Trixie Traveler in Portugal: Belèm District

I am really enjoying the casual schedule we are keeping. We are so scheduled and up early on the bike part of the trip that we are taking advantage of being more relaxed in these days before. We also are pleased with our decision to use taxis as transport saving time, energy and money as a taxi with four is less than public transport. We get to where we want to go with more time to spend there instead of waiting for buses, trains or whatever. I used to think using the public transit in a place was part of the experience, see locals and such, but, hey, I'm older now, times change and maybe time to be kind to ourselves. Taxis here are quite cheap as is the food.

The structures in Belèm survived the 1755 earthquake so it is a good place to see important sights from Portugal's Golden Age (1500s - 1700s) from before the earthquake. After the earthquake, the royalty chose to live here and the current President maintains a residence here. We start at the Belèm Tower built 1515-1520. It was the last sight sailors saw before leaving on scary ocean voyages and the first sight of home when, if, they returned. The weather is overcast, windy and a few raindrops so we quickly move on.

Next we go to the Monastery of Jerónimos built of white limestone by King Manuel (ruling from 1495) to commemorate discoveries made by early explorers. Before we go in, we witness some kind of ceremony involving matched horses with elaborately uniformed riders. A mounted band plays at what looks like maybe a welcome ceremony to some dignitary who is picked up in a black limousine. The cloisters here are by far the most interesting. They are the finest example of Manueline architecture. Manueline architecture is very decorative, not structural, and is a lot of googah put on top of, or in addition to, the Gothic, Renaissance or whatever basic structure the building has. (See pictures.) the church was crowded, dark and not that interesting to me anyway. The Renaissance altar was the best part in my opinion.

A stop at Pastei de Belèm is a must for a "pastel de Nata" (pastel de Belém here). It is a little custard tart that one sprinkles cinnamon and powdered sugar on. You see these all over but they are especially good here because they are fresh out of the oven. We stop for lunch at a busy little place - Pão Pão Quiejo Quiejo (Bread Bread Cheese Cheese). Our expectations are not particularly high so we are amazed at our delicious large sandwiches on warm, fresh baguettes with salad or fries each for just 5 euros!

Our stomachs sufficiently stuffed, we go to the National Coach Museum housed in a beautiful new large building. There are a hundred or more ornate coaches used by royalty and clergy from the 16th to 18th centuries. They don't look very comfortable but are certainly ornate and amazingly well preserved.

We take a taxi back to the hotel for our afternoon siesta and individual activities. The dark, overcast weather makes for not so good pictures.

We have a wonderful evening at a restaurant recommended by our hotel - As Velhas Restaurante which means "two old women." We almost give up because we couldn't read the handwriting on our map but I am able to figure it out. It is on a side street very near our hotel. It is the most upscale of any of the restaurants we have been to in Lisbon - white tablecloths, a waiter in a suit and tie and very competent. A tall regal looking woman whom I presume to be the owner greets us. We all chose a fish selection and all thought our meals absolutely delicious! We had the best time at dinner reminiscing, Kathy making jokes about her being hairless with her upcoming chemo and just all in all enjoying the moments together. (Kathy - "Any day with hair is a good day." "I won't have to worry about bad hair days.") She also wondered if her wig would blow off on a windy day and we problem solved ways to prevent that. Silliness for sure but also serious stuff. At the end of the meal, Dave asks the owner if he can take his bread with him (the concept of a doggie bag here is unknown) so she brings him half a loaf of bread in a plastic bag and later a whole bag of olives!! "Bread and olives are the stuff of life," she says. We almost rolled on the floor laughing. In the end Dave has his picture taken with the owner woman and then the waiter. He asks us how we found out about the restaurant. We tell him from our hotel. He's probably going to be sure the hotel doesn't recommend the place to any more Americans!