Portugal: Tourists Discover an Old Land

 

The magnificent Jeronimos monastery in Lisbon gives a hint of the grandeur and history
that Portugal offers, as tourists are discovering. Talk with anyone who's been to Portugal
lately and they're likely to tell you that it was crowded with tourists. 

  Portugal is probably seldom the first European country an American visits. Doesn't everyone want to see France first, then maybe Italy?   And why visit? After all, Portugal has almost no internationally known landmarks like the Eiffel Tower or Rome's Coliseum.
     Nevertheless, visiting Portugal is a lot like visiting those more popular countries. The wine and churches will remind you of Italy. The ham is like Spain's ham. The ancient ruins are like those in southern France, and there's an iconic bridge in Porto designed by Gustave Eiffel that opened three years before his tower in Paris. After a few days, you start to enjoy Portugal as Portugal, a unique and ancient country with its own traditions, cuisine, culture, music and history. Residents of Porto and Lisbon could give Italians lessons in la dolce vita. Chefs in Evora could teach their French counterparts a thing or two. Winemakers all over the country are producing world-class reds, whites and especially roses.  Not to mention port. Madeira, of course, comes from Portuguese islands in the Atlantic.
     In 2017, Jane and I spent the better part of April touring Portugal and we were hardly alone. There were throngs of international tourists in Lisbon, Sintra, Porto and Evora. Our other destinations were much quieter with fewer tourists. This posting focuses on the hotels we chose for our clockwise circuit around northern Portugal.

      We arrived in Lisbon very early on April 1 and stayed three nights at Casa Amora (click HERE for link), a guesthouse in a quiet residential neighborhood. If you're thinking of staying at Casa Amora, try for its studios in neighboring houses rather than the small rooms in the main house. We had one night in the later (with hardly room to open our suitcases) before asking if we could move to a studio. Fortunately we could, landing in a two-story unit with a small kitchen and two full bathrooms. Very much better, and the staff could not have been more accommodating. Casa Amora is close to a metro (subway) stop called Rato. It was also an easy walk to the streetcar stop at Basilica da Estrela. The only negative is that there are few restaurants in the immediate neighborhood.

The lounge at Casa d'Obidos featured a full-size pool
table, a felt-covered card table, and a TV with
several English-language channels.

      Once on the road in a rental car, our first stop was one night in Sintra at Villa Mira Longa (click HERE). Sintra is practically a suburb of Lisbon but is a destination in its own right because of its many palaces, reminders of Portugal's royal history. The last king was Manuel II, who was deposed in the 1910 revolution and died childless in England in 1932.  At least one palace still has much of its late-19th-century furnishings. Mira Longa is a short uphill walk from the center of the action in front of the National Palace and where you can grab buses to other palaces.
     Next was Obidos, a walled village that was a medieval port but is now 10 kilometers inland due to silting in its harbor. The town, still surrounded by crenellated walls and towers, is a warren of narrow streets lined with stone houses, shops and restaurants. Its castle is now a hotel, Castelo de Obidos. We stayed two nights in a converted manor house, Casa d'Obidos (click HERE), outside the town but with a view of the castle and walls.

Our terraces (the other was much smaller) at  Quinta do Vallado
near Peso de Regua looked out on a hillside vineyard.

     We made it to Porto on April 7, checking in for four nights at 6Only (click HERE), a boutique inn that had only six rooms when it opened in 2009. It has since added an adjacent building and added six suites. 6Only is near the top level of Gustave Eiffel's Dom Luis I bridge and the top of  the Funicular dos Guindais, the rail line that lets you return from the riverbank without a long, long walk up a steep, steep hill. Although 6Only is on a fairly lifeless block and around the corner from the bus station, its location really isn't too bad. And the suites are huge with unique cork-encased free-standing bathrooms. Be sure to ask for a room or suite at the rear, which will be much more quiet than a street-facing room.
      Next were two nights at Quinta do Vallado (click HERE), a winery hotel, in the hills above Peso da Regua in the heart of the Douro wine region. We stayed in a large room in an angular new building above the reception area and dining room. Our two terraces looked out to vineyards on the the other side of a tributary of the Douro. Vallado's wines -- we had a red and a rose -- are excellent, as is its restaurant. It was warm enough to use the pool, which is in an orange grove where guests literally pick their snacks off the trees.

The stone walls of the original convent add character to the bar
at Pousada Convento de Belmonte, which made a great gin and tonic using
locally made tonic.

