Leaving our hotel, the Hotel
Tivoli Lisboa, we headed into town with the intention
of visiting the São Jorge Castle and the Alfama area
of Lisbon.
En route, we stopped into the Church of São Domingos near Rossio. The interior of the church is somewhat damaged - I would guess from the 1755 Earthquake but I have yet to verify this.
From the Church of São Domingos, we began the journey to the São Jorge Castle. Part way up we stopped off at "Resto," a cafe/restaurant/bar, with outside seating for an early lunch. We both took salads - one tomato and mozarella, the other the greek salad. As it turns out, both were enjoyable and the glasses of house wine are generous sizes of decent wine for only 2Euro. We're not to savvy on Lisbon prices yet, but we didn't get the feeling we were being ripped off - esp with the views and location.
São Jorge Castle commands fantastic view over the city
of Lisbon and is worth every step and the 5 euro entry fee.
Perched on top of a hill above Lisbon city, São Jorge
Castle boasts eleven towers including the Torre de Ulisses
(The Tower of Ulysses) which houses a periscope after a design
by Leonardo da Vinci which gives a 360 degree real-time view
of the city.
Leaving the castle in the direction of Igreja de São Vincente de Fora which took us through the free graffiti area which is pictured right. While some of the artists clearly exhibit some talent, others such as those shown have used the oppurtunity to register their protest against a certain Mr Mugabe of Zimbabwe, whose image can be seen in the lower left hand side of the picture.
We
had spied the Igreja de São Vincente de Fora from the
vantage point of the São Jorge Castle and desired to
see the church close up. The Renaissance church was built by
the architect Felipe Terzi between 1582 and 1627. The façade
is simple yet impressive as it harks back to a more-classical
time. The interior is comprised of a wide nave and an impressive
coffered ceiling.
After the Igreja de São Vincente de Fora, we headed round the corner to the Panteão Nacional. The domed building itself is as impressive front the outside as it is from the inside. The Panteão Nacional is home to marble cenotaphs to historic figures including Vasco da Gama and Henry the Navigator as well as General Humberto Delgado who was assasinated by the secret police in 1965. There is a lift to the top of the Panteão Nacional - but the brave (like us!) can walk it.
Having finished rummaging around the Panteão Nacional,
we heading into the thicket of the Alfama area of Lisbon. The
Alfama is a veritable warren of alleys, small streets and steps.
One can picture people shaking hands across the street from
one balcony to another. This is one of those places were it
is simply best to wander. Get lost. Wander some more. Find
your way back to where you needed to be. By accident by accident
and getting a bit more lost in the process. And repeat ad infinatum.
Just enter and enjoy it. Enough said, me things.
Emerging
from the Alfama, we came across the Se
Catedral de Lisboa (pictured) - seat of the Patriarchate
of Lisbon. The Romanesque cathedral was built in 1150 after
the capture of the city from the Moors. While the 2003 Lonely
Planet is somewhat disapraging about the Se, we found the Cathedral
to well worth visiting in spite of the extensive restoration
that has been undertaken on the church. The Cloister of the
church plays home to an excavation site which shows evidence
of Iron Age, Roman, Islamic habitation on the site before the
Cathedral was built.
