Evora - city in yellow frames

I've reached Evora in Alentejo (literally meaning 'beyond the river Tagus') on Sunday at lunch time. It wasn't really that easy coz firstly, there were some problems with metro and I've almost missed the bus and then the trip was over one hour longer because of the bicycle marathon on the Vasco da Gama bridge. After leaving the freezing air-conditioned bus the heat surrounded me. For a while I felt as if I was being followed by Japanese girls but I've lost them in the toilet. As soon as I left the bus station in Evora I started moving towards the historical center. The general atmosphere of the city reminded me a mixture of Greek villages, films with Mexican landscapes in the background and stories of Don Kichot.

What I loved the most about the city appearance were yellow frames around the windows and doors, which is very typical for Alentejo, Southern Portugal.

After having a coffee (in a yellow cup) in one of the cafes a lady holding a bunch of papers printed with wikipedia stuff, obviously a tourist, asked me if I can help her to find the way to one of the churches. As soon as I've looked at her papers I've noticed they were all in Hebrew. What a surprise it was for the lady when I not anwsered to her in Hebrew but also managed to read what was written on her papers. After a while she also helped me to find the Chapel of Skulls. It was quite nice to speak the language I didn't use at all after 4 years of studying it.

The most impressing piece of architecture in Evora is its cathedral with lovely rose windows.

As to me it is a perfect example of the UNESCO site, all kinds of styles mix here: megalithic, roman, gothic, reinessance temples.

If I had more space in my luggage probably I would buy something made of cork. Cork forests are common in Portugal and due to that this country makes 50% of cork products worldwide.

Alentejo region is also famous for the red wines, which are well known for combining quality with affordability.

On Sunday afternoon Evora was extremely peaceful and quiet. That was what I was glad to experience after crowded Lisbon. The surroundings were very pleasant and half of the day was enough to see all of the attractions and also the festival of local products.

(This is one of over 30 posts, which I accidentally deleted one day in January. Luckily, I was able to recover them thanks to the backup done by DanielSan! It's a pity that the comments are gone...)

Bairro Alto - yellow tram and brazilian drinks

One evening in Lisbon, Carolina's friends Isabel and To (short form from "Antonio") invited us for dinner. The first surprise of the dinner was that it was suppoused to be on their apartment's terrace on the last floor of the building. So the main dish was planned to be Bacalhau à Brás followed by Caipiroska. What a surprise it was to find out that it is possible to prepare Bacalhau à Brás without bacalhau. It turned out that Isabel is a vegetarian and she usually use leek as a substitute of fish. It was second time when somebody proved me in Portugal that vegetarian cuisine can be as delicious as meat dishes.

Meanwhile, To prepared caipiroskas with black vodka. Try it at home children.

As it was Friday night, Carolina, Isabel, To and Rui decided to show me the most legendary district of Lisbon by night - Bairro Alto. Few days before I went there with Iva and it was completely empty and actually seemed to be quite boring. It was another surprise that this time it was full of people having fun and enjoying the biggest glasses of Mojito I've ever seen. Some of the bars seemed to be quite normal but other ones had really interesting interiors, for example one had green walls and furniture in Japanese style. However, most of the bars had just a few tables inside to encourage people to socialize with the whole surrounding, I suppose.

While having our drinks To was pointing at some people from time to time and telling me what kind of Portuguese celebrity are they.

Bad thing is that the bar-owners are told by the police to close at 2:00am so we moved to some less crowded streets of Bairro Alto passing nearby Rua da Bica, which was so full of people that it was impossible to pass. I went back to that place on the next day... and they were all gone. All of them. Just the yellow Bica was still there on the top of the street as always since 1892.

Every place on Earth has its own mysteries. For me, the biggest mystery of Lisbon are those two little sandals that I've noticed in the middle of the sidewalk somewhere in Bairro Alto.

