We’re
taking a short late-afternoon break from the sun—before heading out for
our ginjinha and our last dinner in an absolutely lovely city. As mentioned before, there’s a decay that exists, but you really stop noticing it. Each
day, at miradouros (belvederes) around the city (the trees behind this
church in Graca is one of them), locals gather for a drink under a shady
stand of trees and look over their city. We were lucky to have been able to join them. From that vantage point, you stop seeing the imperfections and are able to drink in the beauty.
We finally
made it to the Elevador Santa Justa (one of the funicular/elevators
that were designed to move people from the Baixa to higher elevations. Santa
Justa is a metal ironwork that is very evocative of the Eiffel Tower ,
not surprisingly because its designer studied with Eiffel. The views from the top are extraordinary. This view looking down from the top at Rossio (the main square of Lisbon ) shows the artistic calcada design. The large, columned building at the end is the National Theatre. Our hotel is directly behind it.
Our last
pic is the first sight that many saw of Lisbon when they arrived by boat
as they sailed up the Tejo from the Atlantic —The arch of Praca de
Comercio. A most welcoming sight indeed.
With any luck, we’ll be somewhere over Goose Bay at this time tomorrow, headed back home. The trip has been very relaxing—the weather perfect. October is the beginning of Lisbon ’s rainy season. We saw not a drop. These Lisbonetas are truly gracious hosts.
Adeus.
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