     Our next stop was the mountain town Belmonte where we stayed at Pousada Convento de Belmonte (click HERE). Only the bar, a courtyard and a few sitting rooms remain of the original convent. The large and comfortable rooms and the dining and breakfast rooms are all relatively new. If you go there, don't be tempted by the offer of a large room with a private terrace. The smaller rooms with smaller balconies have the mountain views you'll want.

During our four nights at Albergia de Calvario
in Evora we encountered a group of Harley Davidson
bikers from Siberia. They were there for only
one night, but made an impression nonetheless.

 
By April 15, our time in Portugal was winding down and we were headed to our last destination, Evora, in the Alentejo wine region and a center of cork production. Here we stayed three nights at Albergia de Calvario (also known as ADC; click HERE), just inside the city walls. Most people planning a trip to Portugal are intent on seeing Lisbon and Porto. Evora should also be on that list for the ancient megaliths nearby, for its bizarre chapel made of human bones, for its cathedral and Roman temple, and for its great cuisine. Portugal's famous black pork (from a special breed of acorn-fed pigs) reaches its apogee here.
     Our trip ended with one more night in Lisbon, at Tryp (click HERE), a hotel within walking distance of the terminals at the airport (where we had to return the rental car). With a 5:40 a.m. flight, it made sense to be close to the airport, and it was easy to grab a taxi for one last dinner in the city.

Alcohol

        You may be focused on Porto's many port tasting rooms (expect to pay for your tastings), but for my money the best alcohol in Portugal is its unfortified wines. Touriga nacional and touriga franca grapes are blended with other varieties, especially tinta roriz (known in Spain as tempranillo) to produce hearty and satisfying reds with loads of secondary flavors. I seldom like rose wines, but I didn't have a one in Portugal that I didn't enjoy. Yes, Mateus rose is still made and sold in its distinctive bottle. No, having given it up while still an undergraduate, I didn't try it again. Many of the good roses are 100 percent touriga nacional. Whites are also good, especially vinho verde and alvarhino.
     Two beers seemed available most places, Super Bock and Sagres. Both are so-so lagers but good enough when cold enough.  Some tapas places also offer bottled craft beers; I had only a couple and both were pretty hoppy and pretty good.
     Sangria is another option -- better by the liter than by the glass -- and is widely offered. Never had one that wasn't freshly made, well fortified and dotted with fresh fruit.
   

Renting a Car

      We've rented a car for at least part of every European trip for the last 20 years, and renting through Avis in Portugal was the worst experience by far. The diesel-powered Renault Megane estate was fine, but  the total charge ended up being more than double what Expedia had quoted, and the receipt, emailed to us, was in Portuguese, not that the English language version that we finally requested and got was much easier to understand. Also, the charge to our credit card was in U.S. dollars, allowing Avis to charge us an unfavorable exchange rate as well as a needless "dynamic currency conversion" fee. I will avoid Avis/Budget in the future, and will make sure that my credit card is being charged in the local currency.
      Driving in Portugal is like driving anywhere else in continental Europe. The signs and traffic laws are the same. Narrow village streets can be quite a challenge. One problem, and other tourists reported experiencing it, too, is that the GPS didn't always get us where we wanted to go.  Belmonte, for example. There is apparently more than one Belmonte in Portugal and the GPS wanted to send us to one in the south rather than asking which Belmonte we wanted. We had to stop and ask directions. The GPS was fine, though, in the larger cities.
     Get a toll responder (same idea as an EZPass responder) when you rent your car. It will let you go through tollbooths without stopping and give you unfettered access to the highways, almost all of which have tolls.
   
 

Portugal: Lisbon, Where Little Streetcars Climb Halfway to the Stars

 

A street in the hilly Alfama neighborhood.

  Portugal is a mountainous country; its capital, Lisbon, is a city of steep hills. Helping people get around in Lisbon are several forms of public transportation: buses, old-fashioned electric streetcars, modern light rail, sightseeing buses, funicular railroads and elevators. Of these, the streetcars are the most iconic and, if you can get a seat, a pleasant way to see the city.  Taxis, by the way, are inexpensive compared with New York and other major cities. When we arrived, the taxi from the airport to our guesthouse, Casa Amora, cost about $20 including tip, but on our last night in Portugal, a longer ride, from LX Factory on the riverfront, across downtown and to the airport, was only about $10 including tip.

A streetcar wends its way through vehicular
traffic on an Alfama street.

