The Portuguese Discovered the World

...if we are to believe the advertisements we read in airports.

So, Spain has lots of long weekends. Well, every weekend is a long one for me since I only work four days per week (holla at being a teaching assistant!) In any event, Spain has all of these national holidays that typically honor some Catholic saint or another. This is pretty ironic to me since, these days, the majority of Spaniards whom I encounter are more likely to believe in Santa Claus (yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus) than Jesus. Catholicism in Spain is much more of a cultural phenomenon than an actual religion that people faithfully practice. Religion, particularly Christianity, here seems to be associated with Franco and, in this post-Franco society, it seems that people do their best to distance themselves from anything that can be tied to El General. In any event, this country that is breeding young generations of non-believers still fervently "celebrates" its saints, so every few months, there's a national holiday for some reason or saint or the other. We had one such long weekend in the beginning of December, so a friend and I took off to Portugal!

We arrived at the Lisbon airport on a rainy afternoon, which is where we encountered a lovely advertisement that read, "We discovered the world. Now it's time for you to discover Portugal." Now, the History Major in me could spend an entire post (or two or ten) explaining exactly why this is a blatant lie and expounding upon the danger of having the oppressor spewing these fabrications, but I shan't...for now, at least.

But I digress. After leaving the airport, we went to our hotel...or, at least, we attempted to. After being lost for about 45 minutes, we finally stumbled upon it. Quick nap, dinner, and sight-seeing, though we didn't do much of that on the first evening because it was raining and, thus, unpleasant. The second day, we took the metro to Sintra, which is about one hour outside of Lisbon and we saw absolute beauty. I think Madrid is, in general, a dismal-looking city. There's no landscaping that makes you wax poetic unless the sun is shining and you just happen to capture the perfect shot. Anyhoo, the parks/monuments in Sintra took my breath away (details to come). That evening, we went back to Lisbon, ate dinner, and went back to the hotel to sleep, since it had been such a long day (and since I'm not one for clubbing when I'm visiting a new city unless I'm going there specifically for that reason.) Day Three was spent in Lisbon and the sun came out, which made an already lovely city even more beautiful! I also had my best meals that day (details to come on that, too). So, here's a rundown of exactly why Lisbon/Sintra were so amazing:

• Weather: Thank the Lord  Baby Jesus it was warmer than Madrid. Though it rained on our first evening there, that didn't happen the second and third days. While Day Two was pretty gray and slightly foggy toward the evening, I was able to deal with that. Day Three, however, was breathtakingly gorgeous once the sun came out and shone over Lisbon. I'm pretty cold-natured, so I wore two jackets the entire time, but I didn't need my coat (under which I typically wear a second layer), so consider the weather delicious.
• Food: Oh, to be away from the land of pork and potatoes. Admittedly, pork was served as an appetizer for our first dinner and potatoes as a side dish for our last lunch, but the seafood selections were plentiful since Portugal is near water. The Portuguese cook fish perfectly. They have one dish that's native to the country that has cod (fish), rice, potatoes, olives, and some other things in it that's somewhat reminiscent of a hash that I loathed. Other than that, though, everything was delicious. Their bread is addictive! They also have delicious pastries. One, named the pasteis de belem and reminiscent of a cream tart of some sort, is so addictive that I'm pretty sure I could have eaten it for all three meals. Overall, I would definitely say I prefer Portuguese to Spanish food (sorry, Spain).

• Sights: So, so many sites! Here's a quick overview of my faves:
• Lisbon: 
• Tower of Belem (at sunset): Built in the 16th century, it served as a defensive complex at the mouth of the Tagus River. It's located in the Belem parish of Lisbon, which is, in my opinion, the most beautiful part of the city. We went to see the tower and other sites in Belem on our last evening in Lisbon as evening started to give way to night and saw a breathtaking sunset there.

