Lisbon, Portugal: interesting sites, local food

Lisbon is a city with interesting sites.  If you have limited time, it's better to plan ahead and combine the sites that are near to each other or along the way.

Check out how we went around Lisbon and get foodie tips from the HT couple.

The first and foremost thing to do is to walk around the city.  Familiarize yourselves with the surroundings and how the public transportation works.  Relax and enjoy the walking tour (with your camera, of course).  It's worth the time and money spent for your succeeding days. (photo credit - Cindy)

HT wife loves doing the itinerary.  Where to go, what to eat and which places should be done together, printing out maps, etc.

HT hubbie reads the maps (as HT wife has no sense of direction) and makes sure that we get to somewhere.


Here's how we combined the sites in Lisbon:

 Belem Tower - a fortress guarding Lisbon's Harbor and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Monument. 

Jeronimos Monastery - this is the first facade, walking from Belem Tower that you would see going to the monastery.  I think this is the maritime museum. 

The monastery houses 2 museums so you can imagine how big it is. 

inner courtyard of the monastery

young love (cute lil' portuguese, aren't they?)

The church has wonderful stained glass windows.  This was our favorite.

The monastery is a tribute to Vasco de Gamafor his voyage.  (if the name rings a bell, you've been ;listening during your history class :D)  His tomb stands at the entrance.

By the time that we've seen Belem Tower and Jeronimos monastery, we were famished and headed to the infamous Pasteis de Belem.  (walking distance from Jeronimos)

it ain't a joke making pasteis de nata

therefore I made sure that I take them within me seriously

Be ready to queue up.  They're pretty efficient so it shouldn't take you half an hour.

Next stop:

Carmo church - which is now an archaeological museum

A few streets away is the simple on the outside but extravagant on the inside - Igreha de Sao Roque (church)

The following was done the next day:

Tram 28: is a must-ride.  It goes through small interesting streets of Lisbon (up and down) and goes to our 2 next stops (different directions).

Castle of St. Jorge - the best place - overlooking Lisbon.  The castle is badly destroyed over the years but climbing up and walking around is still worth it.  A great getaway place from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Basilica Estrella - HT couple enjoys going to churches in Europe.  This neo-classical church is not difficult to miss via tram 28.  Don't miss out the incredible nativity scene (not in the picture).  It's hidden so make sure to ask where it is.  You need to drop a coin to activate the light though.

Tips from HT couple wouldn't end without this...FOOD!!! 

The Portuguese takes their lunch seriously.  Check out prato del dia (menu of the day) in most of the restaurants and you'll get a good deal between 5-10 euros.  This set (which includes a drink - including wine/beer) was about 8 euros.

 It's always a pleasure to go local.  No english menu, impress the waiter with your local language skills or if doesn't work, sign languages will do. 

If there's no english menu, how did we know what to order? 

  

HT wife and her friend who thinks she came from mars prepared a list of dishes and drinks prior to the trip.  Yes, we're prepared!

pat on the shoulders (good work!)

What we have indulged...  

Bitoque de Vitela - pan fried beef served with egg and fries (on the side).  (it was more like a coarse hamburger steak).  It was full of flavor.  My martian friend's choice!

Escalope de Vitela via Pohrto - Beef steak marinated with port wine.  HT hubbie ordered the big portion as the small one costs about 7 euros which he thought wouldn't satisfy his tummy.  Surprisingly, this big portion was up to his neck. (about 11-12 euros - and good enough for 2).  The meats were very tender and the taste suits well to any Filipino palate.

Bacalahau a Bras - a mixture of cod, onions, thin slices of potatoes, scrambled eggs, olives and parsley.  It's pretty heavy but a must have as there's something local to its taste.

Carne de Porco a Portuguesa - potatoes and meat.  A full meal.

Pudim flan - similar to Filipino's leche flan...but i think ours is smoother and creamier.

This ends the journey of HT couple to the wonderful city...of Lisbon!

'Till our next trip!



Lisbon, Portugal: A special night at Eleven

It's HT couple's first time to dine in a restaurant with Michelin star.  Thanks to our friend who shares the same passion for food and travel, did this reservation in a snap and we were brought into once in a lifetime experience.

All we can say is, it was worth the star.  Come and join us on our journey with Chef Joachim Koerper's creation.

we got extra pieces of the chocolate financier :)

I exchanged the supposed-to-be cream soup with a clear one as the name has "portuguese" with it but disappointing.

portugal = bacalhau (cod)

perfect!  my dish of the night

for palate cleansing

my 2nd best dish of the night

from lower right (clockwise) - youngest to oldest

more sweets to go with coffee or tea

We got a few plates outside the menu that was served in between.  The best things in life were for free that night.

starters...loved that hairy tempura prawns!

heavy, fruity, nutty cake that was served with the cheeses

the diners of chef Joachim left with fully but happy tummies.

Eleven

Av. Marquês da Fronteira Jardim Amália Rodrigues

1070 Lisboa Portugal

(at the top of Eduardo VII Park)

Tasting menu = 98.50 euros



Lisbon, Portugal: loving it!

