Lisbon

Browns Coffee Shop appeared frequently during our trip to Lisbon in February 2013, not just because our apartment was above it, but because it was comfortable, had a great atmosphere, served really good coffee and had the tastiest Pasteis de Nata around. (Lisbon’s famous custard tarts)

After a comfortable breakfast in Browns Coffee shop, our first visit of the day, just 10 minutes walk up the road, was the Santa Justa, one of Lisbon’s famous escalators.
Technically brilliant. Elegant. Stylish.
It seems an odd thing to build in the middle of nowhere. A genuine curiosity.
But in what is a very hilly city, it does take you to the top of a very steep hill swiftly and without bursting a lung on the way.
But this luxury, 43 foot ride will set you back 5 EUROs each. But you can enjoy the same amazing view from the top of the escalator
for free by investing in a ten walk up the hill. But the view IS worth it. A rooftop panorama of Lisbon capturing everything from the station,
the castle, right down to the sea. Stunning.

Next on our agenda was a ride on tram 28.
Tram 28 is a regular tram route that just happens to be very scenic and is therefore recommended by pretty much everyone, but picking up a tram in Lisbon is a little confusing to say the least. With the Carris website, http://www.carris.pt, being impenetrable and totally confusing unless you speak Portuguese and you know where you are going to and from.
Using the Lisbon.net is a little clearer http://www.lisbon.net/tram and gives a bit more info.

Taking a short cut through the Baixa Chaido metro station, we headed up the hill passing the ancient Cafe A Brasiliera, where we paused for refreshment.

Sadly the service and the coffee were as old and tired as the building. Not recommended if you even remotely enjoy coffee or being treated as a customer rather than an inconvenience.
Crossing from the cafe to the nearby square, we picked up the 28 tram outside the Royal Lisbon Hotel.  Again, it’s not totally obvious where to pick up the tram or even how much it will actually cost you to ride it. We discovered that a good discount can be obtained riding the trams by using your Metro card, swiping your card on the machine by the tram driver, but again, this is not obvious for a first time tram rider.
TIP: As tram route 28 is recommended in every guide book you read, it does get very busy so be prepared to stand, for most, if not all, of the journey.
Rumbling off down the hill towards the sea the 28 tram rattled and jiggled us through the city, taking in some lovely scenery and stunning views.

We hopped off and back on the 28 at Cathedral Se and at a plaza with wonderful views of the city before hopping on to take the rest of route around the castle and back in to the city.

After our tram ride, we paused briefly for refreshment in CONFEITARIA NACIONAL
for a cake and a coffee, a shop first opened in 1829, it had a great selection of cakes and great service too. Even just looking at the items in the window display is amazing.

Heading down through the city on the Rua Agusta, towards the Praco de Commercio, we stumbled upon the MUDE, a “Made in Lisbon” museum. Housed in an old bank, its bare concrete walls and stripped ceilings showed off some interesting artefacts, but don’t take any photos as you’ll be told off.
Free to get in and to roam around, but be aware that it’s closed on Mondays.
Before leaving, make sure you pay a visit to the rest rooms which are an exhibit in themselves. The cubicle walls are lined floor to ceiling with multi-coloured Renovo toilet rolls, encased in perspex. (see pictures).

Taking in the great square, Praco de Commercio, by the sea front, don’t be fooled by the claims of the Best Toilet in the World, it’s not. This is in MUDE !!! (see above)
Very picturesque with lovely architecture and a lovely ornate arch, it is dotted with restaurants where you can sit out and take in the atmosphere.
The tourist office is located here too, so pop in and pick up some goodies.
Sunday has a craft market in the square with local Portuguese craft stalls scattered around it’s porticoes.
Disappointingly, the waters edge side of the square is underdeveloped, rather ugly and doesn’t do justice to the rest of the scene.

At the opposite end of the city, the railway station is really amazing. Trains and the platforms are perched on top of the hill, but the station straddling the whole hill-side with
massive escalators taking you to the top. Take the escalator up to the top then enjoy the view from the taxi drop-off point that gives a good view of the city.

Taking the Metro out to the Parque des Nacoes to visit the Aquarium was easy and cheap and the Oriente Station was rather spectacular.
Built on the site of the Expo, held in 1998, it now appears to be unloved and uncared for.
Billed as a centre of entertainment, most of it was it’s restaurants and bars were shut up or totally empty.
Blown by the sea and strewn with litter the ornamental gardens were in serious need of some TLC. The concert hall is the main venue for visiting mega-groups and is in
constant use, but it appears visitors arrive via the Metro and go no further than the venue.
Taking the the cable car along the shore, was very nice, but didn’t give us much scenery to enjoy. Just a nice ride along a deserted sea-side walk.

The adjacent shopping mall was equally unspectacular, it’s only hive of activity was the food court. Very few of the customers we saw were actually carrying
any shopping bags, maybe more of an indication of Lisbon’s current economic state rather than the shops themselves.

The Oceanario aquarium was small, but very good, with some lovely exhibits. Well designed and well laid out, the HUGE central tank housed a massive
selection of creatures and was a delight to walk around.

For us, one of the highlights of our few days in Lisbon, was dining out at Pastelaria Casa Brasileira.
Home to the famous Pasteis de Nata custard tarts, it also serves great reasonably priced food and boasts three of the most entertaining and hard working waiters you could ever meet.
With the weather warm enough to dine out in the street it was a delight to sit and watch the world drift by our table.
TIP: If you want to save money here, dine inside standing at the counter where it appears a lot of locals gather to eat.
Apart from the waiters, we were also entertained by several street artists who roamed up and down the Rue Augusta pausing to entertain and pass around the hat.
Caution, wine is cheap. Very cheap. Ordering both of us a large glass to have with our meal, they turned out to be a half bottle each.

TIP: Looking for a good place to dine?
Walk up and down the street a couple of times checking which of the restaurants are busy.
In our experience, the busier they are, the better the dining.

With an early flight out, and a taxi pick-up at 4:30, we decided to grab breakfast at the airport, where, much to our surprise, it was cheap !!!
Tea and toast (or coffee) at Spoon was just a couple of Euros and was very quick and tasty too. You can’t miss it either, Spoon cafe is bright pink!