Man, is Lisbon quiet in the morning, at least on weekend mornings.
We were staying on Rua de Sapateiros, which I believe means Shoemaker Street. The skinny street ends at a gate. That's what it looks like from Rossio Square, which was dead quiet on this morning. Even the fountain hadn't been turned on yet.
It amazing what you see during quiet morning walks. We often miss things while walking in the hustle and bustle of streets like the usually busy with tourists Rua Augusta, a pedestrian only street crawling with restaurants trying to pull in tourists and folks trying to sell cheap sunglasses. This caught our eye on this morning's stroll.
One of our favorite things to do during early mornings is to visit the local market. I'd read about the Mercado de Ribeira (River Market) and thought it might be worth a visit. The front desk person had never heard of it and had to Google it. He gave us instructions on the kilometer or so walk to the market which was located almost across the street from the Cais do Sodre Station.
The area around the market was a bit gritty, there were many bars, and a couple of rough looking types, but it was daylight, and this was Lisbon, which seems very safe.
The market is located in a building with a distinctive Moorish style dome and has been in existence since 1882.
Having been to markets across the globe, I expected a hustling and bustling scene….but I guess for once, we were too early for everyone. Like I said, Lisbon is a late waking city.
Well, that was that….kind of disappointing, but still a bit interesting.
From here, we decided to catch the #28 tram to Alfama, the oldest existing and maybe the most picturesque of Lisbon's neighborhoods. We spent a bit of time trying to find the stop, so we went to the "Lisbon Rule". Whenever you start getting a bit confused and frustrated, it's time for some espresso and a Pastel de Nata. We found a little shop….there must be literally a thousand of these and had a very nice cup of espresso and a passable Pastel de Nata.
By this time I'd developed an espresso routine. Taste, then add preferably raw sugar until you get that balance of bitter and sweet. I actually preferred the espresso in Portugal more than what we had in Rome. I ended up mostly ordering Macchiatos there.
Anyway, one of the guys working here spoke excellent English and gave us directions up the hill to the tram stop. Like I said, the Lisbon rule, when starting to get frustrated, head for the nearest Pastelaria, it worked everytime.
We caught the tram, before all the tourists…though at this hour there weren't any and watched as it ambled up and down the hills.It's a neat ride.
We got off at the stop near the Church of Santa Luzia.
There's some really nice tilework to be found on the church. All done in the 18th century. This was really the first time we had a look at Azulejo, the famous Portuguese tilework up close.
Right on the other side of the church is the small square (Largo) of Santa Luzia. The views of the Tejo and Alfama are breathtaking.
Even with the morning sun blazing in your eyes. For some reason, the sky just seemed brighter in Portugal, Rome, and Malta.
It's really hard not to take a great photo here…….
You just have to follow the signs to really get around.
Alfama itself is a maze of interconnected streets which reminded me of the Medinas of North Africa. This area has been occupied since the days of the Visigoths. I was told that if "you really want to see "how Lisbon was, go here". And I'm talking about really old Lisbon. You see, on All Saints Day (November 1st) 1755, a huge earthquake, actually three earthquakes occurred while most of Lisbon was at Mass, followed by a tsunami. Alfama was one of the few areas spared. Lisbon was rebuilt, in a logical grid pattern. In Alfama, you get a feel of the rabbit's warren of streets, a practical defense against your enemies, the shade from the buildings built close to one another and the breezes directed from the streets kept things cool during hot weather.
The Castle of Sao Jorge – Saint George, you remember him, right? He's the guy who slayed the dragon is right through the gates. The story I read was that John I married an English Princess and since Saint George was a popular figure in both countries, he named this castle after him. Meanwhile, the other story goes that the Alfonso I enlisted the help of the Knights of the Second Crusade to aid in defeating the Moors. The knights prayed to Saint George who inspired them to victory. Nothing was opened at this time, and truthfully, we were just enjoying the vibe and colors too much to even entertain a museum or such.
There's a ton of graffiti in Europe. We kind of enjoyed the signs and graffiti in Alfama……
WE then decided to follow the tram tracks uphill and ended up in Graca District, which seemed more local and residential than Alfama. We followed a sign that said "miradouro" (of course) and ended up at a beautiful viewpoint.
You could tell how far we had walked from Sao Jorge Castle as we had a nice view……
THe Missus had seen "s church" earlier and wanted to find it. This turned out to be the São Vicente da Fora monastery. Which we eventually found……
Now this was Saturday and when I saw stands set-up right past the gate to the right of the monastery I knew we had found the Feira da Ladra, the "Thieves Market". No, it's not quite as romantic as it sounds. This was basically one gigantic flea market.
With everything from Aprons to Zippers……
You can see the Church of Santa Engrácia in this photo. It gives you some idea of how big this market is.
Reaching the end of the market we decided that finding the restaurant in Alfama that we had reservations for the next night might be a good idea. The twisting and turning streets seemed a bit confusing.
So we headed down those very streets, looking at various maps and a print out of the restaurant location. We started getting a bit frustrated.
So you know what time it was, right? It was time to enforce the "Lisbon Rule". We immediately stopped at a pastelaria…
And had a decent espresso and a Pastel de Nata. The really nice woman here sprinkled cinnamon on it, which I kinda liked.
And from here we got our bearings…..
We went from the obedient pooch…..
Past the raincoat mutt….actually, we saw several dogs dressed in jacket and raincoats….
And against all odds actually found the place. We then headed off in the direction we thought was correct and somehow ended up at the fortress like Sé (Cathedral) of Lisbon. Not quite sure how we made it here……
But we had.
It was then just a few blocks to Rua da Prata, a street we were familiar with, parallel to Rua Augusta and Rua de Sapateiros.
By this time I was getting a bit hungry. We had walked past a small restaurant with all type of pork parts displayed for the world to see in its window the previous day. This time, we decided to stop in.
The Missus, in Her typical way, took charge….She started asking the really nice guy manning the counter questions about the pork ear and other stuff.
In the end, the choice for Her was easy. After getting a taste of this She was sold.
And so it passed that I had suckling pig for breakfast……
The skin was crisp and not too hard nor think. Perhaps the meat was on the salty side, but it was moist, with a nice swine flavor. And it all screamed out for a "breakfast Sagres"……..
But man does not live on roasted suckling pig alone….. there's also Chouriço, smoked pork sausage…in this case a whole deep fried version. Which was delicious as well.
You know, the Missus and I have been married for almost 15 years. After all that time affection and love are represented in sometimes different and subtle ways. Like when the Missus saved this for me……
This would have probably made for a nice "Breakfast of Champions" post if it weren't so long. Funny thing is, we realized later on, that the front of the shop didn't have a sign……
Oh well…..if you're on Rua de Prata, just look for the place with all the pig parts in the window!
