Filling in the blanks.
Last full day in Lisbon.
29.01.2020 - 30.01.2020
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Portugal for CNY
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We had done two tours in a row so wanted to end on a day of doing our own thing again. There were a few more things we were interested in doing or seeing within Lisbon so we decided to get a day ticket and do as many of them as we could fit in.
We started by buying rolls, ham, egg tarts and water from Lidl then heading to King Edward VII Park to eat our breakfast Al fresco there. This park is called after the British king - Edward VII. He visited Lisbon in 1903 to reaffirm the Anglo-Portuguese alliance.
The park starts around Parque metro station and stretches all the way down a hill to Marquis de Pombal Square. There are good views from the top of the park and there is a statue of the Marquis de Pombal on a column at the bottom. The park also has ponds, statues and hot houses. This is the largest park in the center of Lisbon. It is divided into three sections. The central section is a sloping grassy area with geometrically patterned hedges. There are two landscaped gardens on either side of this.
We visited the monument of the 25th of April. This is at the top of the central slope. This monument commemorates the 1974 Revolution. It was created by João Cutileiro, a Portuguese sculptor. It has a fountain in a basin with a crumbling wall and broken columns. There is a huge Portuguese flag flying behind the fountain. Apparently it is the biggest flag in Portugal.There are great views over the city and the River Tagus from here. On the other side of the road from the fountain there is a statue called Motherhood by Columbian sculpture Fernando Botero.
Tiles in Parque Station.
Sailing boats on a pond.
Statues.
Statues.
Statue.
Monument of 25th April.
Huge Portuguese flag.
Central grassy area and view.
Central grassy area and view.
Central grassy area and view.
Botero's Motherhood.
Next we got back onto the metro and went to Olaias Station on the red line, not to go anywhere but to look at the station itself as I had read it was the most elaborate station on Lisbon's metro network. The station was designed by Tomás Taveira and its artwork was created by Pedro Cabrita Reis, Graça Pereira Coutinho, Pedro Calapez and Rui Sanchez. It's very colourful and psychedelic to say the least.
Olaias Station.
Olaias Station.
Olaias Station.
Olaias Station.
Olaias Station.
Olaias Station.
Olaias Station.
Olaias Station.
Olaias Station.
Olaias Station.
We got back on the metro and headed to Biaxo-Chiado Station. We used this station many times, but this time I made a mistake about the exit and ended up purely by chance at an area we had passed on the 28 tram which I wanted to explore. I had no idea it was right next to this station.
The area consists of two connected squares Largo do Chiado and Largo do Cameos. Largo do Chiado has theaters, shops, bookstores and cafés. This area was once the literary center of Lisbon and is known for having a bohemian character. The area is named after a sixteenth-century poet, António Ribeiro, nicknamed Chiado or squeak. His statue is in the centre of the square. There were building works all around it as the square was under repair when we visited. Ribeiro lived in this area. He is known for his poems and satirical dramas. There's a famous cafe here called the café Brasilia. There are two Baroque churches on these squares. One is the sixteenth century Italian church - Igreja do Loreto. The other is the Igreja de Nossa Senhora da Encarnaçao, which was built in 1708. I visited the Igreja do Loreto. The adjoining Largo do Camões is named after poet, Luís Vaz de Camões. He is considered to be Portugal's greatest poet. There's a statue of him in the square dating from 1867. It was created by the Portuguese sculptor Victor Bastos.
António Ribeiro, hard to photograph due to construction work.
Cameos Square.
Cameos Square.
Cameos Square.
Igreja do Loreto.
Igreja do Loreto.
Igreja do Loreto.
Igreja do Loreto.
After looking around these squares we jumped on a 28 tram. I had noticed a huge mural of a girl soldier with a carnation in the barrel of her rifle when we had spent the day going back and forth on the tram, but I had not had time to photograph it.
The Carnation Revolution was a military coup. It happened on the 25th of April 1974. The revolution began as a coup organised by the Armed Forces Movement but received a huge amount of unexpected popular support. The revolution led to the fall of the Estado Novo Regime, terminated the Portuguese Colonial War, and ultimately resulted in a democratic Portugal. It was almost bloodless. During the revolution Celeste Caeiro was working in a new restaurant in Lisbon called Rua Braamcamp. The restaurant had planned to give out carnations to their customers to celebrate their opening, but the opening got cancelled due to the coup. Celeste was told she could take the flowers home but instead she passed them out to the rebelling soldiers and they placed them in the muzzles of their guns. When they saw this, other people began buying carnations and giving them to soldiers, too, hense the name Carnation Revolution.
The mural I saw was in the Alfama area. After looking at the mural, I walked all over this area as it had beautiful tiles houses, the Monastery and Church of Saint Vincent de Fora and the Pantheon.
