Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
• If you decide to go in, pick up your ticket and then follow the cobbles uphill past the first
lanes of old Lisbon into the Miradouro de São Jorge. Otherwise, skip ahead to .
Miradouro de São Jorge (View Terrace): Enjoy the grand view. The Rio Tejo is
one of five main rivers in Portugal, four of which come from Spain. (Only the Mondego
River, which passes by Coimbra, originates inside Portuguese territory, in the Serra de
Estrela.) While Portugal and Spain generally have very good relations, a major sore point
is the control of all this water. From here, you have a good view of the 25th of April
Bridge, which leads south to the Cristo Rei statue (described on here ) . Past the bridge,
you can barely see the Monument to the Discoveries and the Belém Tower on a clear day.
Stroll inland along the ramparts for a more extensive view of Pombal's Lisbon, de-
scribed in a circa-1963 tile-panorama chart (which lacks the big 25th of April Bridge—it
was built in 1969). From Praça do Comércio on the water, the grid streets of the Baixa
lead up to the tree-lined Avenida da Liberdade and the big Edward VII Park, capped with
a large Portuguese flag on the far right. Locate places you know, such as the Elevador de
Santa Justa (the Eiffel-style elevator in front of the ruined Convento do Carmo) and the
sloping white roof of Rossio Station. After walking farther inland under the second arch,
take a right and then a left to wander the grounds. Then enter the inner castle (which usu-
ally only offers a chance to climb up for more views, although sometimes exhibitions are
housed here). The strolling peacocks remind visitors that exotic birds like these came to
Lisbon originally as trophies of the great 16th-century voyages and discoveries.
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