument to the Discoveries - celebrates discoveries made by Vasco da Gama and 
                    other mariners that led to the golden age of the Portuguese Empire.


                     Replica of by-plane flown in 1922 from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro - took 79 days!

                         One of the many attractive buildings.   This one on waterfront.  


                                

                              Monument and statue of Christ at entrance to harbor.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

BARCELONA, SPAIN

Image
April 30, 2023 Partly cloudy, high 68 deg F Barcelona is one of our favorite cities in the world.   It is a very walkable city with distinct neighborhoods such as the Old Town where Picasso’s museum and former residence is located, Gothic Quarter, an extensive beach and harbor area and the modern area where Gaudi’s basilica, La Sagrada Familia, is located.   Barcelona has some of the most striking architecture in the world. It is the Capital of the community of Catalonia, a part of Spain that has a distinct culture.   Many Catalonians speak their own language - Catalan - that some say sounds like a combination of French and Spanish. We have had the good fortune to visit Barcelona twice before.   We decided to go on our own in the morning and walked about a mile each way on the street called La Rambla in the Gothic Quarter.   It is a favorite for tourists and locals alike with shops, hotels, restaurants lining both sides of a fairly wide treelined walkway.   In the afternoon we toured L
Read more

END OF JOURNEY - FRANCE AND ENGLAND

Image
May 6 through May 8, 2023 Overcast and in the 60s Well all good things must come to an end.   Rich caught a cold and we decided not to do the 10 hour tour of Normandy from LaHavre France.    We really wanted to see the WWII Memorial and the beaches where the Allies landed and turned the tide of the war, but we’re sure our fellow guests wouldn’t have liked a 2 hour - each way - bus ride with Rich hacking away.      Our next stop was Dover England on Sunday and we took a tour of Canterbury, the town that has so many stories to tell.   Romans built the town around 200 AD and later abandoned it.   In the late 6th century, the King of the region where Canterbury is located converted to Christianity and supported the building of the first cathedral in Canterbury.   It became one of the most important centers of Christian religion outside of Rome.   In 1174 Archbishop Thomas Becket was murdered in the cathedral.  For his followers Canterbury became the most important destination for pilgrims
Read more

COSTA RICA

Image
 December 31, 2022 Our ship docked in Puntarenas, the primary port city on the Pacific side of Costa Rica. Costa Rica is a small country, about the size of Switzerland with a population of about 5.2 million people.  It has a long standing and stable democracy and according to the World Happiness Report is the 12th happiest nation in the world!  Costa Rica abolished their military in 1949 and is one of a few countries in the world that doesn't have a standing army. A bus took us from Puntarenas up, up into a rain forest in near-by mountains where a guide led us on a walk through the forest(jungle) and across hanging bridges, one of which was said to be the longest in Costa Rica.   We lucked out with the weather as it was mostly sunny.   Most days rain, drizzle or mist is the order of the day.  We saw howler monkeys, beautiful birds, a mean-looking tarantula and lush vegetation of all kinds.   After the walk we boarded a tram that took us higher into the mountains where we could loo
Read more