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[Asian Nicole]

Hello Gentlemen,

When Lisbon became the capital of the Kingdom of Portugal in 1255, the castle served as the alcáçova, a fortified residence for Afonso III, in his role as governor. It was extensively renovated around 1300 by King Denis, transforming the Moorish alcáçova into the Royal Palace of the Alcáçova.

Between 1373 and 1375, King Ferdinand I ordered the building of the Cerca Nova or Cerca Fernandina, the walled compound that enclosed all but the north flank of the castle. The master builders João Fernandes and Vasco Brás were responsible for its construction. This wall, which partially replaced the old Moorish walls, was designed to encircle previously unprotected parts of the city. Completed in two years, it had 77 towers, 34 or 38 gates, and a perimeter of 5,400 metres.

The castle walls and towers, constructed during the Moorish occupation of Lisbon

Bridge over the current dry moat

View from the interior of the castle

 

[Asian Nicole]

Hello gentlemen,

In the beginning of the 15th century, a royal menagerie was established in the Royal Palace of Lisbon, located nearby the Castle of Saint George. Following the conquest of Ceuta in 1415, King John I of Portugal brought back to Lisbon two Barbary lions, and they were installed in a large room inside his Palace in the Citadel of Lisbon. This area of the Palace came to be known as Casa dos Leões (the "Lions' House"); today the area is occupied by a famed restaurant with the same name.

As the royal palace, the castle was the setting for the reception by King Manuel I of the navigator Vasco da Gama when he returned from discovering the maritime route to India in 1498. The castle also served as a theater in 1502 when pioneering playwright Gil Vicente staged his Monólogo do Vaqueiro to honor the birth of Manuel I's son and heir, the future John III.

 

[Asian Nicole]

 

[Asian Nicole]

Hello Gentlemen,

On 16 July 1604, Philip of Spain made the monastery a royal funerary monument, prohibiting anyone but the royal family and the Hieronymite monks from entering the building. A new portal was constructed in 1625, as well as the cloister door, the house of the doorkeepers, a staircase and a hall that was the entrance to the upper choir designed by the royal architect Teodósio Frias and executed by the mason Diogo Vaz. In 1640, the prior Bento de Siqueira ordered construction of the monastery's library, where books owned by the Infante Luís (son of King Manuel I) and others linked to the religious order were deposited.

 

[Asian Nicole]

Hello Gentlemen,

Located in the historic Belém district of Lisbon, "Pastéis de Belém" is the legendary 1837 bakery where the world-famous pastel de nata (Portuguese custard tart) originated. Tarts cost roughly €1.5 each and are served warm, featuring flaky, blistered pastry and a creamy custard, best enjoyed with a dusting of cinnamon and powdered sugar.

The original, closely guarded recipe—dating back to the monks of the nearby Jerónimos Monastery—makes this a globally renowned dessert destination. Though you will find similar tarts (often referred to as pastéis de nata elsewhere), fans and food critics generally agree on Pastéis de Belém as the ultimate, authentic pilgrimage. It holds its place as one of the top must-visit food spots in the city.

Today, I had fabulous dessert first, then delicious dinner.

 

[Asian Nicole]

Hello Gentlemen,

The 37-meter-long refectory at Jerónimos Monastery in Lisbon was built in 1517-1518 by master builder Leonardo Vaz. It is a masterpiece of Manueline architecture, featuring a multi-ribbed vaulted ceiling and 18th-century azulejo (painted tile) panels depicting biblical scenes.

The monastic dining hall is one of the key highlights of the complex, notable for several historical and artistic features:​

• Manueline Architecture: Designed by Leonardo Vaz, the 37-meter by 9-meter hall displays the quintessential thick stone ropes and intricate vaulting of the Manueline period. ​
• Azulejo Tiles: The lower walls are lined with tiles dating from 1780 to 1785 that depict the Miracle of the Bread and the Fish (north end) and the life of Joseph in Egypt (side walls). ​
• The Wooden Pulpit: Facing the windows, you will find a small wooden pulpit where scriptures and the lives of the saints were read aloud to the monks while they ate in silence. ​
• Art: You can explore a historic 17th-century painting of Saint Jerome. ​

 

[Asian Nicole]

Hello Gentlemen,

Afonso de Albuquerque Square is a public square in the Belém district of the city of Lisbon.

The square is located in front of Belém Palace, an early 18th-century palace that nowadays serves as residence for the President of Portugal. The square is named after the Second Governor of Portuguese India Afonso de Albuquerque, and offers views of Belém Palace. It has a monument, in neo-Manueline style, by artists Silva Pinto and Costa Mota tio, inaugurated in 1902. The monument carries a bronze statue of Afonso de Albuquerque and has reliefs about his life.

