The city of port wine, seafood dishes, pastel de nata and glorious 16th to 19th century architecture: no more persuasion needed to book my flight. A week in this marvelous country gave me time to visit it's biggest cities and world famous sights. If you're planning to go to Portugal, this is your sign to book that ticket. Let me convince you with my story:
DAY 1
I landed in Lisbon and after collecting my luggage and got a taxi to the city center. As soon as I stepped foot in the Rossio Square, I thanked myself for booking an early morning flight. I was so excited to spend the rest of the day exploring the intriguing streets. I had plans from the next day onwards, but my arrival day was for settling in to my room and getting to know where I'd be staying. After seeing the small portion of the city I had, deciding to quickly drop off my luggage in my room and spending the rest of the day touring Lisbon was a no-brainer.
I strolled through the city without a map, and without worrying about how I'd make my way back. I went wherever caught my attention, and at one point, it was a little corner bookstore with the name 'Livraria Bertrand' engraved into the wall. I was thrilled, because this is the oldest bookstore in the world, and I had innocently stumbled into it! I knew it was in Lisbon, and I had planned to visit it on my second day, but I had to go in just then, I couldn't wait until the next day!
After buying three books and practising my Portuguese with the friendly worker, I was back in the streets, searching for the next adventure. At one point I found myself walking up a 'high street' full of shops, and 20% of them were bakeries... so I bought the famous pastel de nata. It's safe to say I'd return to Portugal just for those cakes. So delicious!!
My next stop was the Arco da Rua Augusta. You know how some things are beautiful from afar but when closer, not so much? Well this monument was stunning both up close and from a distance. The attention to detail was breathtaking and the adjacent square would be such a nice place to take a sandwich between shifts.
On my way back to the hotel, I walked past what looked like an antique elevator that was taking people up to this metal pod around 30 feet in the air, connected to a bridge allowing an easy travel from the Baixa streets to the higher Carmo Square: it was the Santa Justa lift. It cost 6 euros (I believe these 6 euros grants you access to most public transports and lifts for the day), so of course I had to see the city from up above.
Looking down on the lanes of Lisbon was fascinating. I made an effort to analise each ant-sized person's behaviour: some were clearly in a rush, maybe on their way to work or an event. Others wandered the streets aimlessly, taking everything in and often entering shops (I felt representedd by these wanderers). Rechanneling my focus on the bigger picture, I zoomed out of the streets and looked at the panormic view of the city from above. I could have stood there for hours just staring.
If you've read any of my skiing posts you'll know I'm afraid of heights, however this lift, the Santa Justa Lift, was unproblematic because it was like a cage, I was surrounded by a metal fence-barrior.
I didn't catch it in the photo, but to the right would be the Tagus river. Notice also the São Jorge Castle on top of the hill!
What a maginificent way to end day 1! Day 2 was also an 'explore the city' day, and I even rode on Tram 28!!
DAY 3
Before I start with my many adventures, I feel it important to say that I had traditional pastries for breakfast and it was life changing. That's all :)
On with the post! Right, what I had planned for the day was to see the Santa Luzia vista point, then the Lisbon Cathedral, and finally make my way to the city of Coimbra for a day trip, before heading to my next hotel stop in Porto.
I hiked up the hill only to be stunned at the views seen from this 'balcony-patio' viewpoint. I understood why all of the travel blogs suggested this stop: it was breathtaking! Colorful houses, red roofs and the river Tagus in the distance. I sat there and thought that it's one of those many wonderful things that locals get used to seeing every day, so they don't pay quite as much attention to it as it deserves. I decided that if I ever lived in Lisbon, I wouldn't take it for granted. Sadly, it was cloudy and I didn't manage to take a photo with the river and the city, but if you search up images of the Santa Luzia view point, you'll understand the fuss.
Next came the cathedral, and it amazed me. Cathedrals, churches and other religious buildings always completely blow me away, how both the inside and the outside are incredibly detailed, and how stepping into them is like stepping into a different world. The Lisbon Cathedral was no exception. As I took in the beautiful architecture, I noticed how it was similar to the cathedral where I live, but the more I looked, the more wrong I realised I was. Cathedrals and churches all seem similar on the inside, but they each have their own distinct personality. It was also interesting to appreciate the traditional Portuguese architecture that seperates this building from the rest. Wherever I go, I always visit the cathedral because of how extraordinary they are. One that absolutely blew my mind was the St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague, which I wrote about!
