Lisbon is the capital of Portugal. Lisbon is a destination
recommended and praised by numerous national and international
publications, referred to as unmissable, dynamic, trendy and
cosmopolitan, recognized for the art of hospitality and
characterized by a high quality offer and great attractiveness.
City of seven hills, the Portuguese capital offers a wide range
of options. From the much appreciated neighborhoods of the Historic
Centre, where Fado is the soundtrack of choice, to Parque das
Nações, symbol of modern Lisbon, tourists are challenged to
experience a metropolis of contrasts, in an intimate and
unrepeatable way.
From the numerous gardens to the
viewpoints, passing through the vibrant Cais do Sodré, Bairro Alto,
Intendente and Martim Moniz, to the renovated Terreiro do Paço,
there is much to see and do in Lisbon.
Lisbon is the capital
of Portugal and the largest city in the country.
Located on
the Atlantic coast of Europe, on the right bank of the Tagus river
estuary, it is the westernmost capital of the European continent.
The Lisbon Region has approximately 3 million inhabitants and, in
the city alone, around 600 thousand people live.
It is a safe
and dynamic city, with an attractive annual calendar of events for
all tastes and ages.
The Festas de Lisboa - also known as
Santos Populares - are among the most appreciated initiatives and
Santo António is the object of great veneration. On the night before
the 13th of June, the day dedicated to this Saint and a municipal
holiday, an authentic crowd gathers on both sides of Avenida da
Liberdade - one of the main arteries of the city - to see the
Popular Marches parade, representing the popular neighborhoods of
the city. Music, grilled sardines and a good wine are essential to
celebrate the occasion.
Despite being venerated, Santo
António is not the patron saint of Lisbon. This role falls to St.
Vincent, deacon and martyr, celebrated on 22 January.
Thanks
to the richness and diversity of its tourist offer, the Portuguese
capital is ideal both for those wanting to take a "city break" and
for those traveling on business, or looking to reconcile both
situations. From the richness of its Heritage to the Gastronomy,
from the annual calendar of events to the infrastructures able to
receive the most diverse initiatives, Lisbon reveals itself as a
destination of choice, where every tourist can live a unique
experience.
Lisbon is located near the mouth of the Tagus
River, where it flows into the Atlantic Ocean. With about 500,000
inhabitants in the center and a total of 3,000,000 in the
Metropolitan Region of Lisbon, it is the largest city in Portugal,
being its political, cultural and economic center and is also one of
the most beautiful cities in the world.
The climate is
oceanic or Atlantic, with precipitation throughout the year.
Telephone number for tourist information: 808 781 212
Lisbon
Card. The Lisboa Card allows visitors to discover Lisbon in an easy
and convenient way, offering the holder the following advantages:
Free movement in public transport, namely: Metropolitano de Lisboa,
buses, trams and elevators from CARRIS, trains on the Sintra - Sete
Rios - Oriente Line, and Cascais - Cais do Sodré Line.
Free
admission to 27 museums, monuments and other places of interest.
Discount from 10 to 50 percent on places and services of tourist and
cultural interest.
Discount of 5 to 10 percent in participating
stores selling genuinely Portuguese items.
The Lisboa Card is
available for 24, 48 and 72 hours and can be purchased at Lisbon
Tourist Offices or through the portal. At the time of purchase,
updated information will be available on all locations and equipment
covered by the Lisboa Card.
The Travel Planner is a virtual tool
hosted on the Turismo de Lisboa portal, which allows visitors to
plan tourist itineraries during their stay in the city. In the
Travel Planner section, users have at their disposal five infograms
and seven virtual itineraries that show the history of Lisbon in
detail. Visitors can opt for suggested itineraries or create their
own itineraries. Travel Planner information is presented in
Portuguese and English and all points of interest are referenced on
Google Maps.
Lisbon is a city with an intense cultural life. Epicenter of the discoveries since the 15th century, the city is the meeting point of the most diverse cultures, the first place where East, India, Africa and America met. Maintaining close links with the former Portuguese colonies and today independent countries, Lisbon is one of the most cosmopolitan cities in Europe. It is possible, in a single metro ride, to hear languages such as Cantonese, Cape Verdean Creole, Gujarati, Ukrainian, Italian or Portuguese with Mozambican or Brazilian pronunciation. And none of them spoken by tourists, but by locals.
Lisbon's traditional music is fado, a nostalgic song accompanied by
the Portuguese guitar. A popular explanation of its origin refers to
the chants of the Moors, who remained in the Mouraria neighborhood
after the Christian reconquest. More plausibly, the origin of fado
seems to stem from the popularity of Modinha in the 18th and 19th
centuries, and its popular synthesis with other related genres, such
as lundu, in the rich melting pot of cultures present in Lisbon.
Lisbon hosts the Companhia Nacional de Bailado, the state-owned
company created in 1977, with a vast repertoire of classical and
contemporary dance programming. After Expo'98, CNB became a resident
of Teatro Camões, in Parque das Nações. It has the EDP Foundation as
its exclusive sponsor. Companhia de Dança de Lisboa, CDL, founded in
1984, aims to disseminate and decentralize dance, teaching different
dance techniques in classes open to the population from 3 years old.
Creates and presents shows with particular attention to themes of
Portuguese culture, nationally and internationally.
Since 1994, the year it was the European Capital of Culture, Lisbon
has been hosting a series of international events, from Expo 98 to
Tenis World Master 2001, Euro 2004, Gymnaestrada, MTV Europe Music
Awards, Dakar Rally, Rock in Rio or the 50 years of Tall Ships'
Races (International Regatta of Large Sailboats). In 2005, Lisbon
was considered by the International Congress & Convention
Association as the eighth most sought after city in the world for
holding international events and congresses.
The
Alfama-Baixa/Chiado-Bairro Alto axis is the stage for both erudite
and popular culture. There is a wide range of options on offer at
night in Lisbon: a dinner with live fado in Bairro Alto can be
followed by an opera show at São Carlos, or a concert at Coliseu dos
Recreios. You can continue with alternative music at ZDB, or with a
trip to the many bars and clubs in Bairro Alto or the entire
riverside area of the city. When the sun rises, it's time to see the
locals and tourists who fill the historic viewpoints, such as those
at the castle, in the typical Alfama neighborhood of Bairro Alto.
The Jazz Festival in August takes place every year in Lisbon, at
the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. Here, national and international
musicians give concerts for audiences of all ages. Lisbon has also
hosted the Lisbon International Organ Festival since 1998 in
restored historic organs. Some of the places where the festival
takes place are the Patriarchal Cathedral of Lisbon and the Basilica
da Estrela. Another relevant event in the world of music is the
Super Bock Super Rock, a summer music festival held annually in
Parque do Tejo, at the mouth of the river Trancão, next to Parque
das Nações). Organized since 1995, it is currently one of the most
important Portuguese festivals.
Rock in Rio is a music
festival originally organized in Rio de Janeiro, hence the name,
which quickly became an event with worldwide repercussions and, in
2004, had its first international edition in Lisbon. Throughout its
history, it had 7 editions, three in Brazil, three in Portugal and
one in Spain. In 2008, it was held for the first time in two
different locations, Lisbon and Madrid, and there are intentions to
organize a simultaneous edition in three different continents. In
2014, Lisbon will once again host the Festival.
The city of
Lisbon hosts some festivals, such as IndieLisboa, an international
alternative and independent film festival. The festival is organized
by the cultural association Zero in behavior, and has already been
held five times since 2003. Throughout the autumn, cinema returns
with DocLisboa (international documentary festival), the Lisbon Gay
and Lesbian Film Festival, as well as the Festival " Temps
d'Images".
Lisbon has a municipal holiday, the 13th of June, Saint Anthony's
Day. However, the patron saint of the capital is São Vicente.
Festivities in honor of Santo António de Lisboa take place
throughout the city and typical neighborhoods such as Alfama,
Madragoa, Mouraria, Castelo and others are decorated with balloons
and decorative arches. There are popular festivals, decorated places
where you can eat grilled sardines, Caldo Verde (a cabbage soup cut
into pieces) and drink red wine. The Night of Santo António, as it
is popularly known, is the party that starts on the night of the
12th. Every year the city organizes the popular marches on this
night, a large allegorical parade that goes down Avenida da
Liberdade (the main artery of the city) , in which the different
neighborhoods compete, a bit like the samba schools, in a kind of
Portuguese carnival. A big fireworks display usually ends the
parade. The boys buy basil (an aromatic plant) in a small vase, to
offer their girlfriend, who brings a little flag with a popular
verse, sometimes playful or joking.
Santo António is known as
a matchmaker saint, which is why the Lisbon City Council usually
organizes, in the Patriarchal Cathedral of Lisbon, the wedding of
young couples of modest origin, every year on the 13th of June. They
are known as 'Noivos de Santo António', receive offers from the
municipality and also from various companies, as a way of helping
the new family. This tradition of Santo António weddings began in
1958. The marches appeared in 1932.
Every year, from the 25th
of November to the 7th of January, Lisbon is illuminated by millions
of small lights. In 2004, he erected the Largest Christmas Tree in
Europe. Initially placed in Belém, it moved to Terreiro do Paço in
2005 and 2006, then 76 meters high, equivalent to a 30-story
building. In the streets of Baixa, it is normal to see various
Christmas attractions, such as music shows, entertainers disguised
as Santa Claus, etc. (street entertainment).
On New Year's
Eve, parties are common throughout the city. Television usually
shows several programs live, and the city's main festival takes
place at Terreiro do Paço, with several concerts and a mega-firework
show at midnight on the dot (in addition to Terreiro do Paço, there
are several launch points fireworks spread across Lisbon and along
the south bank of the Tagus River in front of the capital).
Carnival in Lisbon is mainly celebrated in schools. Some schools
organize parades, which go through some streets of the city (mainly
Rua Augusta). The oldest is the António Arroio Art School parade. In
recreational institutions and, in Bairro Alto, you can also admire
parties related to Carnival.
Moda Lisboa warms up the mildest winter of all European capitals
with several fashion shows, where several Portuguese and foreign
designers show their trends.
Lisbon is also the stage for
numerous other cultural events. Lisbonarte, consists of several
visual arts exhibitions in Lisbon art galleries. Several artists
exhibit their work to the public. In theatre, the Young Theater
Exhibition consists of the representation of various theatrical
plays by future artists.
In literature, the Lisbon Book Fair,
an event held annually since May 1930 in Lisbon. The Fair generally
takes place in the last days of May. Its current location is Parque
Eduardo VII. At this fair, several authors of different books are
usually invited to autograph sessions. These are great occasions to
buy books at lower prices.
