Lisbon - Ongoing Trip Report
 

We've begun five months in Europe with a month here in Lisbon. We have one week to go and I wanted to let you know how much we love this city. It's just such a wonderful place. The people are so friendly, it's easy and fun to get around with trams, funiculars and excellent subway etc.. One month isn't nearly enough time to do everything we want! In fact we've only managed one weekend away in the three weeks we've had here so far.

The fish at the Mercado da Ribiera is wonderful and it's well worth a visit even if you aren't cooking. No wonder the Portuguese eat so much fish it's fabulous here. We're finding Portugal affordable, even with dollars. January is showery and there was an incredible storm a few days ago but the sun comes out if you're patient. At this time of year apartments are reasonably priced, there are no crowds, the pousadas are cheap, it's easy to get dinner reservations and there are no lines for the trams. Frankly I like travelling in this off off season.

The Gulbenkian is a "don't miss" for us, such a wonderful museum with an amazing Middle Eastern collection and an incredible room of Lalique jewellery. It's free on Sundays and easy to get to by metro.

Anyway I've been blogging (with lots of photos) as we go and have lots of posts on food, pastries, museums, graffiti, Alfama and Belem. I will be adding more every couple of days. You can find our Portugal posts at

http://somuchmoretosee.blogspot.pt/s...label/Portugal

I'm happy to answer any questions if you're considering a trip to Lisbon, or if you're thinking or renting an apartment. As I now have a much better idea of the city layout I'd be happy to share or lend an opinion. This weekend we were in Evora, Estremoz and saw the fabulous monastery at Batalha. I haven't blogged on these destinations yet but though I would mention them in case anyone is working on their itinerary. We weren't as wowed by Sintra as some other people on the forum though we did enjoy our visit to Quinta da Regalia which is an extraordinary house and garden.

The daily travel pass here in Lisbon has gone up to 6 euro per day and I think the prepaid rechargable Via Viagem is a MUCH better deal for almost everyone. It means that the trams, metro, funiculars and buses will cost you 1.25 per ride. It's easy to buy at the automatic machine and the card will cost you 50 euro cents.

I highly recommend Restaurant Duvall and the tasting menu at 100 Manieras if you're looking for upscale modern Portuguese cooking. I have a blog post on simple meals at Tascas and Cantinhos.
http://somuchmoretosee.blogspot.pt/2...in-lisbon.html

Today I sought out some of the street art and had a great time.
http://somuchmoretosee.blogspot.pt/2...in-lisbon.html

Hope these quick notes and the blog are useful or inspire you to come to Lisbon too. Let me know if you have any questions.

We loved Lisbon when we were there last August. I completely understand your enthusiasm for it.

Check my trip report for restaurant recs in Lisbon.

I'm enjoying your blog--and very jealous of the amount of time you have there. We were there right before you, from January 2-6, and had fantastic, sunny, blue skies the whole time.

We enjoyed the street art as well--have a whole photo gallery devoted just to that and the random tile on buildings around the city.

Enjoy the rest of your time there!

Bookmarking for my trip planning reference. Now I'm off to check out your blog!

Thanks everyone, we are thrilled to have a whole month here and looking forward to four months in Paris.
Peace Out we checked out you trip report thanks!
Ms-go you were lucky with the weather it has been a little more variable but still manageable over the last few weeks.

love your trip report and have just had a peek at your blog.
my DH and I are just in the midst of planning our trip to Europe and coincidently he just suggested Lisbon.
so I am very interested in reading more.

Check out Bon Jardim for roast chicken on the cheap eats scale, and I enjoyed the Mozambique restaurant Ibo not far from the Mercato, on the river, at Cais do Sodre.

Visiting the Convento do Carmo for essential Lisbon.

I am so glad you appreciated the Gulbenkian.

If you haven't been to the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga yet, it is really worth going more than once, and taking the museum in digestible bites. It is quite rich and dense, and not particularly well-labeled. But it is stuffed throughout with treasures that really light up the history of Lisbon in your mind. If you can locate a guidebook just for the museum before you go to the museum, I think that would be best. I guess I would look for that at Livraria Bertrand.

Thanks for the comments, we were thinking of going to the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga this afternoon! Thanks for the advice on the guidebook.

A few days ago I went to Fundacao Medeiros E Almeida which is a lovely small house museum. I love decorative interiors and museums assembled by a single collector so this was a good one for me. This isn't a place you'd make it to with only a few days in Lisbon but if you have more time it's well worth dropping by.

We had a wonderful last few days in Lisbon and there's still so much more we'd have liked to have seen. The sun came out for the last few days and we finally made it up to the castle which is very atmospheric.

We did a great tour with Joana from Lisbon Spirit called "Lisbon from the Other Side"
http://www.lisbon-spirit.pt/english.htm
We went across the bay on a ferry, took a bus up to the Christo Rei statute for fabulous views and then walked back along the waterfront learning about the history of the area. Joana is an architect and has set up the tour business along with her partner Nuno who studied urban planning, I took an equally enjoyable city tour with him. In the winter it's very quiet so the tours can end up being private. I highly recommend them, they have a schedule of walks but because it was so quiet they were happy to do which even walk we liked on the day that worked for us. Their rates are very reasonable, in fact perhaps even too reasonable for what ended up being a four hour private tour. I'll be posting pictures on my blog.

We also had some wonderful meals at Catinho do Avillez, 100 Manieras and 100 Manieras bistro. I did finally make it to the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga and loved the collection including art and furniture from Goa which was fascinating. I've blogged on a pile of other subjects and should get around to adding some of these topics soon.

New posts on Camoes, Mercado and the pharmacy Museum if you're interested...
http://somuchmoretosee.blogspot.com.es/

We're now in Madrid the sun is shining and the Prado awaits!

Lucky you. We love Lisbon and all of Portugal.

Yes, I'd be happy to go back tomorrow, hopefully next time we'll be able to tear ourselves away from Lisbon!

Oh good! You've been to Lisbon -- we're thinking of going in May. Suggestions for apt rentals would be great or areas to stay.

Oh good! You've been to Lisbon -- we're thinking of going in May. The apt you stayed in looks nice. Was it a good area or do you have other recs?

Hi Yestravel,
It seems we're going to all the same places! We highly recommend Lisbon and I'm sure it would be gorgeous in May.

We really liked the apartment we rented and would recommend the area. It's very lively at night but the apartment was quiet as the bedrooms are at the back of the building. It's in the very center of town which made getting around very easy and it's close to several of the lovely viewing point. There are also a lot of very good restaurants close by. We also liked a neighborhood close by but a little further out called Principe Real (near the Botanical gardens on the hill) and I would consider this next time.

Frankly we found getting an understanding of the different areas before we left quite difficult, somehow we couldn't grasp the topography. We also considered a nice apartment with lovely views in Graca and I would think about renting their next time too but it feels a little more isolated as you have to take the tram right through Alfama to get there though I'm sure this has its own advantages you'd just get to know a different part of the city.

I was less keen on Baixa which is central but a flat shopping area and can be quite deserted at night. In parts it had a less neighborhoodly feel.

The only thing that strikes me is that my concerns in looking for an apartment for January were somewhat different than had I been going in May. For a May stay I'd probably have looked for an apartment with some outdoor space as the weather should be nice enough to enjoy the sunshine.

Hi! Thanks for the great info. It's helpful.
We still plan to be in SF in 2 weeks so hope we can meet up.

Sounds good!