Places to visit

Nannarella

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Nannarella

Why would an Italian couple move with their children from Rome to Lisbon to open a gelato store? And why would they name it after a 1950s actress that no one remembers? We don’t know, but what’s important is that they came.

They use Italian technology and the best Portuguese ingredients, such as water from the Estrela mountain, Vigor milk, Delta coffee, Pantagruel chocolate, rocha pears, Port wine, and Óbidos ginja. The result is gelato so indescribably delicious that we feel the urge to sing: con Nannarella la vita è bella!

Nannarella is located on Rua Nova da Piedade, 68 in Lisbon in the Principe Real neighborhood.

A great start

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Tartine

Any nutritionist will tell you that breakfast is the most important meal. It gets our body ready and sets the mood for the day. A lousy breakfast is like a bad haircut, it makes us look weird and feel awkward.

If you’re staying near Chiado, you can start your day with the right foot by walking into Tartine, a wonderful new café. We like to order coffee with toasts made from one of the delicious whole grain breads that are so healthy. After being nutritionally savvy, we reward ourselves with one of the amazing pastries or fruit tarts. When we walk out, the sun is shining and the future looks bright.

Tartine is located on Rua Serpa Pinto, 15-A, tel 21-342-9108. Click here for their web site.

Flying over Lisbon

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Bartolomeu Gusmão, a priest born in Brazil in 1685, was probably the first human to fly. On August 8, 1709, in the presence of King John V and his court, Gusmão soared four meters above the ground, held by a paper balloon full of hot air.

This moment of triumph was followed by years of failure and disappointment. Gusmão worked tirelessly on an airship called Passarola. He planned to fly it over Lisbon, but his invention never left the ground. Gusmão’s contemporaries considered him a fool for thinking that a heavy machine could fly. What would they say if they saw us land in Lisbon aboard a modern version of the Passarola?

The most beautiful esplanade in Lisbon

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Ribeira das Naus is the place where the caravels were once built and repaired. These ships sailed as far as Goa and Cochim in search of cinnamon and other spices. Lisbon has recently transformed the Ribeira das Naus site into a wonderful promenade that extends from Terreiro do Paço to Cais do Sodré.

The part of the promenade close to Terreiro do Paço, has a beautiful esplanade. Here, you can drink a cup of coffee and eat a “pastel de nata” while enjoying the wonderful river view. Don’t forget to ask for a sprinkle of cinnamon on your pastel, for old time sake.

The best view in Lisbon

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The Portuguese call locations with great views “miradoiros,” which means golden sights. Lisbon is blessed with many miradoiros, but none is as exciting as the top of the Santa Justa elevator. The elevator was built in the beginning of the 20th century by Raoul Mesnier du Ponsard, a Portuguese engineer of French origin. It is the kind of futuristic building that belongs in a Jules Vernes novel.

We remember entering the elevator for the first time and imagining the view during the slow ascent. When we reached the top, we realized how limited our imagination had been. We saw Lisbon in all its glory: the Tagus river, St. Jorge’s castle, Rossio, Terreiro do Paço. It was simply unforgettable!

An ancient esplanade

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Being a tourist in Alfama, the neighborhood of St. Jorge’s castle in Lisbon, can be exhausting. After a few hours of walking up and down the narrow streets, we deserve to stop for a refreshment. There’s no better place to enjoy a cold, draft beer than the esplanade at Cerca Moura. That’s the name of the defensive wall first built by the Visigoths and then rebuilt by the Moors. Here you have the same same view of the river Tagus that was once enjoyed by Romans, Moors, Suevi, and Visigoths. But, unlike them, you don’t have to be on the lookout for hoards of invaders.

Cerca Moura, Largo das Portas do Sol 4, Lisbon, tel. 21-887-4859.

DOC & DOP

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DOP

The rustic food of Portugal is made of elemental aromas and deeply satisfying flavors. It is a cuisine of humble people; fishermen, shepherds, and farmers, who liked food that nourishes the body. In contrast, the French culinary tradition pioneered by Marie-Antoine Carême is all refinement and beauty. It is a cuisine of kings and queens who loved to feast their eyes as much as feed their belly.