Other events include the Festival
dos Oceanos, which takes place every year in August at Parque das
Nações; Experimentadesign, a design mega-festival held every two
years in September; and LisboaPhoto, an exhibition where various
photographers can expose their photos to the public. Since 2006, an
event dedicated exclusively to Light (a biannual event) has been
held in Lisbon, Luzboa. Several installations created by visual
artists centered on the theme of Light are scattered throughout the
city. Bairro Alto, Baixa, Avenida, are some of the places that host
this show.
For several years now, on the 1st of December, a
great ceremony has been organized in Praça dos Restauradores,
involving various political, civil and military entities, to honor
the Restoration of Independence in Portugal. For 44 years, Lisbon
was most of the times the headquarters of the Festival RTP da
Canção. This festival serves to elect a representative, who will
represent the country, in another European country, winner of the
previous edition of the Eurovision Song Contest.
Lisbon has three public universities, the University of Lisbon, the
Technical University of Lisbon and the New University of Lisbon, and
several private universities. The city is equipped with several
libraries, the most important being the National Library, and
archives, namely the Military Historical Archive and the Overseas
Historical Archive, among others, however what deserves greater
emphasis, as it is one of the most important archives in the world,
is the Torre do Tombo.
Among the museums are: National Museum
of Ancient Art, with the most important national collection of
ancient painting; Calouste Gulbenkian Museum, whose diverse
collection includes six thousand pieces of art from various
historical periods; Museu do Chiado, with a collection of Portuguese
art from the 19th century; Museu-Colecção Berardo, where a
collection of international modern and contemporary art is presented
alongside contemporary art exhibitions; José de Azeredo Perdigão
Modern Art Center where, in addition to temporary exhibitions, a
permanent section of Portuguese art from the 20th and 21st centuries
is on display; National Coach Museum, the most visited in the
country, with the largest collection of coaches in the world;
Electricity Museum with a permanent exhibition showing the energy
production and machinery of the former Tejo Power Station, mixing
science and fun; Lisbon Oceanarium, with its impressive collection
of live species; Military Museum in Lisbon, with a permanent
exhibition of weapons from different eras.
Other museums and
cultural centers: Arpad Szenes Museum - Vieira da Silva; Rafael
Bordalo Pinheiro Museum; Museum of Design and Fashion; Museum of
Decorative Arts; National Archeology Museum; National Costume
Museum; Museum of the Orient; National Tile Museum; Pharmacy Museum;
Navy Museum; Water Museum; Museum of the Lisbon Carris de Ferro
Company; Fernando Pessoa House-Museum; José Saramago Foundation.
In the concert halls, the Coliseu dos Recreios, the Aula Magna
of the University of Lisbon, the Forum Lisboa, the auditoriums of
the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, the Centro Cultural de Belém and
Culturgest, the Pavilhão Atlântico and the Praça de Touros do Campo
stand out. Small, in addition to the various existing theaters and
cinemas.
Baixa Pombalina and Chiado are the "heart" of the city. It was built
on the ruins of the old city of Lisbon, destroyed by the great
earthquake of 1755. Its construction obeyed a rigorous urban plan,
according to a reticular model of street/block, obeying the
philosophy of the Enlightenment. The rebuilding of downtown Lisbon
after the earthquake was the first case of typified, standardized
and "series" construction by humanity. Its authors were Manuel da
Maia and Eugénio dos Santos and the political decision was made by
the Marquês de Pombal, minister of El Rei D. José I. Baixa is also
the largest shopping area in the city of Lisbon. Nearby and of
historical interest are Praça dos Restauradores and the Elevador de
Santa Justa, designed at the end of the 19th century by Mesnier du
Ponsard. Downtown is also located Praça do Comércio, also known as
Terreiro do Paço, Rossio, or Praça Dom Pedro V, Chiado, Convento do
Carmo and Praça dos Restauradores.[citation needed]
Alfama is
one of the most typical neighborhoods in Lisbon, with its typical
Arab and medieval architecture and narrow streets, being one of the
few places in Lisbon that survived the 1755 Lisbon Earthquake. It is
in Alfama that most of the Fado houses are located. , where you can
enjoy various live shows. In Alfama, the Castelo de São Jorge, on
the highest hill in the city centre, the Sé de Lisboa, the National
Pantheon and the Feira da Ladra flea market and the Miradouro de
Santa Luzia stand out.
Bairro Alto is a typical neighborhood
of Lisbon, located in the center of the city, above downtown
Pombaline. It is a commercial, entertainment and residential area.
Today, Bairro Alto is a "meeting" place for young people in the
city, and one of the main nightlife areas in the capital. Here are
concentrated urban tribes, which have their own meeting places. Fado
still survives in the neighborhood nights. People who visit Bairro
Alto at night are a hodgepodge of locals and tourists.
Next
to the riverside area of the Tagus, west of the city center, is the
parish of Belém, representative of the city at the time of the
Discoveries. In this area, we can see two constructions classified
by UNESCO as World Heritage: the Jerónimos Monastery, built by order
of King D. Manuel I in 1501 and the best example of the so-called
Manueline Style, whose inspiration comes from the discoveries, and
is also associated with the Gothic style. and some Renaissance
influences. The monastery cost the equivalent of 70 kg of gold per
year, supported by the spice trade. The remains of Luís Vaz de
Camões, author of Os Lusíadas, rest in the Monastery, as well as the
great discoverer Vasco da Gama.
Very close to the Jerónimos
Monastery is the Belém Tower, a military watchtower building on the
Tagus bar, the great "ex-libris" of the city of Lisbon and an
architectural gem. In addition, it is in Bélem that you can find the
Monument to the Discoveries, the Palace of Belém, the official
residence of the President of the Republic, the National Coach
Museum, the Electricity Museum, the Church of Memory and the Belém
Cultural Centre.
The parish of Estrela includes one of the
most famous and oldest parks in the capital, Jardim da Estrela,
which was created over 100 years ago, and was inspired by Hyde Park,
in London. The Basilica da Estrela, with a Baroque-Neoclassical
style, is the main attraction in this area of the city. The Assembly
of the Republic and the Prazeres Cemetery are also two other
important points of the city, which are located in this area of the
city.
Representative of modern Lisbon, Parque das Nações was
born in 1998 to host the Expo 98 world exhibition on the theme of
the Oceans. The exhibition opened on May 22, 1998, the day that
celebrated the 500th anniversary of the discovery of the sea route
to India by Vasco da Gama. With all this, the eastern part of the
city called Parque das Nações became the most modern area of Lisbon
and even of Portugal, and Lisbon gained immense structures, such as
Torre São Rafael and Torre São Gabriel, both 110 meters high, the
tallest structures in Lisbon and Portugal). The main attractions in
the neighborhood are: the Lisbon Oceanarium, the Atlantic Pavilion,
the Portugal Pavilion, the Vasco da Gama Tower, the Vasco da Gama
Bridge and the Gare do Oriente, designed by the architect Santiago
Calatrava.
The parish of Beato stands out for the new
cultural dynamics that it has come to know in the 21st century. The
manufacturing districts and industrial facilities along the river
are the stage of choice for contemporary art galleries, nightlife,
markets, restaurants and museums, such as the Museu Nacional do
Azulejo or the Palácio do Grilo.
From the beginning of the
18th century, the most significant monument is the Águas Livres
Aqueduct. Also noteworthy are the royal palaces of Necessidades and
Ajuda, in the western part of the city. At the end of the 19th
century, urban plans made it possible to extend the city beyond
Baixa to the valley of the current Avenida da Liberdade. In 1934,
Praça do Marquês de Pombal was built, at the top end of the avenue.
In the 20th century, the extensive urban plans for Avenidas Novas,
the surroundings of the University of Lisbon (Cidade Universitária),
and the Olivais area, and the most recent ones for Parque das Nações
and Alta de Lisboa, still under construction, stand out.
Mosteiro dos Jeronimos Empire Square, Belem. Tel: 351 + 21 362 00 34 (fax: 351 + 21 363 91 45, mosteirojeronimos@mosteirojeronimos.pt). Commissioned by King D. Manuel I and founded in the 16th century, this monastery is the pinnacle of Manueline architecture and the most important monastery of that period in Portugal. Open from October to April from 10 am to 5 pm and from May to September from 10 am to 6 pm. Last entry 30 minutes before closing. Tickets €4.50, free on Sundays and public holidays until 2pm.
National Palace of Ajuda
Botanical Garden
Rua Augusta Arch
Santa Justa Elevator
Viewpoint Sao Pedro de Alcatra
Portas do
Sol Viewpoint
Berardo Museum
Bairro Alto
São Jorge Castle,
from where you can see almost the entire city. Ticket 7€
Nations'
park
Oceanarium
Golf
Courses with the signature of the most renowned architects,
stunning landscapes, infrastructures and services that exceed the
expectations of the most demanding - professionals or amateurs -, and
the mild climate throughout the year, make the offer of the Lisbon
Region a Golf Destination exceptional and available 365 days.
Surfing
The Lisbon Region has some of the best beaches in Europe for
surfing. The West Coast is recognized worldwide for its waves, unique in
the world, such as the famous Supertubos de Peniche, the powerful
Direita da Ericeira - the first World Surfing Reserve in Europe - or the
Canhão da Nazaré, a submarine canyon of tectonic origin, with an
extension of about 200 kilometers, which causes the amplification of the
wave.
Recently, this fishing village saw its name spread around
the world after the Hawaiian surfer Garrett McNamara surfed a wave of 78
feet (23.77 meters) at Praia do Norte, definitively inscribing Nazaré in
the Guinness records.
By airplane
Lisbon has air connections with the main cities in
Europe and some in America, Africa and Asia. From Brazil, flights depart
from 9 cities, including São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Campinas and
Brasília, all operated by TAP.
Lisbon-Portela International
Airport is 6 km from the city centre. To get to the centre, you can use
the Carris buses (lines 5, 22, 44, 45, 83 with a fare of €1.40), the
Carristur Shuttle (lines 91 and 96 with a fare of €3.00 ), or the Lisbon
Metro (1-hour tickets for €1.40 that also allow you to use the Carris
service or a 1-trip ticket €1.25 Zapping Carris or Metro), with
connections to practically the entire city. The same journey, by taxi,
costs approximately 10-15€.
Of boat
The city has several
points of communication by sea due to its proximity. Throughout the year
there are several boats, ships or cruises in progress that stop in the
great port of Lisbon.
By train
Lisbon has several connections
between parts of the city, other cities in Portugal and Europe. The main
train stations are:
Santa Apolónia, where the main route
(South-North) passes, connecting Faro, Coimbra, Porto and Braga. There
are also international lines to Madrid and Hendaye, where there is a TGV
connection to Paris.
