DIA DOZ-LISBOA

Molly, Mary Jane, and I went to Belem, an important neighborhood in Lisbon, on Saturday morning. It is a fairly short tram ride from the city center. Belem houses a bunch of museums, look out points over the city. Apparently, "Belem" is derived from the Portuguese for "Bethlehem."



When you arrive in Belem, the first thing you notice is the river Tejo on the right with a bridge, Ponte 25 de Abril (25th of April Bridge), which looks much like the San Francisco brigde, possibly because it was designed by Americans...?





Belem is also known for its outstanding pastries, pasteis de Belem, so we definetely stopped to get some of those.




After a short lunch in the park, we wandered around all the historical sights. One of the sights was the Mosteiro dos Jeronimos which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the world's most outstanding monasteries. It was built on a hermitage which was founded by Henry the Navigator in 1450 and the famous explorerer, Vasco da Gama spent the night with the other explorers there praying before his expedition to India in 1497. The actual monastery began being constructedin 1502. It is one of the most famous sites in Portugal and can be noted for its ornate Gothic style. Now Jeronimos houses some museums and monuments including the tomb of Vasco da Gama. We visited the archeological museum which had an egyptian exhibit.



Belem is also home to a famous tower which dates back to Portugal's Expedition days. It is the Torre de Belem which looks out onto the Tagus River (Rio Tejo) once as a form on protection for the city.




We also visited a newer monument which is a lookout onto the city, river, and Atlantic.