Hanging around the city at night guarantees seeing things that are impossible to be seen in daylight. One of them is the bakery in Chiado... but it's another story.

Oh well, I don't feel like making additional post about Chiado and Baixa - very touristic and commercial districts of Lisbon.
One night in the middle of the week, Iva and I were exploring the city center. As I mentioned before, Bairro Alto was a deserted place that night so we went down to the main street of Baixa - Rua Augusta. The main pedestrian of the city was quite empty as well... However, suddenly some strange guy appeared in front of us, holding a small package in his hand and whispering "marijuana? marijuana?". Few steps after passing him, the next guy appeared offering us roses. It was too many unexpected offers for that night so Iva commented it: "First they tried to sell us drugs, then thought we're lesbians... what will be next?".
Next thing was the MANGO shop with a bag, which was perfect for Iva's new shoes. Unfortunately, it was the middle of the night and Iva never came back again to buy it.

Fado - the sound of Portugal

Every region of the world has its own sound. The most authentic sound of Portugal is fado, which literally means "destiny". The roots of fado reach early XIXth century, when Portuguese sailors were expressing, with very poetical lyrics, how much they miss their families by singing fado. It is "saudade" (nostalgic, melancholic missing) that is the main topic of fado songs. The typical musical instrument of fado is the Portuguese guitar (12 strings) - guitarra portuguesa/guitarra de fado. It is very often accompanied by the Spanish guitar - violão.
The lyrics referring to "saudade" sang by a fado singer (always dressed black) matched together with the guitar sound result with very emotional pieces of music, which appeal to the listeners.

The best place in Portugal to discover fado is Alfama - Lisbon's oldest district. That is where people gather at night and where cosy restaurants sound of fado.

Whenever I heard a story of how somebody got to the place where the fado was played, it's never been easy to get there just from the street. In every story, there was always a friend of a friend whose friend told another friend that a friend... and so on... In my case, the chain was a bit shorter. It started from my Portuguese friend - Carolina - who originated in the North of Portugal and moved to Lisbon few years ago. Carolina asked her friends, who weren't native Lisbonians as well, if they knew any fado place worth recommending. Luckily, they knew - Mesa de Frades at Rua dos Remédios 139 in Alfama.

As I googled the restaurant (of course I could have done it before, but what for? to miss all the fun?), it turned out to be one of the top fado houses in Lisbon where some of the best Fado singers perform. It is necessary to make a reservation before coming there - the place is very small. Mesa de Frades is also known for its famous guests such as Mariza - one of the most famous modern fado singers or Pedro Almodovar - the Spanish movie director.

I've found a very old picture of Lisbonians listening to fado in front of Mesa de Frades. For sure the atmosphere of the place has changed a lot, since such tourists as me, started showing up there.

One of the kings of Portugal was in love with beautiful Dona Rosa, so he decided to build a palace for her in Alfama - Palacio da Dona Rosa, which obviously included a chapel. The actual restaurant Mesa de Frades is arranged in the former chapel of Dona Rosa and the old blue tiles are still on the interior walls.

On the Friday evening of June, Carolina and I took our seats by one of Mesa de Frades' tables. I've ordered a dish that, as Carolina told me, was the specialty of the place - massada de cherne. The fado musicians were supposed to show up in 1 hour... And that's all I can tell here. The rest - experience it yourself!
You can check out Mesa de Frades or simply try your luck on the streets of Alfama. Who knows whom can you meet and where they can take you... There are still fado places hidden from tourists where not many have been to.

Sintra - a true fairytale

One of the most famous Portuguese UNESCO sites is Sintra. I had a pleasure to visit it for the second time, but this time luckily it was much less crowded than at the begining of May. This taken out from the fairy tale town is full of marvelous palaces and castles surrounded by incredibly green hills.

After taking a few first steps in Sintra, appears Palacio Nacional with its most characteristic feature kitchen chimneys. Unfortunately, the entrance fees and everything in general in Sintra is sooo #%&*$ expensive that I didn't expect such a high prices in my wildest nightmares.