Oriente, where the city's main bus station is
located.
Entrecampos, with arrivals from the Northern Line.
Rossio, with suburban lines to Sintra.
Cais do Sodré, suburban lines
to Cascais.
by bus
Many bus/bus lines arrive and depart from
Oriente station and Jardim Zoológico/Sete Rios station.
By car
The main highways that reach Lisbon are the A1 and A8, which come from
the North; A2 and A12, from Alentejo and South.
If you're using a
car, avoid entering Lisbon at peak traffic congestion times, especially
between 7:30 am and 9:30 am; and between 5 pm and 7 pm.
It is
also advantageous to have a GPS for orientation, as the streets in the
center of Lisbon are not always easy to identify, street identification
signs are old and difficult to detect, sometimes not even existing. The
relief of the city of Lisbon also makes traffic difficult, with steep,
narrow, one-way streets in Baixa.
The vast majority of parking
spaces (street parking) are charged: reserve coins for this purpose. At
weekends there are car parks that are free of charge.
Auto Jardim
Lisbon rental cars
Car hire in Lisbon
Very difficult in rush hour. You should avoid crossing the 25 de
Abril Bridge, heading North - South from 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm.
By
train/metro
The city has 4 metro lines, connecting to the main train
stations and different neighborhoods and points of interest. There are
also several suburban tram lines that cross the outskirts of the city.
The construction of two new stations on the green line is planned, in
Rato and Santos.
by bus
A good option to travel from one end
to the other and discover interesting places is the Ticket 1 day - Rede
(24 h) which allows free circulation of Metro or Trams (rails) for a
period of 24 hours.
Of boat
Inside the city it will be
difficult to get around by boat, but you can enjoy the views across the
Tagus River to the city by taking the "Cacilheiro" (boat to Cacilhas),
departing from the river station in Cais do Sodré. At the Terreiro do
Paço station you can take modern boats to Barreiro while the Belém
station serves the boats bound for Trafaria.
By car
Driving in
Lisbon is an adventure... as car traffic has increased substantially in
recent years. Therefore, it is advisable to use public transport, which
is reasonable. The Metro is the fastest way to reach your destination.
At night, take a taxi, but be careful, find out about taxi fares because
there are those who take advantage of tourists in Lisbon. Taxis in
Lisbon have a meter and the value is visible.
Taxi Voucher is a
prepaid taxi transport service from Lisbon International Airport to any
point in the city, country or even abroad.
by tram
You can
take the 28E tram, which runs between Prazeres and Martim Moniz, passing
through the city's most traditional neighborhoods, including several of
the hills that surround the city. You just have to be careful with
pickpockets who work a lot on this tram. If you have less time to enjoy
the smells of Lisbon, you can opt for tourist circuits. In addition to
28, there are other very interesting lines. Line 15 goes along the
waterfront, passing through the traditional neighborhood of Belém.
When you get tired of going up and down, take the opportunity to
enjoy going up in one of the lifts (Bica, Lavra and Glória) that Lisbon
has, in addition to the Elevador de Sta. Fair (of the same architectural
line as the Eiffel Tower).
A ticket valid for metro, trams,
buses, lifts and lifts (funiculars) for 24 hours costs €3.75, plus €0.50
for the ticket itself, which is rechargeable and lasts for one year.
Recently considered, by an international ranking, as one of the best
European cities for shopping – ranking ahead of Amsterdam, Milan and
Venice –, Lisbon stands out for the diversity of its offer, the
excellent quality-price ratio and the pleasant and inviting tourist
environment, which so much pleases visitors. From traditional shops to
shopping centres, it is possible to find high quality Portuguese and
foreign brands in the city.
The most glamorous avenue in Lisbon,
Avenida da Liberdade, is sought after by the biggest international
brands to open luxury stores. Cosmopolitan and elegant, it is one of the
main arteries of the city and one of the most popular tourist spots in
Lisbon.
Considered the 35th most expensive avenue and the 10th
most luxurious in the world, Avenida da Liberdade offers visitors a
varied and high-quality offer, through various areas of leisure,
commerce and services. This is where the world's best stores and brands
are located, such as Louis Vuitton, Prada, Miu Miu, Dolce & Gabbana,
TOD's, Gucci, Burberry, but also more alternative commercial spaces and
traditional commerce, where the uniqueness of the offer and the
attention customized are common features.
Crafts - hand-painted
tiles, typical ceramics, fabric work, including bed and table linen.
Clothes - Avenida da Liberdade and Chiado have the most sophisticated
stores. Rua do Norte and others in Bairro Alto offer more alternative
and trendy clothes.
Feira da Ladra - this "marché aux puces" in
Alfama is open on Tuesday and Saturday mornings. You'll find a little
bit of everything for sale there.
Portuguese gastronomy is a temptation and Lisbon presents itself as a
tourist destination conducive to experiencing flavours, with countless
and varied restaurants in the city.
From Mediterranean cuisine to
world cuisine, every day the tourist can "adventure" and taste a new
delicacy, a new taste and take advantage of an intoxicating aroma.
Imagination and desire are the limit. From traditional spaces to the
most sophisticated, the menu is always in tune with a cosmopolitan and
welcoming environment, to which is added an important factor: price
versus quality. And Lisbon is just like that: a pleasant surprise.
Every year, the Portuguese capital hosts a nationally renowned
gastronomic event, Peixe em Lisboa, a festival that showcases the
mastery of the most prestigious Portuguese and foreign chefs in the art
of cooking fish and seafood.
For ten days, kitchen wizards
participate in live presentations, debates and workshops, interacting
with the audience, who thus have the opportunity to learn to cook with
the best chefs in the world.
The initiative has the participation
of some of the best restaurants in Lisbon and the program also includes
gastronomic debates and a gourmet market, which showcases the best
products in the region - sweets, canned fish, olive oils and wines.
Portuguese gastronomy is famous for its fish and seafood dishes, namely
cod. In the north of the country, beef dishes stand out, while in the
Alentejo, pork is widely used in regional cuisine. Traditional codfish
is one of the best dishes on earth.
In Lisbon, custard tarts - of
which the best known are those from Belém - are very popular and easy to
find delicacies.
Economic
National Confectionery. Very
traditional, located in Praça da Figueira, 18b/c, tel. 213 424 470
Average
Restaurante A Confraria, York House - Rua das Janelas
Verdes, 32, 1200-691 Lisbon (Near the Museum of Ancient Art), Tel. +351
213 962 435 (reservations@yorkhouselisboa.com). Open all year round for
lunch and dinner. Seasonal menu accompanying the freshness and quality
of ingredients available daily in the market. With traditional
Portuguese cuisine inspired by the hand of Chef Nuno Diniz, from which
we highlight: Asparagus Cream, Poultry Livers, Turbot, Iberian Pork
Tenderloin and a delicious Burnt Passion Fruit Cream.
Largo, Rua
Serpa Pinto, 10A, Chiado, tel. 21 347 72 25. In addition to an
incredibly well-elaborated menu, the atmosphere is very pleasant, with a
jellyfish aquarium.
Restaurant "O Piteu", Largo da Graça nº 95,
tel:218871067. Traditional Portuguese food.
As soon as the sun goes down, Lisbon is transformed. It is the
nocturnal face of the city that reveals itself, effervescent,
extroverted and with a contagious energy, which lasts until dawn.
Lisbon's nightlife is known as one of the longest and most vibrant in
Europe and the world. Following Lisbon's habits, a night out never
happens before 9 pm and almost always starts with dinner, enjoyed in the
company of friends. A good suggestion is to dine in a space where, in
addition to good cuisine, there is live music or a bar to relax. The
night continues at one of the many discotheques and nightclubs in the
city.
The Alcântara Docks are an interesting place to go out at
night. However, for a few years now, interest in that area has been
declining and if what you want from Lisbon is to meet young people in a
social conversation environment, the place of choice is Bairro Alto
(metro station : Baixa-Chiado - green or blue line).
Fado houses in
Bairro Alto or Alfama are the right places for those who want to eat
while listening to traditional Portuguese music.
Theaters- Teatro
Nacional de S. Carlos - Opera
- Teatro da Trindade - Plays for the
general public - Teatro Nacional D. Maria II - National theater with
classical plays
Nightclubs and Pubs
Príncipe Real, above
Chiado, is the "gay district" of Lisbon, with several options of bars
and clubs aimed at this public.
Pavilhão Chinês, Rua D. Pedro V,
89/91, tel. 21 342 4729. It is a bar with the look of a museum, in which
collections of bric-a-brac and antiques are on display, carefully
curated. Beautiful place with great weather. It's so worth it.
Lisbon has a wide range of hotels, with good value for money. There
are 192 hotel units in the Region, totaling 44,170 beds. According to
recent indicators, the city has 26 five-star units (8,149 beds), 76
four-star units (21,745 beds), 51 three-star units (9,547 beds) and 39
two-star units (4,729 beds).
Lisbon also proves to be a reference
for younger tourists, with an informal and relaxed spirit, and it should
be noted that some of the best hostels in the world are located in the
Portuguese capital. At the same time, tourists can also opt for another
type of accommodation, also available in the Portuguese capital:
apartments, inns, inns, Rural and Residential Tourism, camping, among
others.
Economic
Hall Chiado. Completely refurbished in a
modern style and located in the best neighborhood in Lisbon - Chiado.
Accessible walking distances to the main sights, restaurants, shops and
transport.
Brown's Apartments. It's in a completely refurbished
building in Baixa, on Rua da Vitória, almost on the corner of Rua
Augusta, very close to the Baixa/Chiado metro station and the Santa
Justa elevator. Reservations only via the internet on the website above.
Average of 70€ per night for the house.
Hotel Borges, Chiado, 351 213
461 951 ✆.
Lisbon Story Guesthouse, Largo S. Domingos, 18 S/L (on the
right side of Teatro D. Maria II), (+351)211529313 ✆,
info@lisbonstoryguesthouse.com.
Ibis Lisboa Jose Malhoa, Avenida José
Malhoa LT H, (+351)21 723 5700 ✆.
Ibis Lisboa Saldanha, Avenida Casal
Ribeiro 23, (+351)21 319 1690 ✆.
Ibis Lisboa Liberdade, Rua Barata
Sagueiro 53, (+351)21 330 0630 ✆.
Ibis Lisboa Oeiras, Costa Do
Estoril Motorway Service Area-A5 KM 9,6, (+351)21 423 07 30 ✆.
