It's an empty landscape mostly, the only notable place heading north up the coast is Sines. It's oil refineries and gas storage tanks seem utterly out place among Alentejo's big skies and low hills.
There are Lidl car parks scattered throughout southern Europe that remain oddly fixed in my memory. Alcacer's happens to be one of them, it's the miniature olive trees and a flamboyantly decorated hacienda gate next to the store that came to mind well before we actually arrived.
Why do these random scraps of memory recur for no reason whatsoever? They are the visual equivalent of earworms, annoying, but harmless.
As urban motorways go the ones around Lisbon are relatively benign but you still need to keep your wits about you. Costa Caparica is part suburb part resort a few kilometres south of Lisbon on the opposite bank of the Tejo from the city centre. We are familiar with the area because we visited it a lot during the time our daughter lived in Lisbon. Consequently we have no compunction to rush off sightseeing. Our plans for tomorrow - a relaxed lunch, wandering about a bit appreciating the laid back Lisbon vibe and relax!
We struck an unforseen complication straightaway. When Gill booked into the Orbitur site she requested timetables for the bus and ferry to take us into the centre. We've used them often, it's a regular service and the bus times are designed to link with the boat. The entire trip takes about 40 minutes and you get a spectacular view of Lisbon's waterfront and its famous Golden Gate look alike bridge from the the ferry - all for about €7.00 return. Well at least that is how it used to be. "There is only a bus sometimes, now you must taxi," the receptionist advised Gill a tad gnomically. We checked online, it was true, the regular bus service seemed to have ceased but the Trafaia to Belem boat was still running every hour.
The 'Estação Fluvial da Trafaia' is only about three kilometres from the Costa Caparica campsite. Could we use the bikes? In many cities we have visited - Sevilla, Rome, Copenhagen, Malaga, Bologna - as we waited patiently for a bus we have watched fellow campers from Holland sail past us confidently on their bikes . A quick perusal of Streetview revealed that most of the route to the ferry terminal had a cycle path, so we headed off next morning by bike.
It took a little longer than we anticipated, the cycle track was occupied by a straggling line of children, hundreds of them, being shepherded along the way by their teachers. The kids were all in fancy dress, small Spidermen, devils, fairies and princesses. They were very excited, singing and chanting as the they tripped along. Passing cars peeped their horns, passersby paused and applauded. It was a very heartwarming sight. When we looked at the Sesimbres carnival programme we had noticed that one of the days featured a children's carnival. I was unsure of what that might entail, now I know.
We took a wrong turning and ended up in Trafaria's town centre not the ferry port. Here too the place was full of kids in fancy dress. The local police were on hand to manage the traffic and groups of older people had gathered to watch, grandparents probably.
We arrived at the terminal a little later than we had planned, but still in good time for the boat at noon. It transpired that bikes were free on the ferry, the passenger fare was a mere €1.30. In the end we spent two days on our bikes in Lisbon - it was great.
Lisbon stretches along the northern side of the Tejo. Most of the riverside, all the way from Belem to Alfama has a bike track which wends its way through the old docks and warehouses.
It's not entirely straightforward, some of the route is potholed, other parts cobbled, and when you reach the Doca area's bars and restaurants it becomes a 'shared space' and you have to dismount and push your bike. Nevertheless it was fun.
From time to time we paused to admire the view or take photos of Lisbon's fabulous Art Deco industrial sprawl, some still functioning, some re-purposed, as well as a few abandoned buildings covered in fabulous graffiti.
Our destination, Último Porto, a fish restaurant hidden away on the far side of Lisbon's former cruise terminal. Apart from the restaurant the splendid Art Deco building looked empty and falling into disrepair. The terminal has been superceded by a more modern one controversially situated right next to the city's ancient Alfama district, flooding the once atmospheric area with an influx of thousands of tourists every time a cruise ship docks. It means the area around the original terminal is little frequented apart from 'Alfacinhas' heading for Último Porto. We certainly would not have discovered the place without Sarah, in her role as 'former resident in the know' alerting us to its delights.
I chose dourada (sea bream), Gill went for badejo ( sea bass). In typical Portuguese style they came accomplished by boiled vegetables, in this case topo de nabo (turnip top) and spuds. The greens had been boiled to death school dinner style, but the potatoes, as often in Portugal, were creamy and delicious even though they too were simply boiled. It has to be the variety, we concluded.
