myelsakee: My Euro Trip Adventure-Portugal Part II

19th June 2010, Saturday

Bem Vindo a Portugal!! Hari ni memang terasa Portugal sangat, bukak jendela bilik tu, we can see the busy streets, Portugal pavement, trams, St George Castle hmmm udara nyaman pagi ni, suhu pun sejuk sejuk peti ais, cuaca seakan gembira menyambut kedatangan kami. Hari ni breakfast sepuasnya di hostel, sambil layan fesbuk. Memandangkan toilet cuma ada satu sahaja, so kami ada cukup masa untuk bersiap secara malas malasan, tapi yang penting vogue and nice for cleo!

from our window

Destinasi pertama hari ni adalah St George Castle, memandangkan ianya terletak tidak jauh dari hostel kami. Dengan berbekalkan map yang didapati dari hostel, kami pun gagah berani memulakan penjelajahan kami. St George Castle ni terletak di atas bukit. So kalau mau mendaki bukit ni, kami terpaksa masuk lorong lorong bangunan. Walaupun penuh onak ranjau yang berduri, YES, memang tercungap cungap dibuatnya kalau menjelajah bumi Lisbon ni, cos kawasannya berbukit bukau, so banyak kena naik tangga, masuk lorong lorong but very the adventurous. Kerna, pemandangan kami so colourful, cuma ambik masa la kalau mau sampai ke destinasi.

one of the lorong yang perlu diharungi

wall art

colors of Lisbon

Naik bukit, turun bukit, masuk lorong, keluar lorong, St George Castle belum jugak muncul di depan mata. Tapi we had a very splendid moment from the top of miradouro de Sao Pedro de Alcantara. Miraudoro is actually a viewpoint where you can see the beauty of the city, they are usually located at the highest points of each hill where you can contemplate the panaromic view and it’s such a pleasure. Hmmm pleasure sangat!!! Mak aiii…jauh lagi ni St George Castle.

view from miradouro de Sao Pedro de Alcantara

souvenirs???

St George Castle...jauh lagi...

As we go down the hill, Impian dimakbulkan. Terserempak lah pulak dengan Lebanese Stall, apa lagi…memerut kebab lah lagi jawabnya walaupun destinasi asal belum di temui. After memerut, we continue our journey, wander around the narrow streets and staircases, the medieval alleys and outstanding views, houses with wrought iron balconies ditambahkan lagi dgn pots of flowers, drying laundry and recycle arts memang tidak jemu mata memandang.

my lunch

the buildings

recycle arts

Dan tibalah kami di St George Castle. Kalau tengok St George Castle ni macam Great Wall of China pun ada. Kalau tengok secara mata kasar memanglah St George castle ni nampak dekat, terletak di atas bukit yg paling tinggi di Lisbon so actually, it can be seen almost everywhere in the city hahah. Untuk this attraction cukuplah bergambar di luaran saja, malas mau adore batu batuan ni, queue pun panjang. Sempat jugak berehat seketika di sini, as beeps and leleng buat international call pulak..hehe

Arch at St George's Castle

inilah si george tu

Continue our journey di sekitar Alfama, dengan menggunakan kaedah jalan kaki. Memang mata ni tidak pernah jemu untuk melihat aktiviti makhluk makhluk di sini. The restaurants and cafes yang menghidangkan pelbagai hidangan seafood (Portugal famous with their sardines and cod), sambil dihiburkan dengan pemain pemain muzik and their fado, the portugese ceramic tiles (azulejos), pavement and the art of their cobblestones (calcada) ahhh….memang terasa macam dalam fairy tales. And so, we stop at another famous miradouros called Miradouro de Santa Luzia where we can see the Tagus River.

another lorong yang ditempuhi

the cafes

miradouro de Santa Luzia and azulejos

view from miradouro de Santa Luzia

Move to the next location is Miradouro das Portal do Sol. You can’t resist snapping pictures from any of the miradouro, as the panaromic view is really breathtaking. This miradouro is only a few steps from Miradouro se Danta Luzia. There is also a statue of St. Vincent (the city's patron saint) holding a boat with two ravens, the symbols of Lisbon.