       The first thing we did in Lisbon was visit the Alfama district, the highest part of the city and home to the Castelo de Sao Jorge (St. George's Castle). We didn't visit the castle itself, settling for views of the exterior, because the area around it is the real attraction. Narrow cobblestone streets, sidewalk cafes and intriguing shops, much of it strung along an old streetcar line, the No. 28.
    Other neighborhoods in town include Baixa, which includes the gigantic riverfront plaza Praca do Comercio; Chiado, known for its chic international retailers; and Bairro Alto, with narrow streets from the 1700s lined with restaurants, bars and designer shops.
     Belem, however, well west of downtown and on the river, is the don't-miss area. It's home to a large contemporary art museum (you can see one of Warhol's Judy Garland portraits), the National Museum of Archaeology, the magnificent Jeronimos monastery, the quaint Belem Tower, the striking Padrao dos Descobrimentos sculpture (depicting Portugal's greatest explorers), along with a wonderful waterside restaurant. But for many the real attraction is Antiga Confeitaria de Belem, a bakery and cafe serving pasteis, the little custard tarts that are a Portuguese staple. Here the recipe is a bit different and they're said to be the best in the land. We were told to skip the long line for the bakery and instead find a seat in the large cafe area, but the little tarts weren't on our agenda.

Tourists can rent two-person, easy-to-park vehicles
for getting around in Lisbon.

   Between Belem and downtown is LX Factory, a group of old factory buildings literally in the shadow of the soaring 25th of April Bridge that have been converted into trendy restaurants, dessert bars, tapas bars, shops, a great bookstore (with some books in English), and a tattoo parlor where passersby can stop and watch the artist at work.
    About the only thing we failed to do in Lisbon was to take in a fado performance. It seems that at most of the fado clubs, the music starts very late, and that at most of the fado clubs the food isn't great. We had a reservation at a club one night, but we opted to eat and drink in the LX Factory area instead (dinner was at Da Praca, which must be one of Lisbon's liveliest restaurants). Perhaps with more research and planning, we could have found a fado performance to suit us. Fado would have to wait until Porto.
    We spent three nights, April 1-3, 2017, at Casa Amora in Lisbon. It's not far from a metro station and a streetcar stop, but the neighborhood is largely residential and there are few restaurants nearby. We did find two places worth mentioning. Banca de Pau (click HERE) on Rua Nova de Sao Mamede is a small-plates restaurant serving food and wine from the northernmost parts of Portugal. Just down the same street is Iiimpar Restaurante, a full-service restaurant which provided my introduction to Portugal's black pork. Jane had a quail appetizer and a charcuterie and cheese board. We found Banca de Pau on TripAdvisor, walked there and were told it was booked for the evening. We were pointed toward Iiimpar and had a very good meal there. A couple of days later, with a reservation, we were seated at Banca de Pau. Advice: if you're really hungry, go to Iiimpar.
     On our return to Lisbon, on April 18, we returned our rental car at the airport and checked into Tryp, an airport hotel. We took a taxi back to LX Factory to dine on tapas at Central da Avenida, a wine bar with well-informed and friendly servers. This was our last indulgence in the cheeses and ham of Portugal.

Aboard the funicular seen below.

A funicular runs from Praca dos Restauradores at the foot of
Avenida da Liberdade to the Bairro Alta district, one of three
such lines giving pedestrians a break in Lisbon.

You can get there from here: a directional sign in Alfama.

Streets become stairways on Lisbon's many hills.

The Tower of Belem, as seen during a cruise on the Rio Tejo,
which in English is called the Tagus River.

A monument to Portugal's many great explorers. It soars over
the Tagus River in Belem. Tourists visit the top for great views.

The huge Praca do Comercio on the riverfront. Tour
boats leave from docks across the street.

The cloister at the Jeronimos Monastery in Belem.

The refectory at Jeronimos.

The church at Jeronimos Monastery. We were there on a Sunday and tourists were
allowed in after the morning mass.

A waterfront restaurant in Belem. A sculpture pool separates the dining
terrace from the river, where a constant parade provides excellent
people watching.

A kiosk is the source for food and drink on this small plaza.

St. George's Castle presides over Lisbon's Alfama district.

A water course enlivens the middle of Lisbon's Avenida da Liberdade.

A riverfront cafe offers in-demand lounge chairs along with lunch
just downstream from more formal restaurants at Praca do Comercio.

We took a taxi from our airport hotel  to have our last dinner
in Portugal at this wine bar in the LX Factory complex. The use
of English reflects the international nature of the crowd
that LX Factory attracts.