Ibis
Lisboa Alfragide, Alto de Cabreira Estrada da Circunvalação - AMADORA,
(+351)21 391 16 99 ✆. The Ibis Lisboa Alfragide is a new, completely
non-smoking hotel located 5 km from the center of Lisbon, in the
business and commercial area of Alfragide. It is located 10 km from
Lisbon's international airport, close to the tourist attractions of
Cascais, Estoril and Sintra. Book one of our 129 rooms for your holidays
or business trips in the Lisbon area. The hotel offers a restaurant,
24-hour snack service, private parking, Internet and meeting rooms.
Average
Lisbon Oasis, Rua da Oliveirinha 14, (+351) 96 52 ✆,
booking@lisbonoasis.com. Lisbon Oasis has nine apartments, all located
in the historic center of Lisbon. All rooms have Wi-Fi access and they
are all in restored old buildings. Many apartments have air
conditioning, balcony, view, etc.
TravellingToLisbon, Calçada Nova do
Colégio, 19, (+351)218 886 072 ✆, inf@travelingtolisbon.com.
Hotel
Flamingo Rua del Castilho, 41.
Hotel Real Parque, Av. Luís Bívar, 67,
351 213 199 000 ✆, reservas.lis@hoteisreal.com.
Real Suites, Rua
Ramalho Ortigão, 41, 351 213 822 900 ✆, reservas.lis@hoteisreal.com.
Hotel Mercure Lisboa, Avenida José Malhoa, (+351)21 720 80 00 ✆,
h3346@accor.com.
Hotel Novotel Lisboa, Avenida José Malhoa 1-1A,
(+351)21 724 48 00 ✆, h0784@accor.com.
Vila Galé Ópera, Travessa do
Conde da Ponte, (+351) 213 605 400 ✆, opera@vilagale.pt. Driving tourism
in Lisbon, at the Hotel Vila Galé Ópera you can feel the music in the
air. Next to the Congress Center and the Docks Area. Online
reservations.
York House Lisboa, Rua das Janelas Verdes, 32, 1200-691
Lisboa, (+351) 213 962 435 ✆, reservations@yorkhouselisboa.com. York
House is a boutique hotel with a lot of charm, housed in a former
seventeenth-century convent. Its facilities include the A Confraria
Restaurant and the Enomania Wine Shop.
Tivoli Lisboa, Avenida da
Liberdade, 185, 351 21 319 8900 ✆.
Inspira Santa Marta Hotel, Rua de
Santa Marta, 48, reservas.ismh@inspirahotels.com.
Hotel Golf Mar
Praia do Porto Novo, Vimeiro, 2560-100 Maceira On top of the cliff,
overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, stands the Ô Hotel Golf Mar, in a wide
landscape with direct access to 3 beaches.
Olaias Park Hotel Avenida
Engenheiro Arantes e Oliveira, 9, 1900-221 Lisbon This hotel comprises a
total of 300 rooms, including 15 suites, spread over 18 floors.
Expensive
Hotel Pestana Palace, Rua Jau, 54, 351 21 361 5600 ✆.
Pousada de Queluz, Largo do Palácio Nacional Queluz - D. Maria I,
+351-214 356 158 / 214 356 172 ✆, fax: +351-214 356 189,
recepcao.dmaria@pousadas.pt. Historic inn.
Hotel Real Palácio, Rua
Tomás Ribeiro, 115, 351 213 199 500 ✆, reservas.lis@hoteisreal.com.
Sofitel Lisboa, Avenida da Liberdade, (+351)21 322 8300 ✆,
h1319@accor.com.
Bairro Alto Hotel, Praça Luis de Camões, 2, 351 21
3408288 ✆.
Links to Brazil
To make calls from a conventional telephone
(landline, public), use the following number format: 00+55+(city
code)+(phone number)
Example: to call the Planalto Palace, in
Brasilia, you should call: "0055 61 34111221".
The public telephone
system works as in Brazil, with a telephone card that can be sold at
newsstands, stationery stores, tobacconists.
There are some interesting places close to the city:
Mafra— A
charming village with a wonderful monastery. In Mafra you will find one
of the most important testimonies of Baroque art in the country, the
National Palace, which requires a long stop to admire its architectural
beauty and also the famous carillons, a unique set in the world due to
its dimensions and mechanism characteristics. It is, without a doubt, a
journey through the world of Art that should be included in any
traveller's tourist itinerary.
Ericeira— A beautiful resort near
Mafra, popular with surfers from all over the world. Located a short
distance from Lisbon and with excellent accessibility, Ericeira is
recognized as the first World Surfing Reserve in Europe. Endowed with a
unique natural beauty, it is identified internationally by surf lovers
as a must.
Sintra - A magnificent World Heritage Site, known for the
Pena Palace. and for its many other castles and palaces. Sintra, the
“Capital of Romanticism”, combines the splendor of Nature with the
magnificence of the monuments that enrich it. The village is also
referred to as the ideal destination for discovering the flavors of
Lisbon's typical sweets, including the famous pillows, queijadas and
fluffs. Muse of poets and other artists, Sintra is considered a UNESCO
World Heritage Site.
Cascais— A town in the bay of the same name, on
the Estoril coast. The Cascais/Estoril area, for example, is often
chosen for holding large events of a diverse nature, which annually
attract hundreds of tourists. It is here that initiatives of great
notoriety and worldwide projection take place in the modalities of
Equestrianism, Tennis and Golf.
Seixal - It started out as a fishing
village and developed into the county seat, it is connected to Almada
and consequently to Lisbon via the A2 and then via the 25 de Abril
bridge. The most important places to visit are the Moinho de Maré de
Corroios, Quinta da Fidalga, the Coreto da Amora, the Seixal Forum (this
is a cultural forum that has a library, an auditorium and an exhibition
gallery ). It is recommended to take a walk through the historic center
and there are several restaurants where you can have a good meal,
especially fish or seafood.
Oeiras— The municipality of Oeiras has a
vast architectural and landscape heritage representing many centuries of
history, of which the Marquês de Pombal Palace is an example. For fans
of outdoor activities, Oeiras offers a Promenade with an extension of
four thousand meters, where you can run, walk or simply enjoy the view
of the sea, and an Oceanic Swimming Pool, with salt water, which is open
between May and September and has capacity for 700 people.
Praia das
Maçãs - A small and surprisingly quiet seaside resort about 30km west of
Lisbon, close to Sintra.
Almada - Connected to Lisbon by the 25 de
Abril and Vasco da Gama Bridges, as well as by a ferry boat. The
Cristo-Rei Monument is located here.
Setúbal— District capital, and
entry point to Arrábida, Troia and the Sado River. You can see dolphins
in the river and bay. In a very isolated place on the slopes of the
Serra da Arrábida, is the Convent of Arrábida, owned by Friars
Arrabidinos Franciscans who built, in 1542, a set of cells, a church and
other facilities.
Palmela— A town on a hill, with a castle and great
views, close to Setúbal.
Sesimbra— A fishing village near Arrábida, a
good diving spot, with good seafood restaurants. It is also known as the
entry point to Cabo Espichel.
Azeitão - Close to Setúbal, this small
region consists of a series of beautiful villages, the best known of
which are Vila Nogueira de Azeitão and Vila Fresca de Azeitão. Azeitão
is located between the Arrábida Natural Park and the coast. In the park
you can see what remains of the original Mediterranean flora. You can
also visit the famous Arrábida Convent and enjoy the wonderful views
from the hills and from the peak.
Troia— A charming peninsula with
kilometers of unexplored beaches, and with a tourist resort being
developed on one of its ends. On the south bank of the Tagus,
Setúbal/Troia includes three integral botanical and landscape reserves:
the Solitário Reserve, the Mata Coberta Integral Reserve and the Vidais
Reserve.
Almada— In Almada stands one of the most emblematic
monuments built in the last century: the Cristo-Rei Sanctuary.
Oeste
— Also in the Oeste zone, the Wine Route makes known its extensive
vineyards and cellars. Peniche, with its exceptional beaches for
surfing, fishing or diving, or Óbidos, a magnificent Medieval Village,
are examples of the richness of the region.
Ribatejo — Bathed by the Tagus River, the
Ribatejo has as its reference landscape the marshes, where bulls and
horses run, which made the culture of these lands, unique in Portugal.
Cradle of the purebred Lusitano horse, a noble animal with a proud
posture, intelligent and docile, which lives in complete freedom in the
fields and pastures, it is the ideal place for a walk full of adventure.
Fátima— Fátima is certainly another place to visit. Highlight for the
Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fátima, one of the main pilgrimage centers in
the world, where thousands of pilgrims find spiritual comfort.
Tomar—
The Convent of Christ, in Tomar, is the best example of the wealth of
monuments in the region, having been considered a World Heritage Site by
UNESCO in 1983. Closely linked to the Knights Templar, Tomar preserves
traces and buildings that bear witness to its passage . Also worthy of
note is the much appreciated Festa dos Trabuleiros, which takes place
every four years.
For Samuel Bochart, a 17th-century Frenchman who devoted himself to
the study of the Bible, the name Olissipo is a pre-Roman designation for
"Lisbon" that would go back to the Phoenicians. According to him, the
word “Olissipo” derives from “Allis Ubbo” or “Porto Seguro” in
Phoenician, a port located in the Tagus Estuary. There is no record that
can support such a theory. According to Francisco Villar, “Olissipo”
would be a word of Tartessian origin, the suffix ipo being used in
territories of Turdetano-Tartessica influence. The prefix "Oli(s)" would
not be unique since it was associated with another Lusitanian city of
unknown location, which Pomponius Mela said was called "Olitingi".
Ancient authors knew of a legend that attributed the founding of
Olissipo to the Greek hero Ulysses, probably based on Strabo: Ulysses
would have founded a city called Olissipo in an uncertain location on
the Iberian Peninsula (Ibi oppidum Olisipone Ulixi conditum: ibi Tagus
flumen). Later, the Latin name would have been corrupted to
"Olissipona". Ptolemy named Lisbon "Oliosipon". The Visigoths called it
Ulishbon. and the Moors, who conquered Lisbon in the year 714, gave it
the Arabic name اليكسبونا (al-Lixbûnâ) or لشبونة (al-Ushbuna).
In
popular slang, those born or living in Lisbon are called "alfacinhas".
The origin of the word is unknown. It is assumed that the term is
explained by the fact that there were vegetable gardens in the hills of
the primitive city of Lisbon, where "vegetable plants used in cooking,
perfumery and medicine" grew green, sold in the city. The word lettuce
comes from Arabic and could indicate that the cultivation of the plant
began when the Iberian Peninsula was occupied by Muslims. There are also
those who maintain that, in one of the sieges that the city was the
target of, the inhabitants of the Portuguese capital had as almost
exclusive food the lettuce from their gardens. What is certain is that
the word became consecrated and that the great figures of Portuguese
literature agreed to take a Lisbon native as an Alfacinha.
