Lisbon by way of Fatima

En route to Lisbon, Nelson stopped in Fatima for us to spend a few hours. I think we were both expecting to find it to be a little more reverent but sadly like so many places, the tacky tourist shops have taken over and tourists flooded the square completely unaware of the faithful making their pilgrimage. For many making a pilgrimage to Fatima, the 600 foot crawl on their knees is time of prayer, sacrifice and reflection. Of course, the event planner in me wanted to break out some rope and stanchions to give the pilgrims their space!

On May 13, 1917, Mary appeared to 3 shepherd children with 3 messages. First was peace is near (given Europe had just spent the past 3 years in WWI, this was welcome news), second was evil will return and there will be another war and the final message (which was kept secret by the Vatican for 64 years) was someone will try to kill a bishop in white.  The third was revealed when an attempt was made on the life of Pope John Paul II on May 13, 1981 (Pope John Paul II later said it was Our Lady of Fatima was looking over him). For my non-Catholic friends, the Pope is also called the Bishop of Rome.  Mary appeared on the 13th of the month for the next 5 months. Today on the 13th of May through October (the same months Mary appeared to the children), the ultra faithful will make their way to Fatima. 

Lighting a candle at Fatima is a little different than most Catholic churches.  Here you go to an area and pick out your candle and pay on the honor system (similar to the old school way when you'd like an actual candle in a church before they got the automatic LED candles).  Then you get on line to light the candle and if you can stand the heat, place it in one of the holders but otherwise, you just throw it in the fire...the wax collects at the bottom and it is used to make more candles.

No euro, no problem!  Just whip out your
credit card or Apple Pay and make a donation (SMH)

Not sure if it was all the youth groups making their 

way to Lisbon or if this happens on a daily basis but there 

were lots of groups just walking around breaking out in 

song as we walked through square.

Because everyone needs a glow
in the dark Our Lady of Fatima

Normally, I like to do the Hop-on/Hop-off tour but due to World Youth Day and the Pope’s visit, tour buses were not running in Lisbon.  In its place, LuLu and I took an 1.5 hour tuk tuk tour (our kidneys are still feeling riding on the cobblestone streets!) with Inês. We covered a lot of ground and was also able to take a stroll through Alfama (birthplace of Fado and the oldest neighborhood in Europe).

Lavadouros are public wash houses where typically the ladies of the neighborhood would come to wash clothes, sing and gossip. While rarely used any more, this one in Alfama lets you get a glimpse (through the fence) of its former glory.  If you close your eyes, you can almost hear the ladies singing.

While walking around Alfama, we would see these plaques on the walls.  Inês said they are people famous to the locals in Alfama.  The man on the left was a swimmer and the lady on the right was often seen washing clothes in the neighborhood wash house.

When most people think of Portuguese beverages, they think of Port and Vinho Verde.  But there's another tasty treat that must be tried...Ginjinha (or Ginja).  It is a liqueur made from fortified wine or brandy and infused with cherries, sugar and cinnamon.  When Julie and I visited Portugal in 2018, we sampled quite a bit and even had some homemade Ginja during one of our EatWith experiences.  LuLu hadn't gotten to try any while in Porto (she was loving her Port and Vinho Verde) so when we were in Alfama, we stopped in a little accessories store and the shopkeeper served us some...in little chocolate cups.  She even pulled out some of the cherries sitting in the bottom of the bottle for us to try (brought back college memories of fruit soaking in PJ).

View from highest point in Lisbon -- Miradouro de Nossa Senhora do Monte (Viewpoint of Our Lady of the Mount)

National Pantheon

Oldest tree in Lisbon

Igreja de São Vicente de Fora

Here's some random photos of our time in Lisbon.  Because there is a church about every five feet, we went into a lot of churches!

Se Catedral de Lisboa (Lisbon Cathedral)

Saint Maria Madalena

While you need to be looking up at all the beauty, you also
need to look down. It always amazes me how much detail
the Portuguese put into something on which you walk.

Saint Anthony de Padua (simply referred to as São Antonio in Portugal) was born in Portugal and all over the country you see his statue, tiles and paintings.  And in gift shops, he comes in a wide array of shapes and colors!

According to Portuguese law, when someone dies and leaves their property to more than one person, all individuals must agree to the sale of the property.  As most Portuguese families are large, the property is usually left to multiple relatives.  Since it is not easy to get everyone to agree, often times the property will sit empty and become subject to vandalism and ruin which is probably what has happened to many buildings like these in Lisbon.  My friend, Nelson's uncle left him and his 17 cousins a small estate and while Nelson wants to sell, the others want to hold out for more money so now the property just sits and becomes overrun with weeds and the house starts to decay from lack of attention.

We played “avoid the Pope” and  since he was in Belém on Wednesday, we headed there on Thursday to go to Pastéis de Belém (birthplace of the tasty Portuguese treats). This is the only place where they are called pastel de Belém…everywhere else they have to be called pastel de nata. The recipe is highly guarded and no one person knows the complete recipe. If you want to go, my recommendation is to go first thing in the morning if you want table service as the line can get very long as the day progresses.  If you just want to get something from the counter for take away, the line is usually not too bad.

When I’ve visited Lisbon in the past, the line for the Jerónimos Monastery has been insane so I wasn’t able to go. We bought tickets in advance but the line was still long, however, we persevered and after an hour was able to get inside.  Yes, most of the folks in line with us were from World Youth Day which was super fun given my thoughts on the teens we encountered as part of the event.

Double the LuLu, Double the Fun

For such a small country, Portugal played a vital role in the Age of Discovery.  Many of the world's greatest explorers were from Portugal or launched their expedition from Portugal.  Two of the most famous were Ferdinand Magellan (first to circumnavigate the Earth) and Vasco da Gama (discovered the sea route to India). The Monument to the Discoveries on the banks of the Tagus River pays tribute to all the explorers.

I’ve heard Fado in the past but never in person, so LuLu and I headed to O Corrido in Alfama for dinner and Fado. This style of music was sung by sailors and the women they left at home. Saudade is feeling evoked from Fado. There’s not a literal translation to English but is a feeling of longing and deep emotion. You can definitely see the emotion on the faces of the performers.  Not only was the performance wonderful, the food was amazing…it always blows me away how the tiny kitchens in Portugal can crank out some of the most unbelievable meals!

Even the chef came out to watch the show...

For our last day in Lisbon, we planned to take the historic Tram 28 but as fate would have it, trams we’re not running because of World Youth Day and the Pope (ugh). In typical Portuguese fashion, there were no notices posted and it was through my limited Portuguese (thank goodness for Google Translate!) we found out. Instead we wandered around for a few hours and then headed back to try to get a little sleep before our 2AM pick up for the airport.  The tram ride is pretty fun and a little harrowing as it climbs the hilly, narrow streets of Lisbon with such speed...some the streets are so narrow you literally touch the buildings from the tram windows! I was bummed as I really wanted LuLu to experience it but we'll put it on the list for next time.

Our final confeitaria visit...at least on this trip

We had an amazing 5 weeks of living in and exploring Portugal and logged 331,488 steps / 147.5 miles. For me, the highlights were spending time and making new memories with Moma, seeing some of my favorite places through her eyes for the first time and our day in the Douro Valley.  Looking forward to our next adventure!