Today was a Saturday, meaning it was time to explore Lisbon, the second-oldest capital city in all of Europe. This is our second day in this amazing city. It is home to roughly 30% of the country’s population and is recognized as an alpha-level global city. Our ventures brought us only a short Uber drive away to the historic center of the city otherwise known as the Belem neighborhood. We were dropped off at Terreiro do Paco, a nice public square right next to the water which boasted a very grand entrance towards the back wall that led into the city. We walked through the massive gateway into the old district and were greeted with intricately designed cobbled streets and colorfully painted buildings that were all packed full of excited people. We strolled down the road until we stumbled upon an elevator that led up to the second tier of the city. The elevator itself seemed to be made of steel and had ornate steelwork adoring the details. We decided to avoid it for the time being since there was a massive line of tourists wrapping around the elevator and carrying on. All was well until we were faced with an unavoidable obstacle, an icecream shop. We were reeled in against our own will and before we knew it, we were sitting down and being force-fed ice cream, what a disaster! After we managed to defeat our foe, we carried on up the city when we spotted it.
I had never seen it before. It was perfect from every angle. It was… an outdoor escalator! I had only heard of such inventions in the old fables my great-great nanny used to read to me. I dashed to the escalator like there was nothing else that mattered to me in this world and started ascending (no, I didn’t die yet, don’t worry). The ride carried us up to narrower shaded streets that wrapped around tiled buildings and squares. We began our trek up the steep streets until we reached our prize, the view of the entire old district. Up on a hill to our left, we could see an old castle which we promised ourselves to visit once it wasn’t as crowded with people. Behind us was a church which looked fairly normal until we entered through the entrance and looked around. The walls were charred and large sections of it were missing as if a bomb had exploded and no one seemed to care enough to fix the damage. Even though it was clearly damaged, it was beautiful in its own way. We walked around the church and through its gardens before heading back. During our day in the old district, I was shocked to see how vandalized the buildings were, and perhaps I might even research it more, but for now, that wraps up this quick blog. See you soon!
8/19/23