Why Visit Lisbon Portugal - Travel Guide

Good morning! And we are out and about in Lisbon. Now Lisbon will test your legs. It's built on I think seven hills, so the advantages are it gives some great viewpoints over the city where you can go and get different views of the bridge, of the castle, of the city, of the river, the Tagus river. But when you're walking around it'll test your legs and ankles. So be prepared, wear a decent pair of shoes for wandering around. Also the temperature can change enormously. In the sun it can get toasty, down by the river it can get quite cool. So a couple of layers for wearing. Sunglasses and a hat which I haven't broken out yet. But I'm going to try and show you around some of the highlights of Lisbon. Some of the things you can actually do mostly by walking. I'm hoping to go to the Commercial Plaza, Lisbon Cathedral, a couple of statues and fountains in town, just a lift. I'm sure I've missed something else off there as well, important off my list. Anyway let's take you and show you around a little bit. This is Commercial Plaza, right down by the waterfront, by the Tagus river, close to the town centre. Called Commercial Plaza because originally it was built to control all the commerce or trade that came in and out of Lisbon via the port. Now the buildings around there aren't government buildings controlling shipping anymore. They're all restaurants and cafes. Beautiful open area right in the middle of the city by the waterfront where you can chill, relax, have a drink and it looks like they're setting up for a concert there. Let's show you a little bit around. And dodging the crowds at the Bellum Tower. It's a remarkable building, built in the 16th century by King John II. It sits on the Tagus river to defend the entrance down to Lisbon. Quite a popular spot to hang out. It's quite near the Discoverer's Monument and Geronimo's Monastery as well. It's quite a nice little triangle walk but it's a bit further out of town. Have a look at that. Also, there's queues to get in, so pre-book your tickets to get in. Amazing! The Monument to the Discoverers, built to commemorate all the amazing discoverers that have launched their ships from this point, from the 15th and 16th century. It was originally built in 1939 and actually got knocked down because it was actually just a temporary monument. It got rebuilt in 1960 and now sits here to commemorate all the amazing discoverers that have launched from here to discover the world from Portugal. Have a look. St Geronimo's Monastery, right here opposite the Monument to the Discoverers, down at the Bellum Tower end, started building in 1501 and, would you believe, took 100 years to complete. Let's show you a bit. Now, what I have noticed, even this time of year, which is slightly off-season but good weather, the queues for everything are enormous. If you want to get inside and see these things, plan in advance. Lisbon, in general, is a really great place to stroll around. There are lots of other things to see but the nice thing is you can wander the streets up and down the hills a little bit here and there, go and visit the different viewpoints to get different views of the city, go across the Tagus River and see the view back of the city, find little alleyways, cafes, squares with statues. It's a very placid, nice place to experience. I can see why a lot of people say it's their favourite capital city of Europe. It has a very mellow feel and there is lots to do. The atmosphere is generally very friendly, the views are great, you can go down to the river and enjoy the cool breeze in the heat of the day. It's a pleasant place to spend some time. So I'll just finish off today by showing you just a few more of other squares and places, without naming them all because I've forgotten to write the names of them all down, so you can just enjoy and absorb a little bit of the atmosphere of Lisbon.