A love letter to Lisbon….(and a new ukelele song)
- Kimberly OLeary
- Jul 19
- 7 min read
Cara Lisboa,
I was walking your streets in late June, and realizing I truly love being here. When we decided to move here last year, we didn’t really know you well. We had only spent 2 months here four years before, and although we knew we liked you, we didn’t know if we’d love you. Let me tell you some of the reasons we are falling in love.
Lisbon is a wonderful mix of old and new.
One minute you’re walking down traditional cobblestone streets looking at old tile on the building facades – buildings with iron balconies and carved features – and the next you’re ordering an Uber ride on your phone to take you home. Lisbon has done a wonderful job of maintaining its old world charm. It is one of the oldest European capitals, pre-dating even its Roman history with a Phoenician settlement. Here, you will see a 12th -century neighborhood (Alfama) home to a period castle and a Romanesque cathedral; you can see Roman ruins; 14th and 15th-century convents/monasteries; and tiles on building facades that span the history of the city. But, you also have fast wi-fi, easy ride and take-out apps, international amenities, robust entertainment, street art & surrealist tiles. Even the entertainment is a mix of old and new. Fado houses abound, featuring this unique traditional Portuguese art form. But earlier this month Lisbon featured Rock in Rio with Rod Stewart and Cyndi Lauper, among others, and a premiere of the new Steven Spielberg movie at local theaters.
We love the feeling we get when we walk on Lisbon streets. It feels calm, and safe. Flowers and trees bloom all around. Clothes hang from balconies, a nod to the sunshine and slower pace. People pass by with a murmured “Bom dia” or “boa tarde,” depending on the time of day. It doesn’t feel like people are in a hurry. It doesn't feel stressed or hyper. And, everyone is walking – from the very old to the very young and all ages in between. Portuguese people have welcomed us, and want us to feel happy in this city. And so, we do.
We love your Metro stations with their murals and tiles.
Not only are the metros inexpensive, quick, and take you all over the city, they are also beautiful. Inside the stations you see poetry, history, and art. Traveling around the city is an education. At the Martim Moniz stop, the famous story about the 12th century knight who sacrificed himself by wedging himself in the castle doors is illustrated. The Parque station features a stunning map of the world at the time Portugal was the most powerful country. Saldanha and Baixa-Chiado celebrate Portuguese poetry and their poets. The Rossio station features busy commuters. Some are all about color. At Campo Grande, an artful display of 18th-century history treats the eyes. And at the Zoo stop, you see animals. How fun to feast the eyes and the mind while traversing the city!
We love this language we are just getting to know.
We’ve now had almost 40 hours of Portuguese language instruction, and we are falling in love with the cadences, the “sh”s and the “ooh’s.” We are studying at Saudade Language School near Arroios, under the wonderful instruction of Orlando & Patricia! Portuguese is one of the oldest of the romance languages. You begin to better understand a people when you understand their language. It is one of the hardest things we’ve done in a long time – truly learning a new language – but well worth the effort. Already, we are slowly understanding more as each day passes.
We love your food and wine.
We love that we can sample cuisine from around the world, make our own food at home with fresh ingredients, or enjoy Portuguese bacalhau, pica pau, sardinhas or pasteis de nata as we choose. Nothing is as satisfying as a simple "couvert" of olives, fresh bread, butter & fish pate. We feel at home when we order a "bica" (one shot of espresso), a "duplo" (2 shots of espresso), or a "pintado" (a shot of espressor with a splash of milk). Herbs are plentiful and inexpensive, as are fruit and vegetables. We've had lemons from our neighbor's tree and papaya from our own. There is an abundance of fresh seafood. We can choose to go out or order using Ubereats, Bolt, or Glovo.
We are just learning about Portuguese wine. We’ve bought a wine book listing all the regions and grapes (thanks for the idea, Gloria!) and are beginning to explore. We have already found several wines we really enjoy – wines made from the Touriga Nacional grape are unique to Portugal and delicious. Paul wonders why this wine is not marketed more overseas, as it is tasty and inexpensive. The Douro Valley makes great Pinto Noir. There's nothing more refreshing than a shared pitcher of Sangria on a hot day, and no two are alike. I've learned to make Sangria at home. And, of course, we’ve already discovered several delicious port wines (thanks Steve & Jenny for bringing us a wonderful bottle from Porto!) We’ve also found a great little French wine shop – Garrafeira Nicolas – where we can buy our favorite French wines for much less than we would pay in the U.S.