In Lisbon there are traces of the Neolithic, Eneolithic and
Neo-Neolithic periods. During the Neolithic, the Lisbon region was
inhabited by people who also lived during this period in other areas of
Atlantic Europe. These people built several megalithic monuments. It is
still possible to find some dolmens and menhirs in the current
metropolitan area. Situated on the estuary of the Tagus River, the
excellent port of Lisbon made it the ideal city for supplying food to
ships heading to the Tin Islands (now the Scilly Islands) and Cornwall.
The Celtic people invaded the Peninsula in the first millennium BC.
Thanks to tribal marriages with the pre-Roman Iberian peoples, the
number of speakers of the Celtic language increased significantly in the
region. The pre-Roman settlement of Olissipo, which dates back to the
8th-7th centuries BC, was based on the hill and on the side of the
castle. Pre-Roman Olissipo was the largest orientalizing settlement in
Portugal. It is estimated that its population was between 2,500 and
5,000 people. Olissipo would be a good anchorage for maritime traffic
and for trade with the Phoenicians.
Archaeological findings
suggest that there were already commercial exchanges with the
Phoenicians in the Lisbon region in 1200 BC, leading some historians to
admit that they would have inhabited what is today the city center, in
the southern part of the castle hill. In Praça de D. Luís, in Lisbon,
traces of an anchorage that are over 2000 years old were found, dating
back to the 1st century BC. and to the V d.C., where ships anchored for
unloading and repairs and also for the transit of passengers and cargo.
In addition to traveling north from there, the Phoenicians also took
advantage of the fact that they were at the mouth of the largest river
in the Iberian Peninsula to trade precious metals with the local tribes.
Other important products traded there were salt, salted fish and
purebred Lusitanian horses, well known in antiquity.
Recently
(1990/94) Phoenician remains from the 8th century BC. were found under
the Lisbon Cathedral. However, some modern historians consider that the
idea of the Phoenician foundation is unrealistic, convinced that Lisbon
was an ancient autochthonous civilization (called by the Romans opium)
that limited itself to establishing commercial relations with the
Phoenicians, which would explain the presence of ceramics and of other
artifacts with such origin. An old legend states that the city of Lisbon
was founded by the Greek hero Odysseus (Ulysses), and that, like Rome,
its original settlement was surrounded by seven hills. If all of
Ulysses' voyages across the Atlantic had taken place as Théophile
Cailleux described them, that would mean that Ulysses founded the city
from the north, before going around Cape Malea, (which Cailleux says is
Cape Saint-Vincent), in the his journey southeast towards Ithaca.
However, the presence of the Phoenicians, even occasional, predates the
Hellenic presence in this territory. Later, the city's Greek name would
have been corrupted into Latin to Olissipona. Other pre-Roman gods of
Lusitania are Araco, Carioceco, Bandua and Trebaruna.
It is presumed that the ancient Greeks had a trading post at the
mouth of the Tagus River for some time,[citation needed] but the
conflicts that raged throughout the Mediterranean undoubtedly led to its
abandonment, mainly due to the power of Carthage at that time. .
However, it seems certain that the territory of Lisbon is primarily
occupied by Mediterranean populations organized around a nuclear family.
The civilizational influences of this saloia region of Estremadura are
Phoenician, Punic and, above all, in structural terms, Berber-Moorish
and Latin-Roman. The latter, exogenous, more refined, will dominate as a
culture of power, in administrative and teaching structures, when the
legacies of the Roman Empire are appropriated by the Catholic Church.
After the conquest of Carthage, the Romans began the pacification
wars in the West. Around 139/138 BC, they conquered Olissipo, during the
campaign of Decimus Junius Brutus Galaicus, who reinforced the city
walls to defend himself against hostile tribes. Lisbon at that time was
later annexed to the empire and rewarded with the attribution of Roman
citizenship, a rare privilege for non-Roman peoples at the time. of 50
km, not paying taxes to Rome, contrary to what happened with almost all
the other castros and conquered autochthonous towns. The city was
finally integrated, with wide autonomy, into the province of Lusitania,
whose capital was Emeritas Augusta, present-day Mérida, located in the
Spanish Extremadura. The Roman Olissipo was laid out in an amphitheater
from the hill of Castelo de São Jorge to Terreiro do Trigo, Campo das
Cebolas, the old Ribeira Velha and Rua Augusta. One of the oldest and
most important vestiges of the Roman presence in Lisbon are the ruins of
a magnificent theater (1st century) built at the time in the place that
today corresponds to nº 3A of Rua de São Mamede, in Alfama, very
frequented by the elites of the time.
In Roman times, the city
was famous for the manufacture of garum, a luxury food made from fish
paste, preserved in amphorae and exported to Rome and throughout the
empire. Other traded products were wine and salt. Ptolemy designated
this primordial Lisbon as the city of Ulysses. In his time, in addition
to exploiting the gold and silver mines, the greatest revenue came from
tributes, taxes, ransoms and looting, which included gold and silver
from the public treasury of the peoples of Lusitania and other
peninsular trading posts. At the end of the Roman Empire, Olissipo would
be one of the first aggregates that spontaneously welcomed Christianity.
The first bishop of the city was Saint Gens. As a result of the fall of
the empire, Lisbon was the victim of barbarian invasions, the Alans, the
Vandals and the Suevi, having been part of their kingdom. It was taken
by the Visigoths of Toledo, who called it “Ulishbona”.
After three centuries of looting, looting and loss of commercial
momentum, “Ulishbuna” would be little more than a village like many
others from the beginning of the 7th century. In 711, taking advantage
of a Visigoth civil war, Moorish troops led by Tárique invaded the
Iberian Peninsula. What was left of the western Roman peninsula was
conquered by Abdalaziz ibn Musa, one of the sons of Tarique. According
to old historians, “Olishbuna” does not escape him. Modern investigators
contradict this version by stating that there was no Muslim invasion of
Lisbon. The natives of Lisbon were Berbers, holders of a deeply rooted
culture.
In 714 Lisbon is taken by Moors from North Africa,
called Aluxbuna (al-Lixbûnâ) in Arabic, whose former name would have
been Cudia (Kudia or Kudiya). The Moura fence was built in this period.
The city belonged to the first Taifa of Badajoz in the year 1013,
created by Sabur al-Amiri (1013-1022), a Saqaliba, former subject of
Aláqueme II.
In 754 there was a Viking raid on the Lisbon coast.
This Nordic fleet consisted of 6 ships and about 520 men and women who
are thought to have originated from what is now southern Norway. This
fleet landed and destroyed coastal villages. It took 12 days for the
current government in Lisbon to finally act and organize a force of 300
men from North Africa who had recently arrived from Morocco. Finally
they left and sailed towards the Mediterranean. The Christians of Lisbon
were held responsible for the Muslims and many were expelled from the
region.
While the Islamic Taifas of the South were fragmenting,
in the North the Portucalense County separated from the Kingdom of León,
already in the midst of the Reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula. Despite
being established in Guimarães, the economic strength and autonomy of
the Portucalense County resided in Porto, i.e. in Portucale, in the port
city of Cale, in Gaia. We can well imagine what the new kingdom would be
like, moved by the commercial dynamism of the young city of merchants
which, at the mouth of the second largest river in the Iberian
Peninsula, the Douro River, then enjoyed an importance similar to that
of Lisbon on the Tagus River, and which would also end up for being
conquered.
Says the Arab geographer Edrisi that in Lisbon
"the
sea throws golden straws along the beach". In winter "the city's
inhabitants go to the river in search of this metal and dedicate
themselves to it while the cold lasts".
Almunime Al-Himiar
describes Lisbon with more refinement:
"It is a city by the sea, with
waves that break against the walls, admirable and well built. The
western part of the city is topped by overlapping arches resting on
marble columns supported by marble potting. city is beautiful."
The geographer Yâqût al-Hamâwî reveals other things still:
"It's an
old town by the sea, west of Córdoba. In the hills around it there are
beautiful hawks and it produces the best honey in all of al-Andalus,
known as al-ladharnî. It looks like sugar and is kept wrapped in cloth
so it doesn't get damaged. The city is next to the Tagus River and close
to the sea. It has deposits of pure gold in the ground and excellent
amber on the slopes."
For his part, Ibn Said Almagribi says in the
13th century that Lisbon "is a bride in a nuptial alcove."
Traditional Portuguese historiography tells us that al-Ushbuna was
conquered from the Moors by Afonso Henriques. It is known today that it
was the Marranos manor classes of Entre Douro e Minho, whose patron
saint was São Tiago, who were the workers of the conquest and that
Afonso Henriques belongs to the group of these Portuguese-speaking
Christians from the Northeast who would dominate the center and the
pagan south of Portugal and will perpetuate themselves leaving
offspring.
The first attempt to reconquer Lisbon took place in
1137. It failed in front of the city walls. In 1140, they flocked to the
crusaders in transit through Portugal. Together, they undertake a new
attack, which also fails. Only seven years later, Christians would
reconquer the village giving thanks to the first king of Portugal, Dom
Afonso Henriques. The king grants it a charter in 1179. In 1255, thanks
to its strategic location, Lisbon becomes the capital of the kingdom.
With the reconquest over, the Christian religion consolidated and the
Portuguese language established, the diocese of Lisbon is created, which
in the 14th century will be elevated to a metropolis (archdiocese).
In the last centuries of the Middle Ages the city expanded and
became an important port, with established trade with northern Europe
and with the coastal cities of the Mediterranean Sea. In 1290 King Dom
Dinis created the first Portuguese university in Lisbon which, because
of a fire, was transferred to Coimbra in (1308), when the city already
had large religious and conventual buildings.
Dom Fernando I, the
Formoso, built the famous Muralha Fernandina, as the city grew rapidly
outside the initial perimeter. Starting with the poorest neighborhoods
and ending with the bourgeoisie neighborhoods, most of the money used in
the project's execution came from the latter. This strategy proved to be
convenient, since otherwise the bourgeoisie would stop financing the
work.
