The European Capital of Color and Sound – Lisbon in 2024 (part II)

Portuguese is cheerful and sweet, like a language of birds.

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#Lisbon #Portugal #adventure #travelblogger #3dayitinerary

Have I mentioned how Lisbon is not a very spacious city and around 80% of the main attractions can be seen within a day? The second day of my adventure was saved for a visit to Sintra – this will be the topic of my next post. Other than that, we can walk around the spaces within the Lisbon area. So, with no further ado, let’s jump directly into our Lisbon adventure.

Colorful Streets

Have you seen famous streets worldwide (especially everywhere around Europe), where colorful or rainbow umbrellas are hanging from the ropes between two buildings, above a pedestrian area? This is something that can be found in Lisbon, as well as other European cities (such as Belgrade and Timisoara). The ones in Lisbon, however, have their floor colored. I was able to locate Pink and Green Streets on the map, and easily walk up to them, as well. If you know about any other colored streets of Lisbon, please mention it in the comment section below.

The park at the Oceanarium

As someone who’s lived in Baltimore, it’s important that everyone understand I don’t find aquariums intriguing. I mean, I do. But, after visiting the one in Baltimore on multiple occasions, I have high standards on what to expect from one such attraction. The one in Lisbon, the Oceanario, however, is something special.

It is located on the bank of River Tagus, right next to the Marina. (Yes, Europe has more rivers than just Danube, and even so close to the ocean. Not sure if it’s a shock for you, but for someone who was taught that the whole world revolves around Europe, this did come as a new idea to grasp.) The bank is a paved pedestrian road, incorporating a beautiful park, involving music instruments one can walk over. I’m pretty sure I could write a whole post just about this part. At the opposite end of the walking zone, across from the Oceananrio, there is a hotel resembling Burj Al Arab or the Barceloneta. Even though it’s not unique in the world, still a nice Easter egg to find while on your feet in the Portuguese capital.

Tele-cabine and Oceanarium

Believe it or not, these two go well together – especially if you traverse from the Oceanario to the opposite end. The walk through the park is around 30 minutes, and especially if you arrived in the afternoon, you’ll not want to walk back. Also, if you forgot to buy the tickets online, you’ll be much happier to wait the line at the Tele-cabine than the one in front of the building. Combined, the ticket should cost up to 35 EUR / 40 USD. Although it is not fairly inexpensive, the experience it provides will be more than just worth your while.

The tele-cabine is a regular cable car. However, it does take you across the water – which, you will agree, is something fun to experience. The ride itself is not very long, but it doesn’t speed to up to five minutes across to the Oceanario – you would still need to ride it for about 10. Still, you will find it more than just amusing to glide above the water, ready to learn about countless beings who live within it.

The Oceanario is an exquisite place that everyone going to Lisbon must visit at least once. Although it may not be easy to compare it to the one in Baltimore, it’s most certainly one of the best ones Europe has to offer. Within, you will not only learn about the denizens of the seas and oceans of our planet, but also about their diet, how they are safeguarded within the exhibitions, as well as what kind of conservation efforts are undertaken to make our waters a better environment for living beings.

It also had me thinking – does your country not have an exit to the sea? Yes? No? Either way – SO, WHAT?! It must be obliged to protect the waters, and all of their content. There is absolutely no Planet B, and there is no excuse for littering anything that goes into nature – for it does come back, and much worse than karma, because it comes around for the whole world. Think about it.

Belém Tower

Belém is a part of Lisbon that isn’t that light of a walk – it’s situated between 30 and 60 minutes away from the central area (by public transport). However, it is the locality where you can find the most famous Belém Tower. Unfortunately, the day of my visit it was closed (like the restaurants in Vienna and Bratislava, lol) due to bad weather the weekend before. Had I managed to get in, the ticket would have cost me 8 EUR / 9 USD. What I discovered here is that there are Lisbon City Cards, which provide you with entrance to multiple cultural sites, as well as Hop-on-hop-off buses, and regular public transportation. Since I had only two days to plan for the whole trip (and wanted to hike, anyway), I did not require one. However, do take a look at the prices before visiting – it may just be the financial ease you’ll be looking for.

In this part of Lisbon, you can see the bridge to the other side much better. Remember the famous bridge in Lisbon, that resembles the one in Istanbul in a very uncanny way? If you cross it, you’ll be able to reach the statue of Jesus, atop a hill overlooking the city. As I’m not a fan of religions, I skipped this part intentionally, to get to meet more of Belém and what it had to offer.

Remember the famous Portuguese cakes, called pastel de nata? My host said the recipe originated from a cake shop right here in Belém. It’s quite close to the Vasco da Gama Square and you will recognize it by the entry line. Suffice to say I’m not a fan of vanilla either, and I’d already tried (and liked) the cake, so this was an easy pass for me, as well.

Even though Belém is not a large area and can be walked over within up to two hours, there are quite a few fun things to locate around here. Countless gardens, parks, attractions on the bank (such as stands selling pinacoladas in pineapples), and the most communist statue ever. At least from a distance, until you notice the motives close up. I was shocked to find such a monument in a country such as Portugal. To me, it seems as if all the brutalist artists ever drew their inspiration from this one statue. It resembles the building in Brussels I named “Belarus” more than anything in its surroundings. Absolutely unbelievable!

Museum of Lisbon

Lisbon is home to countless museums, some of which will have quite interesting thematic – such as the Tile Museum. Yes, most of the buildings are covered in tiles, and thus, they will make great inspiration for something one should learn more about. Other Museums, such as Ethnology, the Orient, Contemporary Art etc. are something completely normal to find in this part of the globe (or Flat Earth, whichever you prefer). But this was an utter shock for me, and a pleasant surprise – Museum of (drumroll) Lisbon. How unique and unexpected. (Also, it was quite convenient, due to its placement a few bus stops from the airport.)

What you can find here is everything entailed in the history of this marvelous jewel of a city… Prehistory included. You will be able to see an endless sea of objects, reconstructions, artifacts, paintings, photos from different epochs, all with one and the same goal – the promotion of the city of Lisbon. During my visit, there were two temporary exhibits. One contained the photos from some tens of years back into the past, immortalizing faces of Lisbon in all of their glory. The other one was a Japanese art exhibition – collected by a famous artist from Lisbon. Apart from that, a garden containing intriguing colored animal sculptures stands in between exhibition buildings, while local peacocks prance around showing off their feathers, and in the end, the visitor is not sure of whether they’re in a park, a zoo, a gallery or an enclosure of an utterly different purpose.

And the fun part – the entrance fee was but ridiculous 3 EUR, which isn’t even 5 USD (or 4, for that matter). Highly recommended, especially if you have a few hours to spare before the flight back.

This concludes my story of Lisbon and what the city entails that can be seen in under three days. But to surprise you – a post about Sintra, as well as an extra Lisbon post will be awaiting your return to the Courageous Wanderer website. Stay tuned!