So Much to See in Lisbon —-

There is so much to see in Lisbon, but it’s also can be very confusing to move around.

Main streets that course through the city where the buses and taxi generate the majority of their business.  

The vastness of the area of Lisbon is astonishing.   It’s compromised of the Main Center surrounded by several townships that make it seem like one large city.    In fact, in one day we walked through three separate areas and thought we were still in Lisbon Center.

Once you get off the main routes, the streets begin to narrow, curved and begin to incline to the next street level.

In between the narrow street or alleys, are the homes of the locals.  Small business usually fill the bottom floors and the living quarters are above.  Most building were at least 4 stories high and connected wall to wall.

You see no single dwelling homes in this area.

It is all community.

It’s difficult to walk through the street and alleys because of the up and down hills and the stone paths made from chiseled blocks of stone which are not evenly laid.

If you push on and manage to make it to the top of the streets, you will see some of the most amazing views.

We ventured towards St. George Castle.   The 3/4 mile walk took us about 3 hours to reach the top.

There were several stops along the way to catch our breathe and have some water.

At some point, we were deciding whether to continue forward or go back.

Push forward was the choice.

How happy we were to have made that decision.

Upon reaching the castle area, you have to enter through the admission office.   Our cost, of course, was half price because we are senior citizens.   All you have to do is show your ID or passport and you are discounted.

Then it was walking up a few more steps into the massive courtyard over to the wall of the garden.

Once you glimpse over the side, total awe takes your breath away.   From that vantage point, you could see how large the city expands towards the mountains.  

Every building seemed to be attached to another.   These buildings reached out into the mountain side where even more buildings could be seen.   Hundreds of thousands of people live in this area and not a single free-standing home was in the midst.   This was just from one side of the castle, now imagine adding in the other sides.

Along the castle wall, there are so many points of interest to picture.  Some tourists were sitting in a small designated area to enjoy lunch and a glass of Wine.    There was a wine cart located outside the castle wall selling glasses of wine for your enjoyment.   Tourists were everywhere taking pictures and having a good time.

The castle, itself, was just the outer walls.   Using your imagine, you could envision people living within the quarters without much room to roam about.

We climbed up to the guard walkways on several points.   I was totally uncomfortable with the narrow, no rail walk way with the strong wind blowing.   However, I will pat myself on the back for actually doing the climb and walking the walk.

It took a few hours to walk around and take pictures of the sites.   The area was an adventure to enjoy.

From the castle,

We walked through other areas of interest heading down towards the river front and clicking away pictures.

Once back to the river front, the streets became flat, wider and side-walk cafes were abundant.

After strolling through this area, we crossed the street over to the river side and ended up at a wine tasting.

Various Portuguese wine were available for tasting.  When you pay, you receive a glass to use and depending on how much you money paid on a customer card – off to the dispensing machine you go.

It’s an automatic machine labeled with various wines from different parts of the country.  Depending on the price labeled to that dispenser, the wine was poured into your glass.   We paid enough for us to each have 4-5 glasses each at about the size of a shot glass per wine.  Most tastings averaged $1-2USD each.    It was a fun experiment.

Afterwards, we sat in the large quarter adjacent to the Tagus River enjoying some adult beverages and watching the tourist venture about.

Strolling through Lisbon is exciting but very tiresome.

When we started our tour of the city, we were using a tourist book filled with suggestions of places to go.  After a day of using it, we decided this could be done on our own and much easier.

We would average 3-5 miles of walking up and down the streets each time.

A few more trips down from Apelacao to visit Lisbon.   We would always take the local bus system down to the City and catch a taxi to return to the apartment.

Lisbon is beautiful and if we ever decide to come back and visit, we will find a place closer to the city for convenience.

Thanks for following me –  I enjoy sharing my adventures with you.

60plusandfearless

Dianne

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