Lisbon - Day 2

I am not sure if many people know that South Africa was discovered by the Portuguese explorer, Bartolomeau Dias in 1488 when he was attempting to discover a trade route to India. He named the southern most tip of Africa the Cape of Storms, but unfortunately turned back shortly after rounding it. However, nine years later, another Portuguese explorer, Vasco da Gama, rounded the Cape of Good Hope, and finally reached India. He sailed past the east coast of South Africa on Christmas Day and so named that coastal area Natal, which means Christmas in Portuguese. 

And so given this history I wanted to visit Belém today, as it has a monument to commemorate the navigators and is also where Vasco da Gama is entombed, in the monastery. After breakfast we caught one of the charming old trams to Belém, where we visited the Monument to the Discoveries followed by a short walk to the Belém Tower, as seen here. Belém is also the home to the popular custard tarts, as the original Pastéis de Belém were first made there in 1837 following the original recipe from the monks of the Jeronimo Monastery. We found the cafe and shop where coffees were had with some wonderful pastries (a gluten free custard type thing for me). Unfortunately the monastery is closed on Mondays so we could not go inside but only admire the beautiful architecture from the outside.

On the way back to Lisbon we got off the tram to visit LX Factory, as recommended by LadyMarchmont . It is an arty area in a regenerated industrial area that is now shops, cafes and restaurants, and we had a delicious sushi lunch there, another recommendation from her.

After lunch we got the tram back into Lisbon, visited the Ribeira food market, and walked up and down hundred of steps visiting various squares, being charmed by the coloured houses with the detailed tiling around doors and windows. We went to the top of the Santa Justa elevator and had magnificent views all over the city.

I have added some extra photos here if you would like to see more of Lisbon. I have found the photography a bit challenging as the light has either been dull or when the sun come out it has been very contrasty. Today it was very warm at 20C, and again we walked just over 19,000 steps. 

I am so impressed with Lisbon, it is one of the most exciting cities I have visited. Very cool, hip and trendy, with unique and interesting shops, many cafes and restaurants, and excellent food. It is clean and so attractive with the charming buildings, and the people are so friendly and helpful. Definitely to be recommended!