Lisbon Arrival & Belem Excursion
1 September 2009
Our flight arrived in Lisbon about 8:00 AM local time but spent over an hour in the
immigration line waiting to have our passports stamped.  At an airport ATM we withdrew
150 Euros (US$225) from our checking account and took a yellow No. 91 Aero airport
shuttle bus to central Lisbon.  The fare was 3.50 euros (US$5.25) per person, including
for that day the use of all public transportation in the Lisbon area.

We got off the airport bus at the "Restauradores" stop, two short blocks from the hotel
"Residencial Florescente". The hotel was favorably reviewed in two of our guidebooks, so
by email we had reserved a room for 55.25 Euros (US$83) per night including breakfast.  
Our room on the fifth floor was small but clean with a nice attached bath and a tiny
balcony overlooking the pedestrian street below and giving us a partial view of Lisbon's
skyline.  
About noon of the day we arrived in Portugal we took trolley No. 17E to Belem, a suburb
about 3 miles (5 km) from central Lisbon.  There we enjoyed an excellent lunch at one of
the outdoor restaurants adjoining the park along the Tejo River.  After lunch we visited
the huge Jeronimos Monastery and Church, built by King Manuel about 1500 to honor the
many distant discoveries by Portuguese explorers.  Below are photos displaying a small
sampling of this magnificent complex.
Our Lisbon hotel, Residencial Florescente
Plaza down the street from our Lisbon hotel
Next we walked to the banks of the Tejo River to view the Monument to the
Discoveries honoring Prince Henry the Navigator and the seamen who in the 1500's and
1600's explored the coasts of Africa, Asia, and South America and there set up
Portuguese trading ports.  Below is a view of that huge monument, and also of the Tower
of Belem built in 1510 to protect the harbor.
Our hotel faced a
cobblestoned
pedestrian street lined
with at least a dozen
restaurants offering
indoor and outdoor
dining.  Many
restaurants have  
employees with
multi-lingual menus in
hand approaching  
strollers to lure them
into the restaurant.  
We usually ordered
delicious fish.
A couple of blocks down from our hotel the street ended at a plaza, one of several
nearby.  We also were very near Lisbon's main train station, "Rossio", and several
tram, bus and tram lines.  The area, called "Baixa", includes many interesting
pedestrianized streets.
Monument to the Discoveries, Belem
In Lisbon and in the other towns we visited the historic districts are well preserved.
The buildings are generally attractive and hundreds of years old, the result of good
maintenance and/or restoration.  The roadways usually are still paved with stone
blocks about the size of shoe boxes.  The sidewalks are typically paved with
hexagonal tiles about two inches (5 cm) in diameter, often in decorative patterns.  
Most pedestrian streets permit motorized traffic only for morning deliveries.  
Street below our hotel room window.
Tower of Belem