To take a better look at Sintra I've climbed the hill of the Moorish Castle. The views from there are spectacular. Even the ocean shows up nearby. Castelo dos Mouros' origins reach the IXth century. Even though its ruined, some parts of a mosque remained.

The most famous palace of Sintra is Palacio da Pena. It was bult in the middle of XIXth century and at first sight seems to be a completely chaotic mixture of all possible styles and colors. The guy who had a wish to build it must have been crazy or constantly stonned. These days, the ticket to enter doesn't cost 6,5 Euro as guide books inform, but 11 Euro. However, it's something totally different from any other buildings and seeing it was an unforgetable experience.

Interior isn't very shocking but exterior surprises with strange towers and scary sculptures behind every corner. Obviously it was not allowed to take pictures inside but the most funny thing were black sculptures of Moors holding chandeliers.

The palace that I liked the most was Monserrate Palace full of impressing details. It is still being restored but I believe that afterwards it will become a true architectural pearl.

Lord Byron said:
"I must just observe that the village of Sintra in Estremadura is the most beautiful in the world."

And last but not least important fact is that, I wouldn't see all those places without Iva and her family! It's very useful to have a car to move around Sintra.

(This is one of over 30 posts, which I accidentally deleted one day in January. Luckily, I was able to recover them thanks to the backup done by DanielSan! It's a pity that the comments are gone...)

Antiga Confeitaria de Belém

Iva and I had a dream: to eat Pastel de Belém for breakfast! We decided to make it come true in the morning after arriving to Lisbon. Tram number 15 took us from the city center to Belém...

Pastel de Nata a.k.a. Pastel de Belém is the most typical Portuguese pastry. It is a kind of egg tart and tastes the best served while still warm. The most famous and delicious ones are produced by Antiga Confeitaria in Belém.

Once upon a time... at the beginning of the XIXth Century, in Belém, next to the Mosteiro dos Jerónimos there was a sugar cane refinery linked to a small general store. As a result of the revolution of 1820, all monasteries in Portugal were shut down. Afterwards, someone from the monastery in Beleém offered sweet pastries for sale in the shop, which quickly became known as 'Pasteis de Belém'. As the area was attractive for visitors because of the monastery and the Torre de Belém , also the delicious pastries originated in the monastery became more popular.
In 1837, baking of 'Pasteis de Belém' begun following ancient 'secret recipe' from the monastery. Passed on and known only to the master confectioners. This recipe remained unchanged until the present time.

Iva and I keep on saying that the best thing about Portugal are coffee and cakes. Trying Pasteis de Belém was more important cultural experience for us then seeing the rest of local tourist attractions. Pasteis just taken out from the oven, sprinkled with cinnamon powder were a delicious breakfast!

Luckily on the next day I came back there with Carolina for an afternoon coffee...

(This is one of over 30 posts, which I accidentally deleted one day in January. Luckily, I was able to recover them thanks to the backup done by DanielSan! It's a pity that the comments are gone...)

Corpus Christi in Vila Real

Second weekend of June was a, so called, "long weekend" for everybody thanks to the Corpus Christi holiday that took place on Thursday.
Typical thing about this holiday are processions. In Poland, the processions take place in the morning and everybody treat it very seriously and try to look and behave very elegant. In Portugal it looked more like an evening street parade where firefighters and friends were making a lot of noise with their drums and trumpets.

Meanwhile the community of Vila Real gathered in front of the church as if it was a picnic. In Poland everything is closed during such holidays, in Portugal every supermarket is open just like it was during Easter.

To seize the day, Sena and Filipe called me in the afternoon and we took a ride to Alvão.

It gave us a lesson that my beloved waterfall is hidden in the shadow in the afternoon.

Instead of swimming we went on admiring the views.

In the faraway background - Vila Real.