The Carnation Revolution.
The Carnation Revolution.
This is not my photo but shows the real Carnation Revolution as it happened.
The Church and Monastery of Saint Vincent de Fora was founded in the twelfth century by King Afonso Henriques. De fora means the church was originally located outside the city walls. Saint Vincent is the patron saint of Lisbon.
Vincent was actually born in Spain in the third century. He joined the Christian church in Zaragoza and was appointed as deacon to Bishop Valerius. Roman Emperor Diocletian, angered by the spread of Christian doctrine, ordered them to be arrested. Valerius was exiled and Vincent was horrifically tortured but would not renounce his faith. In AD 303 he was finally put to death.
After his death Saint Vincent's followers placed his body on a ship and sailed westwards. They were shipwrecked at the Cape of Sagres and Vincent's remains were buried there. Legend states his body was guarded by a flock of ravens. In 1175 when the Moors were being driven out of Portugal, King Afonso Henriques decided to transfer Saint Vincent’s remains to Lisbon where he had a monastery built for him - the Monastery of Saint Vincent de Fora. This monastery was destroyed but was eventually rebuilt by King Philip II of Spain. Later King Afonso had Vincent declared the Patron Saint of Lisbon. In Vincent's honour Lisbon's Coat-of-Arms depicts a sailing ship with ravens on the bow and the stern.
Saint Vincent's Church.
Saint Vincent's Church.
Bridge near Saint Vincent's Church.
Fountain near Saint Vincent's Church.
Saint Vincent's Church.
Saint Vincent's Church.
Flowers in Saint Vincent's Church Garden.
Flowers in Saint Vincent's Church Garden.
Behind the church and monastery there is a lovely viewpoint which overlooks Lisbon's Pantheon.
The Pantheon.
The Pantheon.
The Pantheon.
The Pantheon was originally Santa Engracia church. It was built by Princess Maria in 1570 and became the centre of the Slaves of the Holy Sacrament, a powerful religious sect. On the 15th of January 1630 the church was desecrated and its images and statues were utterly destroyed. A man called Simon Solis was blamed for the desecration though he denied it. Simon was sentenced to death by fire and was so angry he cursed the church saying it would never be restored.
The Holy Slaves decided to utterly rebuild the church rather than just restore it, but this was delayed again and again due to wars, struggles for independence and other problems. It wasn't until the 1910 revolution when the Portuguese monarchy was overthrown that the restoration started again. It became symbolic that the new regime would finish the previous monarchies failings. Construction was completed in 1966, though the church became the National Pantheon housing the interred bodies of many prominent people.
This area also has some lovely tiled houses and shops.
Tiled Houses.
Tiled Houses.
Tiled Houses.
Tiles.
Tiles.
Graffiti.
After looking around this area we got back on a 28 tram to go to Martim Monitz Square and the metro station. I did a bit of souvenir shopping around here, buying compact mirrors with Portuguese tile patterns on them and evil eye keyrings.
I also saw another attractive mural, though I'm not sure who it's of. I've subsequently tracked it down. It's called Inês’ and it's by a Norwegian Artis called Ener Konings.
Mural of Inez by Ener Konings.
Martim Monitz Square.
We took the metro to Restauradores and attempted to go up the Santa Justa Elevator for views, but the queue there was huge so we did not bother. Instead we noticed a free elevator which said Castle Elevator on it. When we got off we crossed a road and went in a second elevator. We ended up at a viewpoint and within easy walking distance of the castle. We walked through the area near the castle then watched the sunset at the viewing area.
Santa Justa Elevator.
Castle area.
Castle area.
Castle area.
Viewpoint.
Viewpoint.
Viewpoint.
Sunset.
Sunset.
Sunset.
Sunset.
Sunset.
Sunset.
After watching the sunset we went back to the Biaxo-Chiado area and had dinner. We had cod fillet, cod cakes and cod cakes with cheese. Then it was home for a swim.
Cod fillet.
Cod cakes.
Restaurant.
Next morning we had a swim in the light for a change. Then we headed to the airport. We took some photos of a Sagres beer advert, a broom advertising the Harry Potter Exhibition and then headed to the lounge. On the way to the gate a shop specialising in tinned sardines and other tinned fish caught our attention.
Last swim.
Last swim.
Last swim.
Last swim
Sagres Advert.
Harry Potter's Broom.
Lounge.
Sardines.
Sardines.
Then it was on the plane and back to Hong Kong and the year of the rat and sadly a major outbreak of disease. Not a good start to a new year for Hong Kong.
The Year of the Rat.
The Year of the Rat.
Posted by irenevt 02:47 Archived in Portugal Comments (6)