I was not supposed to love Lisbon as much as I did. I arrived on a grey October afternoon expecting to tick a European capital off the list and spend four days before moving on. Seven days later, I rescheduled my onward flight and stayed another week. The city has something — a quality of melancholy and warmth existing simultaneously, embodied in the concept of saudade, a Portuguese word for a bittersweet longing for something beautiful that has passed — that gets under your skin in a way that is difficult to shake.
The Hills and the Miradouros
Lisbon’s seven hills mean that every walk involves climbing, and every climb is rewarded with a viewpoint. The miradouros — belvederes scattered across the hilltops — are neighbourhood gathering places as much as tourist attractions. Miradouro da Graça at sunset, overlooking the Tagus with a can of beer from the kiosk, surrounded by Lisbonites rather than tourists, is one of my favourite views in Europe. Miradouro de Santa Catarina has live music most evenings. The miradouro at Castelo de São Jorge commands the entire city.
The Neighbourhoods
Alfama — the old Moorish quarter, all steep alleys and azulejo tilework and cats on sun-warmed steps — is touristy but authentic enough to reward slow exploration. Mouraria, just below, is the city’s most multicultural neighbourhood and has some of its most interesting restaurants. Belém, out along the Tagus, is where the Jerónimos Monastery and Torre de Belém justify the pilgrimage — and where the original Pastéis de Belém has been making custard tarts since 1837, following a recipe still kept secret by the family. LX Factory on weekends for markets and brunch and the particular creative energy of a reclaimed industrial space.
The Fado
Fado — Lisbon’s blues, its poetry, its soul — is best heard in a small casa de fado in Alfama or Mouraria on a weeknight, away from the tourist shows. A fadista, a Portuguese guitar, a viola baixo, and a room where everyone falls silent. The singing can be exquisite and devastating in equal measure. Whether you understand a word of Portuguese or not, the emotion carries. Go. Give it an hour. Let it work on you.