Following my visit to both of these spots, I was on time with my schedule. I made it to Coimbra and wanted to jump out of the car the second I saw the city. I don't want to spoil it, but it's the most beautiful city I've ever been to. The fact that the weather cleared up just in time was a major pro.
I had half an hour to spare before my adventures in Coimbra began, so I explored the streets a little. I bought a few souvenirs and had another pastel de nata (it was better than the one in Lisbon!). I also walked along the Santa Clara bridge over the Mondego river, and the views of the city were remarkable.
Once my 30 minutes were up, I made my way to the University of Coimbra. It was like entering Hogwarts, only classier and with more paintings. I wasn't surprised (well, I was a little) when I found out that it was established in 1290!! It was first established in the capital, then relocated a few times until it finally stuck in Coimbra. It's the 9th oldest university in the world, and I stepped foot in it. That's a lot to take in. The most amazing bit, a part from the dramatic lecture rooms, was the library. Oh my goodness. It is one of the most significant archival libraries in the world, with an obscene amount of volumes (around 55,000 I believe), many dating back to the 16th century. I was prohibited from taking photographs, out of fear that the camera might damage the room: the paintings were originals, many featured gold. I don't have any pictures of this library, but click here for google images of it. I encourage you to look at images and see how incredible of a sight it is.
This is one of the rooms in the university. I am not sure if it is a lecture hall or an assembly room. Look at the detail in the ceiling, also see how there are paintings of monarchs hung up. Everything is absolutely perfect.
This was also at the university. I can't remember exactly what this room was, but everything points to it being an inbuilt church. The tiles on the wall and ceiling are traditional to Portugal.
After my wonderful day in the beautiful city of Coimbra, I was travelling again. This time, to Porto, where I arrived late at night, so I checked right into my hotel room.
DAY 4
On the fourth day of my trip, I took a trip through Nevogilde, Foz do Douro, Lordelo do Ouro, Massarelos, then finally to the city center of Porto. It was a beautiful drive, and I made a few stops along the way to take pictures or to explore a little.
When I got back to Porto, I did what any tourist would do: I roamed the streets taking photos. The architecture was magnificent, each building different from the last. The whole ambiance of the city was great, it almost reminded me of Barcelona, but it was much bigger and with a entirely different culture. It was beautiful, I'd love to go back one day, and I'm sure I will! For now, I'll leave you with some pictures I took!
Porto is an amazing city with amazing architecture, and the food is heavenly. Portugal is known for it's seafood dishes, so if you're ever there don't be shy with the menu.
DAY 5
I woke up feeling extra turisty, so I took a boat tour along the Duoro river. The views were magnificent and it was a sunny day, so I was able to sit in the exterior part of the boat. The tour was a recorded hour-ish long lesson about Porto, the Duoro and the landmarks all around where I was visiting, however it was it many languages and hard to understand (the audio speaker wasn't the best) so I didn't catch all of what was said. I enjoyed it so much though!! I added a photo I took of the beautiful views from this boat ride.
I took the rest of the day to explore Porto. I walked along the LuÃs I Bridge, which was designed by one of Gustave Eiffel's partners from previous projects, Téophile Seyrig. This bridge has a striking ressemblance to it's neighouring bridge, the Dona Maria Pia, as this one was designed by the one and only Mr. Eiffel. The iron work is outstanding, and you can actually see the close similarity to the Eiffel Tower.
. How beautiful are these views! I seriously . recommend taking a boat tour of the Duoro if . it's a sunny day, the experience is
. unparalelled.
And that brought me to the end of my trip. It was such a thrilling experience, and I'm definitely going to re-visit Portugal. If you were considering visiting this incredible country, don't think twice about it! Go for it.
If you have been to Portugal, please share your experience with me! You can do so in the comment section of this post or via my private email. I love hearing what you have to say, and hopefully you have suggestions for my next travel!