Lisbon: Saturday

Saturday, we slept in to rest up a bit, then headed out to Belem, a suburb of Lisbon. We took the "modern tram" (an electric bus). Our first stop was the Jerónimos Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and home to some impressive architecture. Here's our approach and some photos of the exterior:





Visiting the inside revolved around walking the cloisters and ducking inside the church (since it was Saint Anthony's day, there was a steady stream of weddings in the church):






After visiting the monastery, we headed into Belem proper for a quick lunch then across the train tracks to the Monument to the Discoveries, which commemorates Henry the Navigator:




We ventured up to the top of the tower for these great views:



There was also a plaza in front of the monument with a map of the world overlaid with the routes of famous Portuguese explorers. Tim captured us playing on the map:


Just down the waterfront was the Tower of Belem, built, at least in part, to defend the monastery. Jamie and Tim ventured inside, while Maya and I "rested" in the adjacent park:



On the way back towards the tram stop, we stopped off at a playground:


and at a famous pastry shop:


When we got back to Lisbon proper, Jamie and I decided the afternoon called for a tram ride back up the hill towards the hotel (Jamie still hadn't been on the old-fashioned tram that Lisbon's famous for), while Tim wanted to duck inside the Se Cathedral for some pictures of the famous rose window. It turns out none of us were successful. Since it was Saint Anthony's day, there were massive celebrations, including this procession that ended at the Se (which happens to sit right on the tram tracks). So Tim couldn't get inside, and the tram wasn't running. But it may have been worth it:



We ate dinner right alongside the tram tracks as well; Jamie shook her fist at every passing tram.

For our Saturday trip in EveryTrail, click here.