HT couple loves to explore food whenever they're in a different country.  The way we prepare our itinerary is a few pages of things to see...and then pages which you can compile as a book on where to eat.

And we just love being tourists.  We go to places where all the tourists flock.  Some are tourist trap but some are worth to queue up for.

Join us in exploring Lisbon the HT couple way.

We arrived in the late afternoon.  We walked around to familiarize ourselves with the area and be like locals in the next days.

Avenue de Liberdade - their Champs-Élysées but cleaner.  Love the gothic prints on the street.

just like anywhere in Europe, the architecture of the buildings in Lisbon are lovely.  Check out the picture at the top right, you can have your shoes polished on the street.  It reminds me of Manila 20 years ago.

We stumbled in Elevador de Santa Justa.  If you think this is not worth the trip, think again...

the view from the top...Castelo de Sao Jorge can be seen from afar.

There are a few elevators around Lisbon that helps you as a tourist to go around...I think the locals are used to the hills so you don't see them in this type of transportation. Santa Justa connects you from lower Baixa to the other higher side.  And believe me, it's saving you a hike (as Lisboa, is very hilly)

As soon as we reach the other side, we went to this infamous cafe (for tourist) and got ourselves cups of bica (espresso) and hydrated our bodies with their pilsner.  We said hi to the statue of Fernando Pessoa, a Portuguese poet, who frequented this cafe when he was writing(wikipedia). 

 We continued walking up and down again..whew!

Until, it was time for dinner. Yehey!

the first stop was at Bonjardim (Santa Antao 11).  The place is known for its Frango de Assado (roasted chicken) with chili oil on the side.

The spiciness is not for the faint-hearted.  So watch out when you brush that oil onto your white meat.  The chicken was a bit salty...the hot sauce complemented well with it.

When it's our first dinner in a place for the first time,  we tend to order as much local items as we can.  Pasteis de Bacalhau is cod fish croquette.  It's fishy for HT hubbie but my friend, my travel and foodie partner and I loved it!  Each piece was packed with fish flakes and it was very tasty.  My friend wanted something hot while waiting for the chicken, so she decided to order Canja.  Surprise!  Aside from chicken meat and soup, numerous gizzard pieces (internal organ) were floating.

  We got an order each that's here on my plate for sharing.  Each order was pretty huge and is good for 2-3 persons. 

Esparregado - creamed spinach which has a very prominent eggy taste.  I didn't like it very much as the taste was a bit tiring.  Nevertheless, we ate it just like locals as this veggie dish is typically a good accompaniment to any meats including our frango.

Arroz ala Brasseira (rice) was the favorite of everyone, even though we all knew that all types of internal organ pieces were cooked together with this rice.  It was inexplicably delicious!  You can eat it alone as your main dish.

It was cheap, no frills restaurant in a small street.  All the dishes we ordered (the chicken was 1 1/2 pcs) including couverts(bread, cheese and, butter) and a bottle of wine - was only 36 euros.  We were happy campers when we strolled out of the restaurant.

*Couverts would be placed on your table in any restaurants in Lisbon and if you touch it, you pay for it, but if ignored, you don't see them on your bill.  (fair enough)

What was nice with this restaurant was that even if we touched the couverts, we were not charged for it since we didn't have salad and fries (which are part of our chicken dish). We got our big bottle of water and croquettes as well for free.  (DISCLAIMER: this might not be a norm, we might have just been lucky :D).

With heavy stomachs, up we go to our next stop.

Gloria Elevador  is the easiest way to send us to our next destination.

But we decided to be environmental friendly.

We were entertained with all the arts on the wall while hiking up.  My friend(middle)  and I taking a break before we continue our journey.

Ta-dah!  We were in heaven...of wines!

Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e Porto - was our must-go place.  We were given a menu explaining different types of port, which was pretty interesting.  Tawny, a blend of wines from several harvest is my favorite.  You can get Colheita, Reserva, Ruby and it's up to you what you fancy most.  What i like about this place is that bottles that cost 40 euros or more are also in the menu which you can get in a glass between 5-6 euros.  Not bad if you wanted to taste a bottle that is not part of your budget.  The place was cozy that we had a great night of comparing the ports based on their years and types (just like true connoisseurs...haha)

We started reminiscing our younger years as well.

After a few glasses, we decided to hit the bed with smiles on our faces.  It was a wonderful 1st day.  

I fell in love immediately with Lisbon.

*TIPS:

Hotel Fenix Garden - 50 euros a night was worth it (off-peak).  Breakfast was 3.90 euros (with good choices and nespresso)

Take aerobus from the airport for 3.50 euros.  You can use the card for 24 hours in buses, trams, elevators

Buy Viva viagem/7 colinas (a reoload card) for 0.50 euros to go around.  Load it with 5 euros and enjoy ride-all-you-can for 24 hours.

2nd part of our lovely trip...is up next weekend...stay tune!