Statue of St Vincent

view from miradouro das Portal do Sol

one of the museum found here

Belum puas lagi with what Alfama can offers, we stroll down the hill and stop at the Lisbon Cathedral, ancient and oldest building in Lisbon. Memandangkan the entrance is free, and aku pun tidak ada pengalaman masuk church, so aku pun ambik kesempatan to explore and snap few pics. Nasib baik tidak ada paderi, kalau tidak terpaksa buat confessions of a shopaholic hehe…

Lisbon Cathedral

very old building

entering...silence please

can somebody tell me what is this??

the ceiling

interior

Perjalanan kami diteruskan di sekitar Alfama, sambil membeli belah di kedai souvenirs. Dengan harapan hendak ke Commercio Square yang terletak di Baixa. Baixa ni kira downtown, it’s the heart of the city, the main shopping and banking districts. Setibanya di Baixa, hati bergelojak apabila Commercio Square berada di depan mata. It’s Lisbon’s monumental riverside square. In the centre of the square is a statue of King Jose I and at the north side is the Triumphal Arch. Masa ni jangan tanya pasal happy meter la..memang color hijau. Cuaca memang panas terik sini, sempat lah kami ni menikmati ice cream berharga €1.50.

Commercio Square

Triumphal Arch

Statue of King Jose I

menikmati eskrim di hari yang terik

mintak bah....

After enjoying our ice cream, kami berlegar legar di sekitar Triumphal Arch where there are several flea markets that offers traditional Portugese products. Sempatlah jugak aku berangkut sampah sarap di sini. Lots of cute stuffs which kak itok called it nonsense. The Commercio Square opens onto Rua Agusta through the Triumphal Arch. It is Lisbon’s main pedestrian street with mosaic pavements, outdoor cafes and shops. Masuklah lagi ke kedai kedai souvenirs. Here in Rua Agusta, we found a tourism booth, where you can ask anything about the place for free, and they even give you maps!

tengok tengok flea market

along the way

barangan nonsense

Rua Agusta

shops at Rua Agusta

Puas berlegar di sekitar Baixa, then we decided to get off to Belem pulak, dengan menaiki tram wehoooo!!! Hmmm one thing I adore about Lisbon is the transportation. Di atas jalan raya diorang ni, yg made from cobblestones, ada macam macam sorts of transportation ie; tram, buses, cars, bicycles, kereta kuda and even skateboards haha. Tapi ganas jugak si pemandu tram ni, ingat mau rilek rilek mata kejap.

the cute tram

inside the tram, leleng at the back ;p

Setibanya kami di Belem, we stop near the Praca de Afonso Albuquerque. This square is located in front of Belem Palace and there’s a monument of Afonso Albuquerque, the first conqueror of India. We had a stroll in the park untuk pergi ke destinasi utama kami. The 1st would be the Discoveries Monument. Memang perjalanan agak jauh, we have to go through the underpass as its built at the north bank of Tagus River, tambahan pulak cuaca hari ni panas. Secara brief, this monument represents a ship with sculptures of very important Portugese explorers such as Vasco da Gama, Bartolomeu Dias and Afonso de Albuquerque. The pavement in front of the monument features a mosaic decoration showing a world map and wind rose. Si apy masih tidak faham kenapa aku and beeps terkejar kejar mau ambik gambar di sini hehe, until she declared this place as our kaabah ;p

Praca de Afonso Albuquerque

The Monument

Discoveries Monument

the mosaics

From here, we can see the 25th April Bridge, the Golden Gate’s twin sister. However it is longer than the San Fransico’s Golden Gate Bridge. We can also see The Statue of Christ across the Tagus River, a replica of The Statue of Christ the Redeemer on Corcovado in Rio de Janiero, but smaller. Not far from the Discoveries Monument is the Belem Tower. This tower is one of the World Heritage Site and simbol kepada Lisbon, sama la macam Eiffel Tower yang begitu simbolik pada Paris.

25th April Bridge and the Statue of Christ (right)

the marina

Tagus River

Belem Tower

the mini :)

Cukup dengan sesi bergambar, now another main attraction is at the other side of the tower, iaitu Jeronimos Monastery. Tapi sebelum itu, singgah bergambar dulu di Praca do Imperio, a city square located in front of Jeronimos Monastery. Jeronimos Monastery is also one of the world heritage monuments; Vasco da Gama’s tomb was placed inside this building. Hari ni cuaca panas betul, after tapau latte from Starbucks, kami pun balik hostel. Dalam bus ni terasa ngantuk betul….so sampai bilik, kira kira duit, tidur kejap lah….