The site of the square used to be a harbour, built in 1753. In 1807, Queen Mary I, Prince John VI and the royal family fled Lisbon from this harbour to Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil, to escape the Napoleonic troops which had invaded Portugal.

The Albuquerque monument in front of the Belém Palace

 

[Asian Nicole]

Hello Gentlemen,

Lisbon Cathedral - The Cathedral of Saint Mary Major, is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in Lisbon, Portugal. It is the oldest church in the city, built in 1147. The cathedral has survived many earthquakes and has been modified, renovated and restored several times, resulting in a mix of different architectural styles. It is the seat of the Patriarchate of Lisbon, and has been classified as a National Monument since 1910.

The cathedral is in the shape of a Latin cross with three aisles, a transept and a main chapel surrounded by an ambulatory. The church is connected with a cloister on the eastern side. The main façade of the cathedral looks like a fortress, with two towers flanking the entrance and crenellations over the walls. This menacing appearance, also seen in other Portuguese cathedrals of the time, is a relic from the Reconquista period, when the cathedral may have been used as a base to attack the enemy during a siege.

 

[Asian Nicole]

Hello Gentlemen,

During the 17th century a fine sacristy was built in Baroque architectural style and, after 1755, the main chapel was rebuilt in neoclassical and Rococo styles (including the tombs of King Afonso IV and his family). Machado de Castro, Portugal's foremost sculptor in the late 18th century, is the author of a magnificent crib in the Gothic chapel of Bartomoleu Joanes. In the beginning of the 20th century, much of the neoclassical decoration from outside and inside of the cathedral was removed to give the cathedral a more "mediaeval" appearance.

Gothic tomb of knight Lopo Fernandes Pacheco, 7th Lord of Ferreira de Aves, in the ambulatory of Lisbon Cathedral.

Tomb of Maria de Vilalobos

Turkish rug
​

 

[Asian Nicole]

Hello Gentlemen,

From its first building period (1147 until the first decades of the 13th century), Lisbon cathedral has preserved the West façade with a rose window, the main portal, the North lateral portal and the nave of the cathedral. The portals have interesting sculptured capitals with Romanesque motifs. The nave is covered by barrel vaulting and has an upper, arched gallery. Light gets in through the rose windows of the West façade and transept, the narrow windows of the lateral aisles of the nave as well as the windows of the lantern tower of the transept.

View of the Romanesque lateral aisle of the Lisbon Cathedral.

Gothic cloister of Lisbon Cathedral. Each oculum over the twin arches has a different tracery pattern.​

 

[Asian Nicole]

Hello Gentlemen,

São Jorge Castle (English: Saint George's Castle), is a historic castle in Lisbon. Human occupation of the castle hill dates to at least the 8th century BC while the oldest fortifications on the site date from the 2nd century BC.

The hill on which Saint George's Castle stands has played an important part in the history of Lisbon, having served as the location of fortifications occupied successively by Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, and Moors, before its conquest by the Portuguese in the 1147 Siege of Lisbon. Since the 12th century, the castle has variously served as a royal palace, a military barracks, home of the Torre do Tombo National Archive, and now as a national monument and museum.

Lisbon seen from São Jorge Castle

 

[Asian Nicole]

Hello Gentlemen,

Although the first fortifications on this hilltop date from the 1st century BC, archaeological excavations have identified a human presence in the Tagus valley as far back as the 8th century BC. The first fortification was, presumably, erected in 48 BC, when Lisbon was classified as a Roman municipality.

The hill was first used by Celtic tribes, then by Phoenicians, followed by Greeks and later the Carthaginians as a defensive outpost that was later expropriated successively by the Romans, the Suebi, the Visigoths, and the Moors. During the 10th century, the fortifications were built by Berber forces; these included the walls or Cerca Moura ("Moorish Encirclement").

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[Asian Nicole]

Hello Gentlemen,

In the context of the Christian Reconquista, the castle and the city of Lisbon were freed from Moorish rule in 1147 by Afonso Henriques and northern European knights in the Siege of Lisbon during the Second Crusade; this victory was the only notable success of that failed crusade.

According to an oft-repeated legend, the knight Martim Moniz, noticing that one of the doors to the castle was open, prevented the Moors from closing it by throwing his own body into the breach, thus allowing Christian soldiers to enter at the cost of his own life. With the taking of the castle Christian forces were able to maintain the defense of Lisbon until the end of the 12th century.

The white stone sculpture you are referring to is a female figure known as Olisipona. It is a modern homage carved from lioz (Portuguese limestone) and depicts an unclothed kneeling woman. You can find this striking piece along the pathways winding up toward the castle's historical center. The statue gets its name from Olisipo, the ancient Roman name for modern-day Lisbon. It honors the city's deep roots and mythological origins, representing the historic female personification of Lisbon while it was under the Roman Empire.