Churches and a Castle

Tuesday morning was rainy so we delayed the start time. Our plan was to visit the cathedral and castle by using two of the free elevators that were designed to take people from one level of the city to the others. We figured that wouldn't take too long but we hadn't anticipated how long it would take to get to each location.

 Our first stop was the Sao Jorge castle, which is high on the mountain in the center of the city. When we got as high as we could go on the elevators, we had to walk the rest of the way up the mountain. 

The first fortifications on this mountain date from the 1st century or the 8th, depending on what source you consult. It was occupied by Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans and Moors before being seized by the Crusaders in 1147. The purpose of the castle was to house military personnel and elite families living in the citadel in case of a siege. From that vantage point, it's obvious they could see who was coming. A popular tale about the Crusaders siege is one of their soldiers threw himself in a doorway to block the Moors from shutting the door which then allowed the Crusaders in, over his dead body.  They killed most of the people living inside the walls but the Moors who remained were given an area to occupy and the city still has the Moorish Quarter which is now the most multicultural area of Lisbon. 

 Recent archeological excavations have revealed evidence of humans dating back to 8th century BC. There is an excavation site on the castle grounds which revealed some ancient homes of wealthy Moors. Unfortunately, no more excavation can be done now because of political reasons that are unclear. 

The castle was heavily damaged by the earthquake of 1755. No matter where you go, you hear about that earthquake because all subsequent history is defined by it. It was devastating; it killed more than one third of the population and destroyed or damaged most of the buildings. It is believed it had a magnitude of over 8.5 to 9, the largest one Europe has ever experienced.  After the earthquake there was a tsunami and many fires. 

The views from all overlooks on  upper levels of the city are spectacular and these views are no exception. 

The castle has been renovated several times. There's not a lot to see inside but the outside area is beautiful. There's also lots of peacocks running around. As in the botanical garden, they are the most photographed attraction. People provoke them until they spread their feathers and then stand around them taking movies and multiple pictures.

After the castle, we walked to where we thought the cathedral was but it was St. Anthony's church. Nice church but not what we were looking for. We then had to find the cathedral. There was much discussion and map searching about how to get there. We just couldn't believe we had to walk down flights and flights of stairs but that seemed to be the fastest route.

No one counted the steps but there were about 3 tiers that looked like this. Greg decided to attack it the other way--take the elevator down and walk up to the castle. We arrived at roughly the same time. Not sure whose legs are the sorest but we all suffered the next day.

The Saint Mary Major Cathedral, built in 1147, is the oldest church in Lisbon. It has survived several earthquakes and been restored several times. Like so many of the other buildings, it incorporates several architectural styles.

The high arched ceiling and stained glass are two highlights of the building.  When some of us went in, we could see if you turned left you could would remain on the first floor or go right and climb stairs to go to the choir area. The ticket taker told us to go up and like idiots we obeyed even though we could barely walk. We had to rest there for awhile before going down the stairs. 

Reflections from the stained glass windows in the choir balcony.

When some of us left the church we decided to take the quickest transportation back. There was a line of tuk-tuks so we took one of them, straight down several steep streets. Very bumpy but it was kind of fun.

Once again, the strenuous activities left us tired and achy but we did walk a few blocks to a highly recommended restaurant.  Unfortunately,  it was full. We stood and discussed options until a woman who had been listening to us recommended an Italian restaurant right around the corner. We got in there and had a great Portuguese Italian meal.