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| View of Downtown Lisbon from Elevador de Santa Justa |
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| Fibre glass art on display |
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| 25 April Birdge |
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| Downtown Lisbon |
Today, Lisbon is a small European capital of a
small country. But it was not always so. Once upon a time it was a grand city,
counting among the finest in Europe, and presiding over an empire that spread
thousands of miles across the oceans. In fact, at one point of time it dwarfed even
Madrid and the joint Royal court of Spain and Portugal was moved to Lisbon.
However, over the centuries the internecine royal conflicts, a declining
overseas empire and rivalry with other European powers led to its gradual
decline. The Earthquake of 1755 finally destroyed much of the ancient city. It
was rapidly rebuilt and with the latest technology of the time to withstand further
such shocks. The Independence of Brazil in 1822 routed the Portuguese empire completely.
Much like the Indian Independence routed the British empire a century later. It
clung on to tiny bits of colonies across Africa, India and China, but the golden
age of Portuguese exploration was long past. Its alliance with the Britishers
managed to keep the empire alive for another century and a half. Portugal
survived the massive destruction of the World Wars by staying neutral. After
the overthrow of the monarchy it clung to a tenuous right wing dictatorship
that believed in status quo. This meant that till the 1960s Portugal was one of
the poorest countries in western Europe and lacked modernization. All that
changed in 1974 with the advent of Carnation Revolution and restoration of the
monarchy. Since, then Portugal has made rapid strides in economy, health and modernization.
Yet, it remains the backbencher among western European countries. So, as one
strolls the cobblestoned streets of downtown Lisbon, one might wonder at the
decay but the grandeur of one of the largest empires ever built is still
present. Small it might be, but not insignificant.
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| Royalty of Portugal |
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| Torre de Belem |
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| Painting on the coaches: details |
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| Tile depicting Flowers at Jeronimos Monastry |
We had allotted precious three days for
Lisbon. In an effort to seamlessly see its wonders, I had invested in the pricey “Lisboa
Card”. It entitled me to limitless travel on all forms of public transport, and
preferential entry to most of the monuments and sights of the Lisbon. While one
has to do a phenomenal amount of sightseeing to recover the cost of the “Lisbon
Card”, the real benefit is in the time it saves by cutting the queues on the
major attractions! Unfortunately, the collection of the card itself from the
Visit Portugal office at Praca de Comercio is a time taking task. Once the card
is collected, we make our way to the Belem district. It houses several
landmarks within a walkable distance. The Jeronimos Monastry and the Church are
the first site of Lisbon that any tourist website mentions. The entry to the Church
is free. It houses among other things, the final resting place of Vasco da
Gama. One is indeed reminded of the vast Churches and covenants of Old Goa as
one enters this crowded church where the remains of Vasco da Gama are
preserved. One tends to contrast it with the staid and simple St Francis Church
in Cochin where he remained buried for fourteen years before his remains were
transferred to the Jeronimos Church. The adjoining Monastry is massive and is
much stiffly ticketed. Thanks to the Lisboa Card we have a hassle free entry.
The massive arched corridors, ornately carved pillars, huge murals and the
atmosphere is truly humbling. It is curious that such a grand place was the residence
of monks of the the Order of Saint Jerome. The adjoining Museum of Anthropology
is housed in another grand building. Photography is not permitted. For me the
best exhibit was a Egyptian sarcophagus. There are several others depicting the
history of Portugal from the ancient times.
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| Torre De Belem |
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| Miniature Coach at Museum at Coaches |
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| Jeronimos Monastry |
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| Ceiling of Jeronimos Monastry |
A 15 minute walk takes us to Torre de Belem. It
used to be the residence of governor of Lisbon and provided a vantage point for
observing all the ships from lands as far away as Brazil, Mozambique and Macao,
coming up the Tagus River. Again the Lisboa Card rescues us from the serpentine
queue. The tower itself is very plain but does have stupendous views from the
top. But it requires climbing a claustrophobic vertiginous staircase which has
a tightly controlled access to avoid any stampede. It is afternoon and the
bright May sun is shining mercilessly. Yet we trudge nearly a kilometer and
half away to our next destination the Museum of Coaches. It has several well
preserved coaches from the Portuguese and Spanish royalty. The intricate art and
the upholstery of the coach used to reflect the social status of the
individual. The art varied from Greek and Roman mythology to landscape
paintings. There were coaches for the children, for wives, concubines and even illegitimate
children of the Kings! The Museum also hosts a gallery of caricatures of all
the Kings of Portugal (including three of Spain who were also Kings of
Portugal). It’s a humorous take on perhaps one of the sternest royalties of its
time.
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| Ancient Red Tram of Lisbon |
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| Remains of Vasco da Gama |
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| Jeronimo Monastry |
Our next stop is the Pilar 7. It is a pillar rising
26 stories high and overlooks the April 25th Bridge over the River
Tagus. The bridge was built in the Salazar era and used to bear his name. After
the Carnation Revolution, it was renamed 25th April bridge to
commemorate the day of the revolution. One can only marvel at the engineering
from such height. The views are commanding and a glass bottomed perch literally
gives one a feeling of walking on air!
We find an Indian restaurant and eat anoverpriced
Chicken Biryani but it does taste authentic. A short commuter train ride takes
us back to the Praca de Comercio. Here
we manage to take a red colored historic tram of the picturesque Alfama district.
Alfama reminds one of the brightly colored massive houses of Altinho in Panjim. The
tourist tram is sort of a scam. Lisbon was one of the earliest cities in the
world to install trams. Modern trams go the same way as the brightly painted Red, Yellow or Green historic ones and at a fraction of a price. Nevertheless, since
one is a tourist, the ultimate “been there – done that” entices one to shell out
the 50 Euros for the hour long ride. Of course, there is a commentary in
English which one strains to hear over the cluck and cackle of the Tram. Some
of the sections are very steep. The tram drops some sand over the tracks for additional
traction as it passes over these sections.
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| Jeronimos Monastry ceiling |
Lisbon has several “Lifts” or Elevadors that take
one several stories up for a birds eye view of the city. The city is spread
over several hills and like other European capitals does not have many
skyscrapers. Hence, the ancient Elevadors have their charm. Only thing, that
there are dozens of tourists waiting for the experience. And this time the
Lisboa Card doesn’t cut the queue. We make our way to the Elevador de Santa
Justa. After waiting for an excruciating 45 minutes between two groups of
Chinese tourists it is our turn finally! The view is worth the wait. The lights
of downtown Lisbon glow like jewels. And it indeed looks like a charming
medieval city! After nearly 10 hours of continuous sight seeing and walking
nearly 12 kilometres we head back to our hotel and slump in our beds. Tommorrow
is another day!
I am taking my blog to the next level with Blogchatter’s #MyFriendAlexa
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