• The Discoveries Monument: Of course the Portuguese would have a monument dedicated to discovery, since they "discovered the world" and all that jazz. Historical inaccuracies aside (for now), the monument was built in 1960 as a tribute to, well, Portuguese discoveries. It's shaped like the prow of a ship with a sculpture of Henry the Navigator at the tip. According to our tourist pamphlet, the monument is dedicated to Portugal's maritime exploits during the Age of Discovery. I'm not too big on celebrating the history of the oppressor, but the monument is located in a prime spot that overlooks the beautiful Tagus River. Standing at the monument, one can also see the 25th of April Bridge, which is very reminiscent of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge, and is suspended over the Tejos River. Finally, from this point at which the oppressors are celebrated, the Cristo-Rei statue, which is a Catholic monument and shrine dedicated to Jesus and was inspired by the more famous Christ the Redeemer statue in Brazil, can be seen. Side note: they may have "discovered the world," but the Portuguese definitely copied monuments from the countries that they "discovered."

• The really cute Christmas Bulb!: Ok, so it's not really a monument or anything and you have to be visiting Lisbon during the Christmas season to see it, but there was this really large and cute Christmas bulb in the city center. Our first evening in Lisbon, when it was too rainy and cold to do any real sightseeing, we passed by it as we were searching for food. I like lights, I love Christmas, and there is--and always will be--a little of my five year-old self left, so I was wowed. To cement my love for this cute not-so-little Christmas ornament, you could walk inside of it!

• Sintra:
• "Scandal" advertisement: Is it, technically, a monument? Absolutely not. Is it the first time that I've seen "Scandal" advertised since I've been in Europe? Absolutely. This doesn't mean that other countries are missing out on the fabulosity that is "Scandal", but Spain is. Portugal, however, knows good television. They're dedicated gladiators. Kudos, Portugal. Ku. Dos. 

• Monserrate Park: Nature doesn't typically take my breath away. I think flowers are pretty, I can appreciate a sunny day with blue skies, but there aren't many places that have made me want to quote poetry about their beauty; Monserrate did. Th palace located on the property was once the traditional summer palace of the Portuguese court. The actual palace was nice, but I've also seen structures that were far more beautiful  (i.e. the Louvre.) What had me quoting Maya Angelou's "On the Pulse of Morning" was the scenery on the way there. The foliage was this beautiful, luscious green and it looked like the setting for a fairy tale. My friend kept repeating that it was something straight from her dreams; I can't say that I've ever dreamed about being in anything slightly reminiscent (my Girl Scout days are behind me), but I was awed by the beauty before me and just really blessed to be there.

• Quinta da Regaleira: Another palace, this was built for a Portuguese millionaire. It's expansive, to say the absolute least. There is, of course, the palace, but there's also a cathedral, a space that looks like it would have been used for summer balls, and my absolute favorite thing: the Initiatic Well. The visitors pamphlet was so eloquent in its description that it's only fitting to quote it: "A 'subterranean tower' that sinks some 27 meters into the earth, made accessible by a monumental spiral stairway, this hallowed space, full of esoteric and alchemical associations, makes the relation between Heaven and Earth intensely felt." We embarked on a nice little hike to get there (though we did get lost), but it was absolutely worth it. 

• Pena Park: This was our last stop in Sintra, which we did toward the evening. Pena is situated on top of a hill overlooking Sintra, so it's pretty prominently seen. It's even more appealing because it's colorful. The largest building is this vibrant yellow that stands out against the sky. The construction of the palace is long and encompasses a few centuries worth of stories, but a chapel was all that was originally built there and, over the years (centuries), different Portuguese monarchs added on to it. By the time we made it there, it was getting dark and foggy, so we didn't really get to see the beauty of the colorful buildings, but we did discover that fog looks really pretty in black and white and sepia photos!

After two days and three nights of sightseeing and delicious food, we hopped on a plane back to Madrid...whereupon someone promptly reached into my little purse and took my wallet. Don't. Gasp. I cried a little (a lot), had a pity party for a few hours, and snapped out of it. However, this does not, in the least, detract from the amazing time I had in Portugal. 

Yeahhhh, so I just wrote a lot...and those were just the highlights of the trip. I hope you were able to experience a little of Portugal with me!