Lisbon

The inner city:

Baixa Pombalina, the lower city, is the center of Lisbon. Here is Rossio, the most important square in the city already for centuries. Almost at the main square Rossio is Praça dos Restauradores. At the very large Praça do Comércio square on the Tagus, the Royal residence was located until Portugal became a republic in 1910.

Arco da Victoria which forms the arch to the shopping street Augusta is definitely worth seeing. In the Bairro Alto district, west of the Baixa, many restaurants and entertainment venues can be found. The approximately thirty meters higher district is accessible from the center with the Elevador de Santa Justa.

This lift/elevator was designed by a student of Gustave Eiffel in the neo-Gothic style from around 1900.

Alfama

Alfama, an old working-class neighborhood, is located east of the center. With its many steep streets, stairs and alleys, it is a fotogenic and important sight for many tourists. Straight through the neighborhood, the antique tram line 28 meanders, shocks and puffs through the streets.

This tram line is widely used by tourists, but is also still important for the accessibility of the district. The most famous and oldest church in the city, the Lisbon Cathedral, is also here. Not far from here lies the Igreja de Sao Vicente de Fora – with also beautiful blue antique tiles and a formidable view.

The city also has two interesting bridges; the Ponte 25 de Abril, named after the 1974 Carnation Revolution, connects Lisbon with the Outra Banda, the south bank of the Tagus. The design is based on that of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge in San Francisco.

Belem:

In the Santa Maria de Belémar district are the Hieronymites Monastery Mosteiro dos Jerónimos and the Torre de Belém situated which has become the symbol of the city on the river Tagus. Both are a must to see as a tourist and both are on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

In the monastery, among others, the explorer Vasco da Gama is buried. 

Other attractions:

• The Museo Nacional de Arte Antiga. 

According to legend, Lisbon was founded by the Greek hero Odysseus during his long journey home, the Odyssey. We certainly know now that between 1000 and 2000 BC a Phoenician trading post was established here. Years later the Greeks and Carthagen would do the same. In the year 200 BC the city was conquered by the Romans who would stay there for about 700 years.

When the Roman Empire collapsed, the city fell into the hands of peoples from the north and fell into disrepair. Among the Muslims, who invaded around 714, the city flourished again and became an important trading center again. The Muslims called the city Lissabona and would keep the city in possession for some 400 years on despite some skirmishes with Christian crusaders.

King Alfons I of Portugal, who in 1139 was the first king of the initially smaller Portugal, conquered Lisbon on October 21, 1147. The siege lasted 17 weeks and the Muslims eventually surrendered because of hunger. The Christians addressed a true massacre among the residents, making little distinction between Christians and Muslims. In 1255, Alfonso III moved the capital from Coimbra to Lisbon, which was a strategic move.  

With Vasco da Gama's discovery of the sea-route to India, around 1500, the Portuguese Golden Age began. For example, King Emanuel I had the “Mosteiro dos Jerónimos” built after “Da Gama's” return. After the many voyages of discovery and the founding of many colonial empires for Portugal, gold was found in Brazil. But in the year 1755 everything went wrong - the city of Lisbon was hit by three very heavy earthquakes. Large parts of the beautiful city lay in ruins and thousands died. Buildings collapsed but also fires broke out and high waves from the Tagus killed many people.

Under the pragmatic prime minister, the later Marquês de Pombal, the reconstruction started that the city would be “earthquake-proof". His influence can be seen, among other things, in the tight street plan of the south of the Baixa district. In the twentieth century the city “handled” two "coups", although the dictator "Salazar" also allowed the city to be modernized considerably. In 1974 and 1975 many immigrants came to the city - mostly from old colonies who became independent one by one.

Lisbon has been on the rise again in recent years - in 2004 the city was already a football city in the European Championship and the old neighborhoods were especially refurbished.