Just over a decade ago Lisbon was a city with a serious image problem. The capital of Portugal was often regarded as a rundown, shambolic and poverty-stricken place. Many locals, while being proud of their lively and characterful home, found it difficult to disagree.
Today, Lisbon has experienced the kind of renaissance not seen since the 14th and 15th centuries, when the city was at the heart of an empire that stretched from Brazil to India. The World Expo in 1998 kicked off the rejuvenation and the city was hauled into shape. A new bridge across the River Tagus, a major expansion of the crumbling metro system and the massive redevelopment of the Expo site, the Parque das Nações.
Lisbon's superb natural setting, spread across seven hills and hugging the banks of the wide River Tagus estuary, attracted settlers as far back as 900BC, with the arrival of the Phoenicians. But the city came into its own in the 14th and 15th centuries, when its explorers set out to investigate the world's oceans. Many of the city's grandest buildings, such as those along the waterfront in the suburb of Bélem, are legacies of those days.
Tram in Alfama - Lisbon, photo by José Manuel
Twenty-first century Lisbon is a vibrant, cosmopolitan and creative city that has managed to successfully marry the historic with the modern, the traditional with the cutting edge. Lisbon is at its best on languorous summer evenings, when the pavement cafes and riverside restaurants bustle with steamy life.
The Portuguese eat much more fish than other Europeans, and we suggest you join them. Trawl Rua das Portas de Santo Antão, near Rossio, or seek out Porto de Abrigo nearer the river. Uphill, Cervejaria Trindade offers prawns and steaks in a beer hall decked with tile panels. The stylish Terreiro do Paço has posher nosh. You’re spoilt for choice in the Bairro Alto, with restaurants serving everything from the national favourite, bacalhau, to curry.
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