The new chapter in Lisbon's history begins with the
revolution prompted by the 1383-85 crisis. After the death of Fernando
de Portugal, the Kingdom would have the King of Castile, D. João I, as
nominal sovereign and be ruled by Leonor Teles. However, the Castilian
king wanted to be effective sovereign or, as they say, "king and lord",
persuading his mother-in-law and queen regent to renounce the government
and give it to him. This, without the consent of the Cortes, constituted
a usurpation of power, which led to war. After about a year and a half
of struggle, the city's bourgeoisie, with its English connections and
large capital, would be one of the winners: the Master of Avis is
acclaimed João I of Portugal, after bringing the siege of Lisbon to a
successful conclusion of 1384 and before winning, in 1385, the Battle of
Aljubarrota, under the leadership of Nun'Álvares Pereira, against the
Castilian forces reinforced with French soldiers and supported by the
Portuguese nobles who rendered vassalage to the King of Castile.
In 1385 Lisbon replaced Coimbra as the capital of the kingdom.
The Portuguese maritime discoveries were, at the end of the 15th
century, one of the strategic priorities of D. João II, who ascended to
the throne in 1481 and who moved his residence from Castelo de São Jorge
to Terreiro do Paço (Paço da Ribeira) which , for this reason, it became
known as: the large “terreiro” where and around which the large
shipbuilding yards of Lisbon were concentrated and where the royal
palace was installed, on the western side of the “praça do Comércio”.
This would be the best place for the young sovereign to watch over the
Tagus, from the top of a thin tower, right there, two steps away from
the alleys of dubious fame that he favored in his nocturnal getaways.
Portugal is at the forefront of its contemporary countries by being
the first to transform technological and scientific research into State
policy and by opening its doors to Aragonese, Catalan, Italian and
German specialists with the aim of increasing and enriching the nautical
knowledge of officers and simple sailors. This policy would be
incremented with the knowledge of oriental pilots.
Several
expeditions are made with Portuguese crews integrating expatriates from
other kingdoms that will lead to the discovery of the archipelagos of
the Azores, Madeira and Canary Islands. With serious arguments, some
historians claim that Portuguese caravels will have reached Brazil in
the meantime. Such arguments are related to the secret projects of João
II who, before the Treaty of Tordesillas, hired navigators and
cartographers. One of these, a German, was called Martin Behaim. On one
of his maps, drawn shortly before the "official" discovery of America, a
vast territory in the extension of Asia is highlighted to the south. It
was the king's intention to hide its existence in order to guarantee, in
view of Castile's ambitions, the predominance of a colonial area of
vital importance for Portugal.
It allows the settlement of the
Atlantic islands to the west and southwest of Portugal to found port
cities necessary for the exploration of new markets. Numerous
expeditions departed from Lisbon during the Age of Discovery (15th to
17th centuries), such as that of Vasco da Gama, in 1497-1498, improving
the port of Lisbon, the mercantile center of Europe, avid for gold and
spices.
At the height of Portuguese colonial expansion, Lisbon's
riverside houses had between three and five floors: a store and, above
it, commercial facilities. Two engravings of Rua Nova dos Mercadores in
the 16th century discovered in London illustrate this reality and the
important role of the black presence in the city. Lisbon took Genoa's
place in the slave trade from Africa, the Iberian Peninsula and the rest
of Europe. It became a port where captives circulated and were later
sold to various parts of Europe. Lisbon was then frequented by many
foreign merchants.
Lisbon's greatest wealth since the end of the
16th century was gold and the monopoly on products from Brazil. After
the conflicts and wars between conservatives and liberals, the monopoly
was lost and only a small part of the gold reached the royal coffers due
to smuggling and piracy.
The country was in a difficult economic
situation when the nations of Europe, initiating industrialization,
enriched themselves with trade in the Americas (England would come to
dominate Brazilian trade) and Asia. It is however in Lisbon, in 1640,
that the main revolt in the Restoration of Independence will take place.
The problems of trade increased when, in 1636, the Catalans
revolted, merchant people like those in Lisbon also oppressed by
Castilian taxes. It is to Portugal that Madrid comes to claim men and
funds to subdue Catalonia. It is then that the city's merchants join the
small and medium nobility. They try to convince the Duke of Bragança,
Dom João, to accept the throne, but this, like the rest of the high
nobility, is favored by Madrid and only the intention of making him king
convinces him. The conspirators assaulted the Governor's Palace and
acclaimed the new king (D. João IV), first with the support of Cardinal
Richelieu, a Frenchman, and then resorting to the old alliance with
England, a process designated as the Restoration of Independence (1640).
Post-Restoration Lisbon will be a city increasingly dominated by
Catholic religious orders. More than forty convents are founded in the
city, in addition to the existing thirty. Idle religious, whose
livelihood is ensured by handouts and expropriations, number in the
thousands, making up more than 5% of the city's population. The
political climate becomes more and more conservative, more
authoritarian. Repressing the merchant class, the Inquisition
concentrated on controlling mentalities, watching over ideas and
creativity, which it suppressed in the name of the “purity” of faith.
Children unworthy of their father's heritage, who used to dedicate
themselves to commerce and companies overseas, take refuge in religious
orders and start to live on someone else's behalf, in most cases without
religious conviction.
Lisbon would then be the great stage for
autos-da-fé held by the Church against apostates, heretics, New
Christians, Jews in particular, accused of deviating from Christianity.
In addition to these, any citizen could be sacrificed for derisory
“sins” denounced by petty revenge. Delation was elevated to virtue. In
most cases, for false or futile reasons, the victims were burned alive
in ostentatious bonfires lit in places like Rossio and Praça do
Comércio, in front of excited crowds that sometimes appeased their shame
with barbecues and wine. Such shows, animated by skilful executioners of
the Crown, in which representatives of the ecclesiastical and secular
authorities took part, lasted until 1821. They were regularly honored
with the presence of King D. João V, who endeavored not to fall short of
neighboring Spain and European countries in grandiose works, notable
deeds and great measures like those of the Holy Office. Such repressive
practices, cultivating fear, raising a stigma in the soul of a people,
would serve as a model for future rulers, who knew how to take advantage
of them. In 1731, he ordered the construction of the Águas Livres
Aqueduct.
Lisbon was almost completely destroyed on November 1, 1755 by a
terrible earthquake. It was rebuilt according to plans drawn up by the
Marquis of Pombal (Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo), Minister of War
and Foreign Affairs. Coming from the lower nobility, he quickly reacted
to the ruins of the earthquake after having said it was necessary to
bury the dead, care for the living and rebuild the city. The rebuilt
central part will be called Baixa Pombalina. The grid adopted in the
reconstruction plans would make it possible to design the squares of
Rossio and Terreiro do Paço, the latter with a beautiful open archway
facing the Tagus River.
Still in the 18th century and at the
request of King João V, the Pope granted the city's archbishop the
honorary title of Patriarch and automatic appointment as Cardinal (hence
the title "Cardinal Patriarch of Lisbon"). In the early years of the
19th century, Portugal was invaded by Napoleon Bonaparte's troops,
forcing King Dom João VI to temporarily move to Brazil. Lisbon suffered.
Many goods were looted by the invaders.
The city lived intensely
the liberal struggles. A flourishing era of cafes and theaters began.
Later, in 1879, Avenida da Liberdade was opened, which started the
city's expansion beyond the Baixa.
The cultural and commercial
center of the city passed to Chiado during the 19th century (around
1880). With the old streets of Baixa already occupied, the owners of new
shops and clubs settled on the adjacent hill, which quickly transformed.
Famous clubs were founded here, such as the Grémio Literário, famous for
the stories of Eça de Queirós, frequented by Almeida Garrett, Ramalho
Ortigão, Guerra Junqueiro, Oliveira Martins and Alexandre Herculano.
Fashionable clothing stores, particularly from Paris, and other luxury
products appeared in Chiado, large department stores in the style of
Harrods in London or Galeries Lafayette in Paris, new Portuguese-Italian
cafés, such as O Tavares and Café do Chiado .
A typical show in taverns and small venues in Lisbon's popular
neighbourhoods, fado, from the beginning of the century, «... gradually
spread and became popular, through the publication of periodicals
devoted to the theme and the consolidation of new performing spaces in a
vast network of venues …».
At the same time, in large spaces such
as the Bullring in Campo Pequeno, bullfighting becomes one of the
favorite popular entertainments. The popular theater or revue theater,
taking themes from old comedies and erudite dramas, occupies new
theaters in the capital. Another pastime, typically Portuguese, is
Oratory, practiced by actors who, commenting on fashionable topics,
imitate Father António Vieira with a rhetoric full of flourishes, with
superficial arguments, sometimes singing, in shows where prizes are
disputed. The people of Lisbon still enjoy their leisure time in the
large public gardens that appear in Lisbon, imitating London's Hyde Park
and gardens in German cities. The first is Jardim da Estrela.
It
is then, in 1907, that, alarmed, the elites impose the dictatorship with
João Franco, but it is too late. In 1908 the royal family suffers an
attack (in Terreiro do Paço) in which the King Dom Carlos of Portugal
and the heir to the throne, the Royal Prince Dom Luís Filipe de
Bragança, die, in an action probably carried out by anarchists (who in
this period attacked public figures across Europe). In 1909, workers in
Lisbon organized frequent strikes. In 1910, in Lisbon, the revolt that
would establish the republic in Portugal takes place. A large number of
townspeople, incited by the Portuguese Republican Party, form barricades
in the streets and weapons are distributed. The armies ordered to
suppress the revolution are dismembered by desertions. The rest of the
country is forced to follow the capital, despite remaining deeply rural,
Catholic and conservative. The First Republic is proclaimed. In 1912,
the monarchists in the north took advantage of the republicans'
dissatisfaction with the liberal laws and attempted a coup d'état, which
failed.
In 1916 Portugal enters, via the Alliance, the First
World War. In the midst of a national crisis, it mobilizes considerable
men and resources. There are many casualties. Faced with the disaster of
the Portuguese Expeditionary Corps, Sidónio Pais is one of those who
opposed the Government of the Democratic Party, ending up leading a new
coup in December 1917, led by the Revolutionary Military Junta, of which
he was President. On the 8th, the Government of the Sacred Union headed
by Afonso Costa was dismissed and power transferred to the Board.
Bernardino Machado was ousted, Afonso Costa provisionally assumed the
position of President of the Republic. He issues a series of dictatorial
decrees that change the Constitution and give him accumulated powers as
President and head of government, founding a New Republic that will
anticipate the Estado Novo. Politics becomes more tense. There is hunger
in the country.
Sidónio was shot dead in December 1918. The end
of the First Republic took place in 1926, when the anti-democratic
conservative right (largely led by descendants of the former Nobility of
the north of the country and the Catholic Church) finally took power,
after two other attempts in 1925. It claims to intend to end the
anarchy, which it itself had created. Led by General Gomes da Costa, the
new government adopts a fascist ideology, under the leadership of the
dictator Salazar. The new regime would rule the country with impunity
for four decades. This impunity would be justified by Salazar's many and
generous "offers" to the "good Portuguese people", boasted by the media
and illustrated in solemn ceremonies attended by the elites of the time.
