how long is a walk

    Lisbon – façades, art and a little bit of Brazil

    My first visit to Lisbon, and I suspect it won’t be my last. There was something strangely familiar about the city. Maybe it was the Portuguese language, which took me straight back to the year I spent living in São Paulo 25 years ago. Maybe it was the light, the tiled façades, the food –…

    KATT
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    My first visit to Lisbon, and I suspect it won’t be my last.

    There was something strangely familiar about the city. Maybe it was the Portuguese language, which took me straight back to the year I spent living in São Paulo 25 years ago. Maybe it was the light, the tiled façades, the food – or simply the feeling of being somewhere between Europe and Brazil.

    I stayed in Baixa, which turned out to be a great base for walking. Praça do Comércio was just around the corner, and from there it was easy to wander towards Chiado, Alfama or along the Tagus.

    And wander I did.

    I’m a bit of a façade nerd, so Lisbon kept me looking up. Balconies, tiles, colours, elaborate details, peeling paint and buildings that have clearly lived a long life. You can walk the same street twice and still notice something you missed the first time.

    The importance of looking down

    I have to admit that I also got hurt in Lisboa. My left knee took a hit when I tripped on a beautifully cobblestoned sidewalk. Yeah, I had read the warnings about the sidewalks and stones being slippery, for example when the air is humid (and that’s pretty common…) The old type of paving also appears in new constructions. Keep that i mind, please!

    Praça do Comércio is hard to resist. The enormous square opens towards the river, and the view gives Lisbon a completely different scale. Further along the waterfront, I found a spot to sit and admire the Ponte 25 de Abril.

    I took the tram towards Belém, to find the museums I was planning to visit. MAAT was one of the highlights, and I also visited MACAM, they are on a walking distance actually, just a bridge to cross more or less. You need to visit both of them, I highly recommend them but for different reasons.

    Follow in my steps on the map here.

    Back in Baixa, MUDE – Museum of Design, Fashion and Culture – was practically on my doorstep. Very convenient for a museum and design lover.

    Food, coffee and a caipirinha

    A good walk needs good stops.

    We had a very tasty and generous breakfast near Lisbon Cathedral, which is in itself a good excuse to head towards Alfama. And, naturally, I also had to try some Brazilian churrasco. After my year in São Paulo, it would have been almost rude not to.

    And yes, there was a caipirinha too.

    Sometimes a walking guide needs to include the important things in life.

    So, how long is a walk in Lisbon?

    Longer than you planned, probably.

    Lisbon is hilly, tiled, colourful and full of distractions. You may set out for one place and end up somewhere completely different because a street looks interesting, a façade catches your eye or you suddenly realise that you haven’t had a coffee yet.

    That’s exactly how I like to explore a city.

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