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LISBON is 87,44 square Kilometres wide. 1 million inhabitants in the department, plus 1 million in the suburbs to the north,
plus 1.300.000 in the south bank of the river. Lisbon and surroundings: 3.300.000 inhabitants. Climate: winter is not too cold (it
never snows in Lisbon). Less rainy than Paris but more than Rome. Hot summers freshened by cool breezes (mountain, ocean,
river).
HISTORY - Legend tells Ulysses founded it. He founded Lisbon to meet his lover affair. The girl was called Lisbon. She got mad
at Ulysses because he was to vagabond. She changed into a snake and died near the river, leaving near the river the curves of her
body: the seven hills of Lisbon. Others say the Phoenicians founded it. That Lisbon comes from a Phoenician name " Alisubo ",
which means calm harbour. Others say Atlas, son of Neptune and king of Atlantis founded it. Atlantis was in front of Lisbon and
connected Europe and America. Inhabited by the sons of Neptune, they invaded Europe and a part of Asia with an army of
1.200.000 soldiers. The humans corrupted them and their continent disappeared because of an earthquake, which lasted for one
day and one night. They say that all the earthquakes of Lisbon afterwards came from Atlantis. Lisbon was inhabited since the
Stone Age. Romans were here since the II century b. C. during Decimus Junio Brutus, and they called it "Felicitas Julia Olissipo".
They had here theatres, spas, temples, monuments and a hippodrome. The Visigoths were here until the 8th century, when the
Arabs arrived. The 1st king of Portugal, Alphonse Henry, conquered it from them in October 21st of 1147. King Alphonse III
made Lisbon the capital of Portugal in 1255. The apogee of Lisbon came after the discovery of the seaway to India by Vasco da
Gama in 1498. Thus connecting Lisbon with the East, this city became the universal emporium of trade from the West and from
the East. The trade arriving to Lisbon gave wealth with which beautiful monuments were built in Manueline style. The king was
called Manuel and he gave his name to a beautiful embroidery in limestone decorating the buildings in gothic style...
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...The westernmost capital of continental Europe is on the north bank of Tagus River, in other words, on the verge of its enormous estuary.
Cradle of sailors, navigators and adventurers, they all extended the horizon to places where no one had been before in incredible maritime expeditions,
leaving the motherland through the mouth of Tagus river and making their entrance in the ocean.
From Belem (Bethlehem) quarter, many navigators departed on their voyages. The Hieronymites Monastery is one of the symbolic monuments related to
the glorious past of the Portuguese navigations, like Belem tower. Modern constructions of the twenty century, like the Monument to the Discoveries, let us
still, in this magic place, feel the atmosphere of the history of adventurers and lead us to other interesting modern achievements, like one of the bridges and
the statue of Christ. It is always an ex-libris of Lisbon, this 3200 meters long bridge, close by the statue of Christ, both paying their homage to Lisbon and
the river.
From the top of the statue of Christ, more than 200 meters high, the waterside city is ours. We can see from here the end of the river, the west side of the
city, Sintra mountain further north, the 25th's of April bridge, made in the 1960's, crossed every day by trains and cars and from where we have a pleasant
view of Lisbon.
This seaport is undoubtedly on the most of the cruise ship routes crossing north Atlantic, and many people visiting us are blessed by an exciting experience
and Christ welcoming them.
The estuary of the river is like a sea, where big cruise ships, cargo boats and tankers, mingle with ferries, sailing vessels and other boats. It became the
busiest port in the world in the sixteenth century, thanks to its estuary, one of the most fantastic in the world, 15 km wide, separating both banks of the
river, were several cities live in the souvenir of a splendid nautical past and in the presence of one of the most strategic harbors in north Atlantic. Among
big vessels we can still enjoy a romantic promenade on the mouth of the river. And dominating all this wideness, there is the hill toped by the so-called
Saint George castle.
Saint George castle is located the top of the most prominent hill, 110 meters high, from where we can see the estuary of the Tagus and the ancient part of
the city, this is was the most tactical position for ancient people for several reasons and now for tourists to get a nice view and return to the past. The view
can be extended to several kilometers and here the breeze is pure and clean and the weather is often clear. This was the nucleus of the medieval town.
Although it was rebuilt in 1940, we still hear the stones telling us about the character of other eras, with its well planned walls by Romans, Arabs, and
Portuguese, which let us breathe the smell of old ages, when the town was growing around its heart, in other words, the mostly well located hill, Saint
George hill.
Hundreds of caravels and galleons arrived to Lisbon in the past. They could wait their turn to deliver their products ashore, on the wide, serene, and
pleasant mouth of the river, under the eyes of the Monarchy and merchants, and all the inhabitants of Lisbon, anxious to receive them. This was the place
of the royal palace when the king decided to make Lisbon the capital of Portugal in 1255. From the castle, the Portuguese kings used to watch the caravels
and galleons returning from their long trips loaded with merchandise. On the opposite side of the castle, Lisbon was also about to develop, still under the
eyes of the king, who had windows to all parts of the city.
The modern part, developed fast on its way to the north, in the past few centuries, having as the starting point, the ancient castle, where saint Anthony of
Padua was born, conquered by the first king of Portugal, king Alphonse Henry, in 1147. Then, it was made the royal residence by king Alphonse III in
1255, it is called saint George since the XIV century, where saint Vincent the martyr, the patron saint of Lisbon, is buried, where king Manuel I lived, one
of the 7 castles on the Portuguese flag.
Moving north, to the modern part of Lisbon, we see taht no skyscrapers were built in Lisbon, because the only thing Portuguese fear is earthquakes. That's
why cities in Portugal develop horizontally. Different shopping areas developed, like Rome Avenue and side streets. Soft colors are used but pink and
yellow are vibrant ones. Nature is respected; every building has a courtyard with green. Nonfigurative shapes of the end of the 20-century are taking the
place of previous human shapes decorating the buildings. Nonetheless, we enjoy a surrealist state of harmony, where simplistic style often mixes with
surreptitious forms. As it has been fashion in Lisbon, to build the expounding architecture as a label of an era, at the top of the hills, in the end of the
twenty-century, the first post modern construction took place. The name is Amoreiras. The look of these buildings makes us remember that Lisbon had
been always a mixture of new ideas and styles and a fascination of what's new in the world. Lisbon is flat (planes fly close to it) and moved a long way up
to the north, turning its back to the river.
In 1998, a 17 kms long bridge, called Vasco da Gama, was opened to traffic, thus opening south bank of Tagus estuary to the capital. It is also a thrill to
cross this bridge. The scenery is worthwhile and takes much less time than the boat. This is one of the longest bridges in the world, and the name is
connected not only to the long maritime trip the Portuguese sailors did to go to the East, nearly one year to go and one year to return, but also to the
remembrance of the anniversary of the arrival of Vasco da Gama to India, which was 500 years before this bridge was completed...
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