The largest of these was the Salazar Bridge (today the 25th of April
Bridge), inaugurated in 1966 with all the pomp and circumstance: it made
an old dream come true, it united the North and the South through the
capital, it was the largest on the continent.
The Estado Novo was
overthrown by the Carnation Revolution, on April 25, 1974. The military
coup was followed by the troubled period of the PREC, particularly
marked in Lisbon by propaganda and action from the left, from the most
moderate to the most radical. The Rally of Fonte Luminosa would be a
decisive event for the political future of the country. The unrest is at
the same time aggravated by extreme right-wing groups who go so far as
to block access to the city and carry out terrorist actions in the north
of the country with the aim of halting the progress of the revolution.
For two years, in 1974 and 1975, Lisbon was invaded by foreign
journalists and was in the limelight of the main international media.
The German ARD television reporter Horst Hano was one of the most
important, giving particularly thorough coverage of the main political
events in Portugal and Spain between 1975 and 1979.
Ten years
after the fall of the fascist regime, already far from the dramas of the
ongoing Revolutionary Process, the Treaty of Accession to the European
Economic Community is signed in Lisbon in 1985, at the Jerónimos
Monastery by the then President of the Republic, Mário Soares. Since
then Lisbon and the country have been governed, in alternation between
parties, by a democratic regime. Lisbon continues to develop at the pace
of the most important European capitals, improving its infrastructure
and building new ones, remodeling the urban transport, safety and health
system. In 1994 it was European Capital of Culture. In 1998, it
inaugurated its second bridge, at the time the longest in all of Europe
and the fourth largest in the world, the Vasco da Gama Bridge. That same
year, he organized EXPO 98, at Parque das Nações, with the Oceans theme.
The current Mayor of Lisbon (C.M.L.) is Fernando Medina, from the
Socialist Party (PS).
Located on the right bank of the Tagus estuary, at 38º42' N and 9º00'
W, with a maximum altitude in the Serra de Monsanto (226 meters above
sea level), Lisbon is the westernmost capital in Europe. It is located
west of Portugal, on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. The city limits,
contrary to what happens in large cities, are well defined within the
limits of the historic perimeter. This led to the creation of several
cities around Lisbon, such as Loures, Odivelas, Amadora and Oeiras,
which are in fact part of the metropolitan perimeter of Lisbon. More
recently, south of the Tagus, but already belonging to the district of
Setúbal, Almada, Seixal and Barreiro are also home to the urban
expansion of Lisbon in particular after 1974, benefiting from the
proximity to the nerve center of Lisbon, although with a clearly
distinct identity the existing one north of the Tagus.
The
historic center of the city is made up of seven hills, and some of the
streets are too narrow for vehicles to pass through. The city has three
funiculars and an elevator (Elevador de Santa Justa). The western part
of the city is occupied by the Parque Florestal de Monsanto, one of the
largest urban parks in Europe, with an area of almost 10 km². Lisbon has
been gaining ground on the river with successive embankments, especially
from the 19th century onwards. These landfills allowed the creation of
avenues, the implementation of railway lines and the construction of
port facilities and even new urbanizations such as Parque das Nações and
equipment such as the Centro Cultural de Belém.
Lisbon is a city full of green spaces of various sizes. It was in
this city that the first Portuguese botanical garden appeared: Jardim
Botânico da Ajuda. Some of the city's gardens are in the process of
being restored, with the aim of creating a green corridor in the city,
while other areas, previously concentrating high levels of traffic and
pollution, are being refurbished, the most recent case being the CRIL –
2nd Circular.
In terms of air quality, it presents progressively
descending levels of atmospheric pollution, although still with NO2
particles clearly higher than the legal limit. These particle values
result from the use above the European average of car traffic, as
opposed to the use of public transport, which distinguishes Lisbon from
other European capitals. In recent years, improvements have been made
inside and outside Lisbon in the planning of the rail and road public
transport network, allowing for more efficient and effective use and,
consequently, less pollution emitted.
There are more than a
hundred parks, gardens, farms and tapadas in Lisbon, including Parque
Eduardo VII, Parque Florestal de Monsanto, Jardim Botânico da Ajuda,
Jardim Botânico de Lisboa, Jardim da Estrela, Tapada da Ajuda , among
many others. The Parque Florestal de Monsanto is the largest and most
important park in the city, called its "Green Lung", as it is the only
large forest in Lisbon (the others closer are Tapada de Mafra, Tapada da
Ajuda and Serra de Sintra). Among the gardens, the Eduardo VII Park, the
Ajuda Botanical Garden and the Lisbon Botanical Garden stand out. The
first for being the largest green area in the old center of Lisbon, and
the other two for having a very varied collection of arboreal species.
It has an oceanarium: the Lisbon Oceanarium. The city also has several
gardens, notably the Lisbon Zoo, Jardim da Estrela, Jardim Botânico da
Ajuda and Campo de Santana. There are also important urban parks such as
Parque Eduardo VII, Parque da Bela Vista and Parque José Gomes Ferreira.
Lisbon is one of the mildest capitals in Europe, with a Mediterranean climate (Csa according to the Köppen climate classification) strongly influenced by the Gulf Stream. Spring is cool to warm (from 8°C to 26°C) with sun and some showers. Summer is generally hot and dry with temperatures between 16°C and 35°C. Autumn is mild and changeable, with temperatures between 12 °C and 27 °C and winter is typically rainy and cool, also with some sun). The lowest recorded temperature was -1.7 °C on February 11, 1956 and the highest was 44.0 °C on August 4, 2018.
The population of Lisbon is characterized by several ups and downs throughout its history. Currently, the population of Lisbon is falling. The Lisbon metropolitan area is experiencing population growth, as a result of the migration of the city's inhabitants to neighboring cities. In the current demographic structure of Lisbon, women represent more than half of the population (54%) and men 46%. The city has an aging age structure, with 23% of elderly people (65 years or older), when the Portuguese average is 16%. Among the youngest, 13% of the population is under 15 years old, 9% is between 15 and 24 years old and 53% is between 25 and 64 years old.
According to a 2018 survey, just over half of the population of Lisbon claimed to be Catholic (54.9%) and 35% declared to have no religion (13.1% non-religious believers, 10% atheists and 6.9% agnostics). Religious minorities made up 10% of the population, with half (5%) belonging to Protestant churches and the other 5% divided between Jehovah's Witnesses, Muslims, Buddhists, Orthodox and others. Only 11.4% of Lisbon's population reported attending church or other places of worship on a weekly basis.
It is in Lisbon that the country's main political bodies are located
(ministries, courts, etc.). The municipality of Lisbon is administered
by a City Council made up of 17 councillors. There is a Municipal
Assembly which is the legislative body of the municipality, made up of
75 municipal deputies, 51 of which are directly elected plus the
presidents of the 24 parish councils of the municipality.
The
position of President of the Municipal Chamber has been vacant since May
15, 2007, after the resignation of António Carmona Rodrigues who had
been elected by the PSD. In the elections of July 15, 2007, António
Costa was elected by the PS. After his resignation in 2015,
vice-president Fernando Medina took office, having subsequently been
elected president as a result of the 2017 municipal elections, despite
the PS having lost an absolute majority, receiving 42% of the votes.
The Lisbon region is the richest in Portugal and produces a gross
domestic product (GDP) per capita above the European Union average, in
addition to being responsible for producing 45% of Portuguese GDP. The
city's economy is based mainly on the tertiary sector. Most headquarters
of multinational companies operating in Portugal are concentrated in
Greater Lisbon, especially in the municipality of Oeiras. The Lisbon
Metropolitan Area is highly industrialized, especially on the south bank
of the Tagus River.
The Lisbon region experienced rapid economic
growth during much of the 2000s and increased its GDP PPP per capita
from €22,745 in 2004 to €26,100 in 2007. In 2011, the Lisbon
metropolitan region recorded a GDP worth €95 .2 billion dollars and
31,454 dollars per capita.
The country's main port, with one of
the largest and most sophisticated regional markets on the Iberian
Peninsula, Lisbon and its populous surroundings are also developing as
an important financial center and a technological and dynamic hub. Car
manufacturers have built factories in the suburbs, such as AutoEuropa.
The city has the largest and most developed mass media sector in the
country and is home to several related companies, ranging from major
television networks and radio stations to major national and
international newspapers.
The Euronext Lisbon stock exchange,
which is part of the Euronext pan-European financial system, together
with the Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris exchanges, has been associated
with the New York Stock Exchange since 2007, when the multinational
stock exchange group NYSE Euronext was created. The city's industry has
very large sectors such as oil refineries, textile factories, shipyards
and fishing industries that are found along the Tagus.
Close to
Lisbon there is one of the largest shopping centers on the Iberian
Peninsula, UBBO (Amadora), while within the city are Centro Colombo,
Amoreiras Shopping Center and Centro Vasco da Gama. For more typical
purchases, Baixa de Lisboa. There are many other shopping centers on the
outskirts of Lisbon, such as Almada Forum (Almada), Allegro Shopping,
Oeiras Parque (Oeiras), Rio Sul Shopping (Seixal), Freeport (Alcochete)
and other areas such as Montijo, in Cascais, Loures and Odivelas.
Before the Eurozone public debt crisis broke and a financial rescue
plan was implemented by the EU and the IMF in the 2010s, the city of
Lisbon was on the verge of receiving many state-funded investments,
including the construction of a new airport, a new bridge, a 30 km
expansion of the city's subway system, the construction of a central
hospital, the creation of two TGV lines to connect the Portuguese
capital to Madrid, Porto, Vigo and the rest of Europe, the restoration
of the historic part of the city, the creation of a large number of
cycle paths, as well as the modernization and renovation of various
facilities.
In Lisbon there are several hospitals (both public and private),
clinics, health centers, etc. There is also an ongoing project, which
provides for the construction of a Central Hospital, in Parque da Bela
Vista. The Hospital de Lisboa Oriental, will include some existing
hospitals in the center of Lisbon (such as Hospital de Dona Estefânia,
Hospital de Santa Marta, etc. The inauguration is scheduled for 2019.
In Lisbon there are several public hospitals (of the National Health
Service), military hospitals, health centres, private hospitals and
clinics. There is also an ongoing project, which provides for the
construction of an Oriental Hospital Centre, in Parque da Bela Vista.
The hospitals of Santa Marta and Santa Cruz began by specializing in
Cardiology, later including other specialties.
