A Stroll Around Lisbon

While flying back from the Azores to Malaysia last month I stopped over in Lisbon for 36 hours.  My previous visit to Lisbon was over 25 years ago and I had forgotten how beautiful the city was, especially on a gorgeous sunny November day.

With a full day to spare, I decided to avoid the top tourist attractions such as Jerónimos Monastery, Belém Tower and São Jorge Castle as I saw all those last time. Instead I took a long walk around the old part of the city in a roughly circular direction from my hotel.

Here are a few of the sites covered on my 8 hour walk.

IMG_1810
Palácio das Necessidades

The Palácio das Necessidades  was originally a convent, then a royal palace until the monarchy was overthrown in 1910. It now serves as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

IMG_1821
Estrela Basilica – a shocking place!

Estrela Basilica, or the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was built from 1779 to 1790. For a fee, I was allowed to climb one of the bell towers and up onto the roof to enjoy the view. I rested my elbows on the parapet to steady my camera not noticing the electrified wires running around the edge of the roof to stop people from jumping off. I received a nasty little shock but luckily my camera survived the jolt.

IMG_1830
Lisbon Tram

Lisbon still has a number of tramlines with old-style carriages. They add a lot of character to the place and are used by both tourists and locals.

IMG_1832
Assembleia da República 

This historic building, known as São Bento Palace, houses the Portuguese parliament. Quite a big building for just 230 seats.

IMG_1834
Snack Required.

Pastéis de bacalhau are a type of fishcake made with salted cod, potato and onion. Delicious and only €2.50 including a cup of expresso.

IMG_1835
City tours by Tuk-Tuk seem to be quite popular with tourists. This one had a dog in it.
IMG_1836
I get the impression that Portuguese people are creative and artistic. 
IMG_1841
Lisbon Botanical Garden

Portugal has been going through an economic crisis and austerity programme for the past few years. They seem to be well on the road to recovery but a sign at the Botanical Garden apologised for the unkempt condition of the garden due to budget constraints.

IMG_1846
Graffiti covered tram.

Perhaps those budgetary constraints also mean there is no money available to clean up graffiti. Those graffiti vandals should be made to go to art school to improve the quality of their work.

IMG_1863
Lisbon is built on seven hills. Why is it always seven? Rome, Amman, Mecca, Jerusalem and numerous other cities also claim to be built on seven hills.

Lisbon is a hilly city  so there were plenty of steps to climb on my eight hour walk.

IMG_1873
Igreja da Graça

Feeling a bit tired, I had to rest for a while in this church near the highest point in the city.

IMG_1870
There are lovely views from up here.

 

 

IMG_1865

This restaurant near the castle was giving off the most delicious aroma of grilled sardines.

IMG_1884

Lisbon has done a good job in preserving the appearance and character of its historic centre.

IMG_1893
This house with a Venetian look is known as the Casa dos Bicos (house of spikes) and was built in 1523 by Brás de Albuquerque, son of the first governor of Portuguese India, Afonso de Albuquerque. 

Lisbon is a lovely city. I don’t think I’ll wait another 25 years before returning.

Museu do Oriente, Lisbon

While in Lisbon recently I wanted to visit the Museu do Oriente, a museum dedicated to the Portuguese presence in Asia. Portugal’s principal possessions in Asia comprised Goa, Malacca, East Timor and Macau together with a trading post in Nagasaki, all places which are relevant to the theme of this blog.

IMG_1779

The museum, together with its parent organisation the Fundação Oriente, is housed in a former dock-side warehouse which used to belong to the Comissão Reguladora do Comércio de Bacalhau (commission for regulating the trade of cod).

The museum’s permanent exhibitions cover two floors, the lower floor containing the items relating to the Portuguese colonial period in Asia and the upper floor housing the Kwok On Collection of over 13,000 pieces connected with performing arts in Asia.

The Macau section covers the most floorspace which is not surprising since Portugal controlled the territory for nearly 450 years.

IMG_1781

This handsome lacquer screen portrays some of the major landmarks of Macau including St. Paul’s Church (of which only the facade still remains), Mount Fortress and A-Ma Temple.

IMG_1782

Some works by the English painter George Chinnery (1774 – 1852), who lived in Macau from 1825 until his death, are featured in the museum.

IMG_1784

Another lacquer screen from the 17th Century shows a Portuguese trading carrack in the process of disembarking its cargo in China to trade with the Chinese.

IMG_1786

One of the world’s thinnest books must be this atlas of Portuguese possessions in southern China by Albino Ribas da Silva (1868-1934). It consists of just 8 pages, all of Macau.

IMG_1787

This European style bureau or writing desk has been decorated with a black and gold lacquer illustration of the Praia Grande, Macau’s seafront promenade.

IMG_1792

Over in the Japanese section is a fine collection of inro, beautifully crafted wooden boxes used for carrying small items (since Japanese men did not have pockets in their traditional robes).

IMG_1793

Portuguese traders and missionaries were tolerated in Nagasaki for 50 years or so until Tokugawa Ieyasu took power and expelled the foreigners in 1614. Portugal is credited with introducing tempura, firearms and Christianity to Japan among other things.

IMG_1801

This Japanese screen shows a Portuguese delegation with its leader sheltered by the yellow umbrella.

IMG_1794

East Timor was a Portuguese colony until 1975 when it became part of Indonesia. It broke away from Indonesia and gained independence in 2002. Timur is Malay for east so the country’s name means east-east which is a bit odd, like Gili Islands in Lombok which means island-islands. According to the museum, Timur was so-named because it was the most easterly island in the Sunda archipelago searched by Malays, Indians, Arabs and Chinese in their search for white sandalwood which grew in abundance in the area.

IMG_1798

The Indian section contains some attractive pieces such as this inlaid cabinet and desk.

IMG_1799

This is a scale model of the Church of Santana in Talaulim, Goa. The church, which still stands, was built between 1681 and 1695 and marks a turning point in Luso-Indian architecture.

IMG_1803

The town of Malacca hardly gets a mention in the museum which is disappointing. However Malaysia does feature in the performing arts section with Wayang Siam shadow theatre puppets on display. Wayang Siam exists in Kelantan and is heavily influenced by Thai and Javanese shadow theatre traditions.

IMG_1806

This lovely MG car is not part of the museum but was parked outside. If you want to find out more about the museum you can visit their official website.