Seven February Days in Lisboa – Day 4

Today we were mobile and so covered a lot of kilometres. There was no Curry-Heute, we had Portuguese cuisine once again for lunch.

Restaurant – Adega Dantas – was directly below our apartment, open by noon and most importantly, sold the – Codfish Cakes – that we knew we had to try. Neither of us were prepared for the sheer size of the venue when we walked in, a – Tardis. The exterior had suggested a small cafe-restaurant, this was the full bhuna.

A couple of Fish Cakes are not going to fill a Hector, so the Prawn dish was ordered as a supplement. There had to be a Croquette, just the one. Marg stuck to her usual – Salad. Ah, we ordered four Codfish Cakes risking another mountain of food as on Day #1. Everything was clearly priced, the service was friendly, efficient, and boy did this place fill up. Arriving early was a good plan.

As Fish Cakes go, these were fine, I suspect Hector’s home-cooked Fish Cakes may be just as good. So what is the similar creation that has Cheese inside? Marg’s Salad was another monster meaning more of the remainder was coming my way. The Croquette did the job, that being enabling a photo to wind up Howard. QED. Then there was a Prawn or two…

Wow! …and *** Wow! I have had Prawns in Garlic Butter before before, but nothing like this. I like my food well Seasoned, but this was right on the cusp of excessive. These Prawns were simply glorious, the actual King Prawns themselves were probably the best I have ever had, and there was enough of them. Then the Salt and Garlic just took everything up a level, then another. Next time in Lisboa, I’ll be back. Tram 28 takes you to within metres of Adega Dantas.

We had to recharge our tickets purchased on arrival at the airport. Newsagent kiosks were not up for doing this, we were sent to the Metro. One chap pointed to his right suggesting a Metro station was nearby. The ones we knew were at the bottom of the hill, Rossio we had passed often. For reasons unfathomable, buying a new ticket was way easier than recharging. We needed a dedicated ticket kiosk, closed at both entrances. So instead of catching Tram 15E at Praça do Comércio, we walked in the downstream direction to Cais do Sodré which I took to be a transport hub.

With suitably invigorated tickets, we waited for the tram outside the metro terminus / train station / ferry port. The tram sped along taking us under Ponte 25 de Abril whose similarity to the Golden Gate Bridge (San Francisco) is not coincidental. Then the tram stopped, everyone got off except Johnny Foreigner & co. Whatever was preventing the tram from continuing remained unknown. People piled on to the bus behind, not a good idea. Once the crowd had dissipated I chose the moment to alight and board Bus 728 which had just pulled up behind us.

Santa Maria de Belém, still regarded as part of Lisboa, had the first extensive greenery we had seen. I took an instant liking to this parish, and yes, Curry is available here. Before visiting the main objective of the day, we had to take photos of the exterior of the monastery – Mosteiro dos Jerónimos – what a name!

We walked through Jardim de Vasco da Gama towards the coastline. There was a statue on a column in the distance, could it be? The Thai Pagoda had to be taken in. That Lisboa’s most famous monument is so far from the city centre puzzled. Built to commemorate 500 years since the passing of Henry the Navigator, I was again wondering why Vasco da Gama was not being commemorated to this extent, or even Magellan (oh, that’s another famous historical Portuguese figure I know). Padrão dos Descobrimentos – is the official name of this very impressive monument. We walked westwards towards the Belém Tower so as to get the best light for photographs. The construction of the harbour meant our route did not let us get any closer to the tower. Next time, I had already decided that coming back here on a future Lisbon trip would be mandatory, I was simply enjoying the atmosphere of the entire neighbourhood.

We took lots of photos, even getting the Ponte 25 de Abril in shot and Almada across the Tagus, Friday.

Cold drinks were required at a venue which claimed to be a Bierhaus but was no more than a flashy bar-restaurant. However on leaving, the light was perfect, the water between us and the monument permitted even better photos.

Back through the garden of Vasco da Gama, we reached the column, nope, not he. This was Afonso de Albuquerque.

Once more, I have no idea who he was, and at this time don’t care. Where is the statue of Vasco da Gama?

We took the bus back to Cais do Sodré and walked the few metres to the Time Out Market, as recommended by the Leicester couple from two nights ago.

Bier was available, but nothing to excite. Marg went to one outlet for coffee. A bit late in the day for Hector to be drinking coffee. Hector sourced a treat for Marg, to share.

The rear exit left us a one block walk to Ascensor da Bica. Finally, it was time to use this well planned device. Only idiots would walk up a hill that steep. A single ticket is about half the price of the day ticket which covers, Bus/Metro/Tram/Funicular. Integrated transport, just like Glasgow, not.

What I didn’t know until Steve told us this evening, Vasco da Gama was buried in the monastery. As I write this, I discover that Vasco da Gama is the second sculpture from the left on the east facing side of the monument. All my photos are from the sunlit western side. Hector, Belém is calling you back. In the morning the sun will be in a better place and then Curry can be had for lunch. Next trip.

Have tickets will travel. Tonight we planned to visit two Breweries on the eastern side of town and both on the magical Tram 28 route, yay! The route downhill was a bit of a roller-coaster, I see now why this is a famous route. We alighted high up on the other side and walked down to 8a Colina. The Brewery was through an archway, but no sign of a Taproom. The gatekeeper assured us the Taproom was on the other side of the hill. Up and over we went, a five minute walk, I warned Steve by text that the obvious destination was not the right one. As we approached the Taproom, so the view over the city impressed, unlike the photo, tripod required.

8a Graça (Oitava Colina) – to give the most accurate name I can find, has ten taps. The place was quiet which was surprising given how busy a nearby bar was. The Vila Berta NEIPA despite its wishy-washy appearance proved to be even better on tap than in bottles (The Beer Station, two nights ago). The Elisa Sour also lived up to the given description.

Steve and Louise caught up with us, Bier was had, time to move on. Returning to the tram stop, Steve realised a bus would also take us the short hop to 21 Gallas Brewpub. The stop was outside a Curry House, with the microbrewery across the street, what more does a Hector require?

Let’s start sensibly. The 6.0% Simcoe IPA looked the part but was not up to the high standard hoped for. Cue the Tangeripa! A 7.0% Tangerine NEIPA, this had exactly what is presently looked for, in the class of Cloudwater, Verdant et al. Despite the Bier being served far too cold, nothing was shifting the Hector.

Food was mooted, the serving Doris informed us the food was off. A Bier or two later food was restored. Food was ordered, Nachos. More Bier.

Needless to say when it was time to depart it really was time to go. The serving Doris had shown good humour all night, this was a place I would highly recommend. On a return trip to Lisboa it could become a case of head straight here, but if Tangeripa ain’t on, then what?

We headed south on the Green Metro line, Rossio, the stop we know best was missed, oops. Baixa-Chiado was next. The top of the stairs from the platform left us with a choice, left or right.

We had no idea where we were, I spotted escalators, up is better than not. How many sets? Upwards we went, and up again. This was going on forever, a deeper hole than any Praha Metro station and some of them are seriously deep.

The event had to be recorded, photos of Marg and Louise, Marg told me to watch out, why? Oh, that’s why, the end of the escalator. Momentum took me backwards, falling on my arse was the safest way to kill it.

So where were we? Praça Luís de Camões, we recognised it immediately, five small blocks from our apartment, and more importantly, near enough the top of the hill! We had not spotted this Metro entrance over our four days due to the hoardings and the roadworks.