Public hospitals
in the City of Lisbon are grouped into centres: Centro Hospitalar Lisboa
Norte; Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Central; Western Lisbon Hospital Center;
Specialized Centers; and military hospitals.
The city of Lisbon has public and private primary, basic and
secondary schools and kindergartens, in a total of 312. In the Greater
Lisbon area there are international schools such as Saint Julian's
School, Carlucci American International School of Lisbon, St Dominic's
International School, Deutsche Schule Lissabon and Lycée Français
Charles Lepierre.
Lisbon currently has two public universities,
the University of Lisbon, created in 2013 by the merger of the Classical
University of Lisbon (also called the University of Lisbon) with the
Technical University of Lisbon, thus forming the largest university in
the country, and the New University of Lisbon, founded in 1957, Open
University, as well as several private universities, offering higher
education in all academic areas. There is also ISCTE-IUL, ISCTE -
Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, and Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa.
In this place, next to Hospital de Sta. Maria, there is also the Lisbon
Higher School of Nursing, the largest nursing school in the country.
The largest private institutions of higher education include the
Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Universidade Lusíada, Universidade
Lusófona and Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa, among others. The total
enrollment in public and private higher education institutions was, in
the academic year 2007-2008, 125,867 students, of which 81,507 in public
institutions.
The city is equipped with several libraries and
archives, the most important being the National Library. Worthy of
mention as one of the most important archives in the world, over 600
years old, is the National Archive of Torre do Tombo, the central
archive of the Portuguese State since the Middle Ages and one of the
oldest active Portuguese institutions. There are also, among others, the
Military Historical Archive and Overseas Historical Archive.
Two bridges link Lisbon to the south bank of the Tagus River: the 25
de Abril Bridge, which connects Lisbon to Almada, inaugurated in 1966
under the name of Ponte Salazar and later renamed with the date of the
Carnation Revolution, and the Vasco da Gama Bridge, with 17.2 km long,
the longest in Europe and the fifth longest bridge in the world, which
connects the eastern zone and Sacavém to Montijo. Inaugurated in 1998 as
part of Expo 98, it also commemorates the 500th anniversary of Vasco da
Gama's arrival in India. There is already an approved project for the
construction of a third bridge over the Tagus River, scheduled for 2013.
Lisbon's airport, Aeroporto Humberto Delgado, is located 7 km from
the centre, in the northeast part of the city. Humberto Delgado Airport
is the largest airport in Portugal, with a traffic volume of around 20
million passengers per year. Opened to traffic in 1942, Humberto Delgado
Airport is served by two runways and has two terminals: Terminal 1 for
international flights, Terminal 2 for national flights, including the
Autonomous Regions of the Azores and Madeira. In 2008, the construction
of a new airport was approved in the Campo de Tiro de Alcochete area, on
the south bank, about 40 km from the city. Its completion is expected
for 2017, meanwhile Humberto Delgado Airport will remain.
The
Port of Lisbon is one of the main European tourist ports, where many
cruise ships stop. It is equipped with three berths for cruise ships:
Alcântara, Rocha Conde Óbidos and Santa Apolónia. The city also has
several marinas for pleasure boats, in the docks of Belém, Santo Amaro,
Bom Sucesso, Alcântara Mar and Olivais. There is also a river transport
network, Transtejo, which connects the two banks of the Tagus, with
stations in Cais do Sodré, Belém, Terreiro do Paço and Parque das
Nações, on the north bank, and Cacilhas, Barreiro, Montijo, Trafaria,
Porto Brandão and Seixal, on the south bank.
The city has an
urban and suburban rail network with nine lines (4 metro and 5 suburban
train) and 123 stations (56 metro and 67 suburban train). The metro
network is operated by Metropolitano de Lisboa and the suburban rail
network by Comboios de Portugal (Azambuja, Cascais, Sintra and Sado
lines) and by Fertagus (North-South axis line, between Roma-Areeiro and
Setúbal) . The main railway stations are: Oriente, Rossio, Cais do
Sodré, Entrecampos and Santa Apolónia.
Built around Expo'98, Gare
do Oriente is one of the main terminal stations and transport interfaces
in Lisbon. Trains, the subway, buses and taxis pass through it. The
station, with a remarkable glass architecture and steel columns
reminiscent of palm trees, was designed by the architect Santiago
Calatrava. Right opposite is Parque das Nações, and the station is
connected to the Vasco da Gama Shopping Centre. With its characteristic
yellow color, the Trams of Lisbon are the traditional transport in the
city centre. They are operated by Carris, as well as the various
elevators that climb the hills of Lisbon: the Bica elevator, the Glória
elevator, the Lavra elevator and the Santa Justa elevator.
The
tram network is currently made up of six routes and covers a total of 48
km of 900 mm gauge lines, 13 km of which are on a reserved track. It
employs 165 brakemen (tram, funicular and elevator drivers) and a fleet
of 58 vehicles (40 historic, 10 articulated and 8 light), based in a
single station — Santo Amaro.
The operation of the buses is also
in charge of the company Carris. There is also the Lisbon Bus Terminal,
one of the most important in the country, where dozens of buses depart
and arrive every day with the most varied national and international
destinations. Taxis are also very common in the city, currently being
cream-colored, many still retain the emblematic colors of old taxis:
black and green. There are several taxi ranks and hundreds of taxis
circulate throughout the city. Despite the transport network, more than
3 million cars travel to Lisbon every day. Lisbon and its metropolitan
area are crossed by two circular motorways, one outside and the other
inside – the CRIL, Circular Regional Interior de Lisboa and the CREL,
Circular Regional Exterior de Lisboa, or A9. The main motorways that
connect the city to the surroundings are the A1 (towards the north,
through Vila Franca de Xira), A8 (also to the north, via Loures), A5
(towards the west, to Cascais), A2 (to the south , via Almada) and A12
(to the east, via Montijo).
According to data from 2000, from the
Lisbon City Council, and according to the typology of cycle routes, 84
km of cycle routes existed and were in the pipeline, 50 km of cycle
tracks, 73 km of cycle lanes and 74 km of coexistence with vehicles. In
2008, information was given that Lisbon was going to make an investment
of 5 million euros (part of it funded by the National Strategic
Reference Framework) with the aim of building another 40 km of new cycle
paths, with the intention also of restore existing ones. In the
riverside area of the city, there is already a track between Torre de
Belém and Cais do Sodré, which will later also connect to Santa Apolónia
and later to Parque das Nações. It was also planned to install a network
of 2,500 bicycles, 250 bicycle stations and 65 parking lots. In 2009,
the information was that it was already possible to cycle between
Benfica and Campolide. In two years, the city would have 90 km of cycle
paths and could be equipped with around 90 km of cycle paths. That same
year, the ring "Palácio da Justiça – Campolide – Benfica – Carnide –
Telheiras – Lumiar – Campo Grande" was scheduled to start operating, as
well as the start of works on the route that would link, in several
sections, Telheiras to Parque das Nações. Currently, there is also the
Monsanto cycle path, 6 km long.
Lisbon's gastronomy is influenced by its proximity to the sea. Typical Lisbon specialties are cod fritters and fish from the garden. You can also enjoy the tasty sardines (mainly during festive seasons, like in Santo António). The famous café-style steak is another food ex-libris in the capital. The most famous sweet in Lisbon is the pastel de nata, the most famous of which are those in Belém, which are made in an old factory in the Parish of Belém. Legend has it that more than 500 years ago, a cook did not have enough ingredients to make a sweet, and so she decided to invent it, which is how the Pastéis de Belém were born. They were manufactured for years in the Jerónimos Monastery, in Belém, only a few years ago they changed their manufacturing location. In the concert halls, the Coliseu dos Recreios, the Aula Magna of the University of Lisbon, the Forum Lisboa, the auditoriums of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, the Centro Cultural de Belém and Culturgest, the Pavilhão Atlântico and the Praça de Touros do Campo stand out. Small, in addition to the various theaters and cinemas.
Football is the most popular sport in Lisbon. The most prominent
football clubs are Sport Lisboa e Benfica (SLB) and Sporting Clube de
Portugal (SCP), known only as Benfica and Sporting respectively. These
clubs play in the highest national and international sports: Benfica
plays at Estádio da Luz, with 65,000 seats and awarded 5 stars by UEFA.
He has already won the UEFA Champions League twice, having reached the
final a total of 7 times. Its most famous players are Eusébio (Golden
Ball, Golden Boot twice), Rui Costa (FIFA 100), Nuno Gomes and Simão
Sabrosa. Sporting plays at Estádio José Alvalade, with a capacity for
50,000 people and awarded 5 stars by UEFA. Winner of the Cup Winners'
Club Cup and finalist, on one occasion, of the UEFA Cup, it is the
second club in Europe with the most titles in all sports, only surpassed
by FC Barcelona, and the third European club with the most European cups
conquered (25). The most famous players who emerged at Sporting are Luís
Figo and Cristiano Ronaldo, both distinguished as "Best Player in the
World" by FIFA (FIFA World Player) and both winners of the "Golden
Ball". Another important sports club is Belenenses, with a great
tradition in Portuguese sport. Belenenses is the third football team in
the city, playing at Estádio do Restelo and competing in the Primeira
Liga. However, behind the previous clubs, with a much lower number of
members.
Futsal is probably the second most popular sport in the
capital, with three professional teams in the Liga Sport Zone based in
the city: Sporting CP, SL Benfica and Belenenses. Professional
Basketball has more and more followers. Belenenses and Benfica have
professional teams, playing in the first division, and Lisbon hosted the
2003 Men's Basketball World Cup, played at Pavilhão Atlântico. Another
popular sport is hockey: the Portuguese National Hockey Team has won 15
world championship titles and enjoyed great support from the citizens.
In the city, many other sports are practiced, especially water sports,
such as sailing and rowing, but also golf, cycling, etc. The main
sporting institutions in Lisbon, in addition to those mentioned above,
are: Ginásio Clube Português, Associação Naval de Lisboa, Clube Naval de
Lisboa, Casa Pia Atlético Clube, Atlético Clube de Portugal, CDUL –
Rugby, Grupo Desportivo de Direito.
The Lisbon Half Marathon
takes place every year in March, with the participation of thousands of
competitors from various countries, professionals and amateurs. There
are always two styles of competitions, a short one for amateurs who
don't feel very prepared, and a longer one for professionals, and those
who want to take a risk. The main part of the race/marathon is when
participants cross the 25 de Abril Bridge. In 2014, Lisbon hosted the
2013–14 UEFA Champions League Final, 2013–14 UEFA Women's Champions
League Final and in 2020 the 2019–20 UEFA Champions League Final.