Travel Guides | Lisbon Travel Guide
Lisbon Travel Guide
Brave Old World
Belém was the Cape Canavaral of the 15th century, the launch pad for Vasco da Gama’s epic endeavours which would see the Portuguese flag waving on five continents. In an ecstasy of maritime glory, megalomanic monarchs enshrined their victories in stone, bequeathing an architectural confection that went by the name of Manueline. Whimsical monasteries and turreted castles infused with oriental mystique sprung up along the banks of the Tagus, where fantastical creatures and exotic peoples were paraded by returning adventurers. Portuguese pride reached its zenith, buoyed by hopes of eternal glory. In 21st-century Lisbon, along the shaggy streets of the Alfama and Bairro Alto, black-shawled divas sing out the soliloquys of Portugal’s national song, the fado, a requiem for Portugal’s 15th-century glory days, and a coping mechanism for cosmic historical woes of promise unfulfilled.
Back seat drivers
With its back to Europe, and its soul circa 1498, scrupulously low-key Lisbon has long taken a back seat while its western neighbours strutted their stuff. During nearly 50 years of solitude, Salazar smothered Lisbon in a conservative mantle, and his legacy of fascist-style behemoths now erupt across the city like gatecrashers at a medieval party. But, with gear crunching acceleration, Lisbon has emerged from its cocoon.
The party started with Expo 98 when from the drawing board of Alpha architects, Siza Vieira and Santiago Calatrava, came glitzy Parque das Nações, where shimmering steel pavilions look like billowing waves, apartment buildings like ocean liners and metro stations like space pods. And it’s not all physical; the Portuguese movida has gone stratospheric. Gilded Lisboetas emerge from glitzy riverside warehouse conversions, flanked by crumbling walls still emblazoned with 1970s revolutionary murals. Along the tribal streets of boho Bairro Alto, achingly hip scenesters emerge from Barbarella fashion boutiques, sleek bars, über clubs and style emporiums.
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