Portugal 2018-2019: December 2018

Happy Holidays, Boas Festas, Merry Christmas, Feliz Natal everyone.

Tis the season and Lisbon sparkles! However, not everything goes our way and we are experiencing a minor disappointment. We will be going home at the end of March instead of April 30 as we had originally planned.

We came to Lisbon on October 1. Our apartment was guaranteed through the end of January with an option of keeping it through the end of February. That's because we had decided to find a permanent apartment to occupy through the end of April. Unfortunately, apartments in Lisbon cost as much as Airbnbs when one adds the costs of utilities, cable & internet, and housekeeping to the basic rent. In addition, most of the best apartments were unfurnished and we estimated a minimum of $5000 to furnish a residence we would likely only use six months of the year, but pay for 12 months.

Also, just prior to leaving the US for Lisbon, we learned that we can only be out of the country for 6 months or risk losing our Medicare HMO coverage. So we were faced with the need to return home in February or March for a short visit to fulfill this requirement.

Ana, from whom we rent the apartment on Martim Moniz, has guaranteed us this apartment for six months beginning November 2019 thru April 2020 at a very reasonable price, plus we can store our belongings in a locked space in the building basement. She has booked this apartment for March and April, so we have booked another Airbnb for March and will return home March 30.

We had looked forward to reunions with several cruise friends who will be on ships that stop in Lisbon in April and we are disappointed to miss those reunions. But this is really the best plan for us.

So, if anyone was planning to visit us in Lisbon in April, sorry. As much as we would have loved sharing this amazing city with our friends and relatives, sorry. Maybe next year.

Enjoy a little street music

If you want to go to the top of the hill on which St. George Castle rests, you could pay a taxi or TukTuk, you could stand in line and ride the famous Tram 28, or you can walk. Here are a few options for walking:

Walk up the winding, narrow streets of Mouraria - the oldest area in Lisbon. Enter on the west side of the hill, via the Fado wall of fame - a tribute to the famous Fado singers - and just keep going up. There are churches and interesting neighborhoods along the way and, of course, lots of places to stop for a coffee.
Walk up through the Alfama district on the east side of the hill. Again, you'll walk through narrow, winding streets but, again, you'll find lots of interesting places to rest - including several miradouros (overlooks) with fabulous views of the city, the river, and the April 25 bridge.
Take the open-air escalator about half-way up and walk the rest of the way. This escalator is across the square from our apartment and was opened in October. Plans call for it to be extended all the way to the top. We haven't taken it, yet. But plan to soon.
Take the elevator - free - about half-way up, then walk about a block to the next elevator - tucked away in a grocery store. This one will deliver you to a miradouro with a fabulous view and just a short walk to the entrance to the castle. Last week we did this, had an over-priced lunch, and walked back down. We stopped at the various miradouros along the way but walked all way back home.

After much exploration and unscientific observations, I have decided that these are the most prevalent merchants in Lisbon:

Pastalareias - coffee shops. These are so numerous that I suspect it must be the law to have a minimum or one or more on each block. They all serve coffee, tea and other bibidas (drinks), pastries of various sorts - including the ubiquitous Pasteis de Natas (egg custards). Most also serve meals -- omelets, sandwiches, soup, etc.
Shoe shops! What's not to love about a city where shoe shops stay open until 10:00 p.m. And they're good, well-made, leather shoes at incredibly low prices. Portugal still has a tradition of manufacturing shoes, although Spain has usurped that segment in recent years. Other shoe shops with more regular hours sell higher-priced shoes of excellent quality, including brands with which we are familiar like Geox.
Eyeglass stores. This one befuddles me because nearly every meal served in restaurants here includes carrots so one might think that everyone has perfect vision. ;-)
Fast fashion. H & M and Zara are everywhere. Sometimes when we want to go to the Chiado neighborhood and don't feel like walking up Rua de Carmo, we enter H & M via the Baixa level and take three escalators up to the store's 3rd floor where we can exit at the top of Rua de Carmo.
Building art. The city is filled with interesting art, including these two pieces rendered in scrap metal on the sides of buildings;

Raccoon on side of building near museum of contemporary art in Belem

Fox on side of three-story gutted bulding. That's me in the lower left.

6. Preservation - one reason Lisbon remains so beautiful is its attention to its history. That means that for most renovations the building's facade must be preserved while the remainder of the building can be completely rebuilt. I believe the same building regulations apply in Paris and Rome, which is why those cities remain beautiful. Here is an example of what happens when an historic building is being renovated;