Belem

Carlos and I have been traveling all around Europe (and loving it--more than I ever expected) but we have been neglecting the beautiful sites around Lisbon. So, the last few weeks we've tried to get out to see the marvelous sites Lisboa ("Lishboa") has to offer. After all, this city has some incredible history, and along with that, some amazing things to see. A couple weeks ago we went to see Belem which is only about 15 minutes away. (In fact, Carlos loves to run there and back--so why we haven't been to see these monuments before is beyond me).

This is the Mosteiro de Jeronimos. It was built in the 1500s in the Manueline style. This is one of the main monuments/historical sites in Lisbon.

The intricate stone carvings are amazing...

Inside the chapel of the Monastery. This ceiling is very traditional in Portugal. Their palaces have similar ceilings inside. Again, the attention to detail is beautiful.

This chapel is also the site where Vasco de Gama was buried. This large monument isn't for him though--he's buried behind (you can see the small door in the back on the right). We found that out after taking the picture. :)

Inside the central courtyard at the monastery:

One of the many walkways...

A view of the courtyard. I loved these columns. They were long and narrow, but each one was unique.

Back outside the monastery. This building is huge--but it's now also made up of a modern art museum and a Nautical Museum. We went to see the latter, and it was pretty sweet.

The entrance to the Nautical Museum...

They had unending models of ships built throughout history...

They also had several real ships. This particular one was built to transport Portuguese Royalty across the river (I think in the 1800s?). I don't remember how many oarsmen it required, but it was a lot!

The history of Portugal has everything to do with the great explorers from centuries ago. The Portuguese are very proud of this heritage. I just noticed recently that on top of their light posts on the streets are golden ships, I still need to take a picture of it. Anyway, Belem is the area where those explorers would begin their voyages--including Christopher Columbus and Vasco de Gama. This monument was built in their honor. In the background on the lower right you can see a bridge that looks very similar to the Golden Gate Bridge. It's a copy of the Golden Gate--and is supposedly longer than it. The 25 de Abril Bridge spans the Rio Tejo that empties into the Atlantic.

This is the famous Torre de Belem, or Tower of Belem. This was also built at the beginning of the 16th century along the Tejo river to defend the city of Lisbon.

One more (crooked) picture. This seemed almost too beautiful to be used for a fortress.

To end our trip we had to go to the world famous (and not to mention, the best food in Lisbon) "Pasteis de Belem." These pastels are probably the one food I'll miss that is truly Portuguese. Bacalhau, or dried Cod fish, is their national food. They have unending variations of it, and all the grocery stores are filled with piles of it. (I don't really love seafood, so I'm not a big fan). These pastels are amazing though--especially with some cinnamon sugar sprinkled on top. Mmmm.