The fish cookery was spot on.The place must have close to 50 covers or more if you included the two dining rooms inside and the extensive terrace. Most people choose the fish option as that's what the restaurant is famous for, all cooked on three outside charcoal grills managed by a single chef. He made it look simple, as consummate professionals do.
The whole experience was great, despite the off note provided by the only other English voice in the place, sitting right behind us. He questioned the waiter about everything, the menu, the cover charge, and when his bill arrived disputed each item. His 'watch out Johnny foreigner is out to do you' attitude would have been cringingly funny as a comedy turn - a tad Basil Fawlty; in actuality it was simply embarrassing.
Lunches are leisurely in Portugal and by the time we had shared a cake as pudding...
. an interesting local variant on tiramisu then lingered over our 50cl flagon of Vinho Verde it was time to head back to Belém.
When we've been here previously we have always stopped by Pastéis de Belém, famous equally for its delicious pastéis de nata and the spectacular blue tiled interior of the somewhat labyrinthine interior. Sadly these days on Google maps 'people often mention' feature neither of these delights come top of the list. Number one mention is the word 'queue'. The place is now a tourist hot-spot and an half hour wait to get through the door is regarded as normal.
With a ferry to catch we did not have the time. Again, Sarah's local knowledge came in handy. Learning of our predicament she Whatsapped that a small bakery called Manteigaria right opposite the Pastéis de Belém also produced great pastéis de nata, and in fact she felt they were superior to the more famous ones over the road.
There was a table spare outside the place, the pastéis de nata were fabulously creamy and the coffee merely pretended to be an unassuming Portuguese 'pingado' but actually came as close to a perfectly made macchiata as we've had outside of Italy. Perfecto.
Having proved to ourselves that using the bikes to get to Lisbon not only was straightforward but also fun, the question now was what shall we do tomorrow?
We wondered about revisiting the tapas style restaurant 'Pateo - Bairro do Avillez.' that Sarah and Rob introduced us to. It's owned by the celebrated Portuguese chef, José Avillez and serves creative dishes at affordable prices. In the end it proved too complicated to reach the place situated in the Chiado district, about a kilometre from the river and up steep cobbled streets. Our only option would have been to lock up the bikes at Cais do Sodré and walk to the restaurant. We decided we didn't have the time, and opted to have a beer and a tosta at a qiosk instead.
Sadly we chose the wrong one. Tasty snacks are on offer at these traditional food outlets scattered about the city. However the qiosk at Cais do Sodré is a real tourist trap and served us a disturbingly yellow ham and cheese toastie.
Sarah Whatsapped her disgust at our faux pas, observing from Hackney Wick that the qiosk we chose is regarded by Lisbon locals as the worst in the city.
By mid-afternoon Lisbon was becoming ever livelier. Not only was it the weekend, but carnivalseason. Unlike other places in Portugal like Sesimbres, Loulé and Torre Vedra, Lisbon doesn't have full blown Brazilian style carnival parades on the days leading up to 'fat Tuesday'. However, Lisboestas still dress up, small troupes with drums and dancers competing with the usual hen and stag do shenanigans.
A stall selling fresh pineapple drinks, run by Brazilians presumably, blasted Jorge Ben across the crowded esplanade, giving the moment a suitably samba vibe. Lisbon is an alluring city, 'a happy place' as Gill remarked. We headed for Time Out Market. When we first visited the city this former municipal market had recently been reinvented as a hipsterish food emporium on a massive scale. At the time I was very scathing about the place, finding it over-curated and phoney.
Now though, I don't seem to mind it so much, somehow it's been absorbed into the fabric of the city.
The last time we were here we bought a bottle of Taylor's Chip Dry at a place that specialises in port. They stocked many rare vintages at eye watering prices, but no Chip Dry. Waitrose online sell it, I'll buy a bottle when we get back. Time Out Market has a branch Manteigaria, the bakery that sold us the delicious pastéis de nata yesterday. We ordered some more, they were probably just as good, but they are so rich and luscious it's not something to enjoy on a daily basis we decided. In truth neither of us have a particularly sweet tooth.
It was time to head back to Belem to catch the ferry. We are not city people, but Lisbon is exceptional, it is a happy place and I didn't feel sad leaving because I know we will keep coming back.
The weather looks to be heading for an unsettled spell on the Atlantic coast. We've decided to head back to Spain stopping in Evora on the way. We plan to go back to the cycle trail at Puerto Serrano in the hills south west of Seville. After then we'll consult our various weather oracles, either heading south to the Sherry triangle or east towards Almeria, wherever is warm and sunny.
No comments:
Post a Comment