Rui Paula, a Portuguese chef, spent two decades marrying these two traditions. At DOP, his restaurant in Oporto, he serves country food cooked with palatial elegance. DOC, his restaurant in Amarante, offers a similar menu. Here, the dining experience is heightened by the serene beauty of the location, on the margins of the Douro river.

If you’re traveling in the north of Portugal, don’t miss the opportunity to try these restaurants. They’ll satisfy your body and soul.

Click here for Rui Paula’s website. DOP is located at Palácio das Artes, Largo de S. Domingos, 18, Porto, tel. 22 20 14 313, email dop@ruipaula.com. DOC is located at Estrada Nacional 222, Folgosa, Armamar, tel. 254 858 123, email doc@ruipaula.com.

Waiting in Cascais

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Some visitors like to stay in Lisbon to have the excitement of the capital city on their doorstep. Others prefer the seclusion of Sintra with its romantic palaces and lush vegetation.

If you’re visiting the Lisbon region, there is a third option: you can stay in Cascais, a picturesque beach resort, 30 km north of the capital. From Cascais you can take the train to Lisbon, following a scenic route along the Tagus river. You can also rent a car and visit Sintra, Colares, and Cabo da Roca.

The great writer Samuel Beckett vacationed in Cascais in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Beckett stayed at the Cidadela de Cascais, an old fort converted into a hotel favored by Portuguese writers. This hotel has recently been beautifully renovated to add modern comforts to its historical location and expansive ocean views.

Once Beckett got to Cidadela, he simply stayed there, enjoying the moments when the sea paints the sky with white mist. It’s not surprising that the author of a play about waiting in vain knew to stay still when beauty arrives.

The Cidadela de Cascais is located on Avenida Dom Carlos I, Cascais, tel. 214814300. This hotel is part of a network of historical hotels called Pousadas. Click here for our post on the Pousadas and here for the Pousadas web site.

Humble art

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Art is made of constraints. When architect Frank Gehry received a commission to build whatever he wanted, he turned it down. Sometimes, artists create their own constraints. The French writer George Perec wrote a 300-page novel, “La Disparition,” without using the letter “e.”

Other times, circumstances dictate the constraints. When artist Joana Vasconcelos was invited to represent Portugal in the Venice Biennale, the problem was that Portugal does not have a permanent pavilion at the fair. The artist’s solution was to use a ferry boat that was about to be dismantled both as a floating pavilion and exhibition piece. So, after spending a lifetime between the margins of the Tagus river, this humble boat has become a work of art!

The ferry boats that cross the river Tagus are called “cacilheiros.” They’re a great, inexpensive way to travel on the Tagus. Click here to see their schedule.

A bohemian hotel

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HotelEstrela

If you’re tired of boring, conventional hotels, the Hotel da Estrela might be just the place for you. It is a former school transformed into a bohemian boutique hotel with a great vibe and lots of charm.

The hotel is located in the quiet Campo de Ourique neighborhood. But, when you’re ready for sight seeing, all you have to do is board the famous tram 28 which will take you to Rossio, Chiado, or St. Jorge’s castle.

Choosing where to eat when you come back is easy. Around the corner, you have a great restaurant run by chef Vitor Sobral called Tasca da Esquina, (which makes sense, since “esquina” means corner).

But choosing where to have dessert is a more complex issue. The hotel serves a wonderful “pão de ló,” sugar, eggs and flour transformed into pure bliss. Nearby, you have Pastelaria Aloma, which won the prize for the best “pastel de nata” in Lisbon two years in a row. And then there’s a tiny store that serves the world’s best chocolate cake!

The hotel has a nice garden where you can eat a picnic prepared by the hotel’s restaurant. It’s the perfect place to woo someone you love. If you need inspiration for what to say, just visit the nearby house where the great poet Fernando Pessoa lived. It works every time!

The Hotel da Estrela is located on Rua Saraiva de Carvalho 35,  Lisbon, tel. 211 900 10; click here for the hotel’s web site. Click here and here for more information on Tasca da Esquina and Cervejaria da Esquina, respectively. For information on the life-changing best chocolate cake in the world click here. Pastelaria Aloma is on Rua Francisco Metrass 67, Lisbon, tel. 213 963 797. The Fernando Pessoa house is on Rua Coelho da Rocha, 16, Lisbon. Click here for their web site.