We love your holidays and festivals – especially in April and June.
When we arrived in late February, it was a little chilly and damp, but by April things had really warmed up. April began a series of festivals and holidays that we have truly enjoyed. Easter was in early April, followed shortly by the Dia da Liberdade on April 25. Known as the carnation revolution, this day celebrates the day ordinary people, handing carnations to soldiers in the public squares, overthrew the fascist dictatorship of Antonio Salazar to bring democracy to Portugal. Portuguese people do not take their parliamentary democracy for granted - many people still remember living under fascism. We felt privileged to witness the importance of this holiday in Portugal. People danced in public squares, passing out carnations. They went to the Parliament building on the one day of the year it is open to the public. They gave speeches about the importance of democracy. A week later, they were celebrating Labor Day. People marched in unity down the main streets of the city. But the big festival month in Lisbon is June. Portugal Day is June 10, a day to celebrate the country and the Portuguese diaspora, as well as commemorating the death of celebrated poet Luis Camoes in 1580. There is a large annual book fair in Parque Eduardo VII. The bigger celebration, however, is the Feast of Popular Saints which takes place the first two weeks of June. You can smell the sardines grilling in the neighborhoods and there are lots of parties. It feels like the official start of summer. The culmination in Lisbon is the Feast of St. Anthony the night of June 12 and the day of June 13. St. Anthony is the patron saint of Lisbon, born and died in Lisbon. His death was in 1231. On June 12, there is a parade - first of schools then neighborhoods - down the Avenida da Liberdade. Participants march in colorful local costumes and sing a song. Paul and I went down to watch, and we saw a few of the dancers. There was a lively crowd. On June 13, couples who win a lottery are married in St. Anthony church. A week after that, on June 20, Lisbon hosted a Pride parade at the end of a week-long Pride celebration. This summer has also felt festive because of Portugal’s advance in the World Cup.
We love your outdoor spaces – especially when the jacarandas are blooming.
Lisbon is just bursting with flowers and trees. There are so many outdoor spaces – squares, gardens, and flowering bushes and trees in neighborhoods. We love that some of your parks and squares are named for poets, journalists, and protectors of democracy. We see many sculptures in gardens and squares. There are walkways and bike paths all along the river – from Belem to Commercial Square to the Parque das Nacoes. This is a city that knows how to take advantage of its outdoors. Thanks for (mostly) beautiful weather most of the year, it is easy to enjoy these spaces. We did go through a brutal heat wave (100F temperatures) for about a week in early July) but mostly the weather is pleasant. When there’s a breeze, it’s perfect. The sun shines brightly. We even had our first ripe papaya in mid-July, and it was delicious.
We love that there is still so much to explore.
We love that there is so much more to explore in Lisbon. We’ve been here five months, and we feel that we’ve just scratched the surface of what to see and do. We have a long list of places we haven’t yet visited, both here and elsewhere in Portugal. We can live here a long time and still find new places to visit.
It’s not all sunshine and roses every day.
Don’t get us wrong, there are still days we feel pretty overwhelmed. Learning a language is really hard work. It’s hard to focus on all of our projects when we’re trying to establish a household, learn a language, meet our doctors, and spend time with folks. Sometimes it takes a lot longer to hear back from people than we are used to, but as they say in the U.S., "Good things come to those who wait!" This thought has been a little tested in dealing with Portuguese systems. We haven’t had a good bagel or crispy bacon in 5 months (and more importantly, we do miss family & friends). But actually, it is (almost) always - literally - sunshine and roses. So Lisbon, we’re falling in love with you. This looks like the beginning of a beautiful relationship.
To honor Lisboa, Kim learned a fado song, Cheira Bem, Cheira a Lisboa. Many fadistas have sung this song, but Kim especially likes this one by Yvone Antunes, for her gusto and good cheer. You see Kim sing it here.
Comments