Experiencing the Iberian spring in Lisbon
With architectural gems, colourful nightlife and laidback vibe, Lisbon in February is a thing of beauty, says Dhruv Munjal
Miguel isn’t your typical bicycle tour guide. He’s almost 65, potbellied and balding from the sides. Once the owner of an advertising firm, he now conducts bike tours of the city he grew up in for free. Last month, he cycled all the way from Vienna to Budapest, a journey that had him on the road for 10 straight days. “Money doesn’t interest me too much. You don’t know how long you’ll live,” he later says.
It’s my second day in Lisbon, and, desperate to experience the city in the most authentic way possible, I swiftly book Miguel’s tour on Airbnb. The next morning, as I scramble to get to Rossio Square — a tribute to King Pedro IV — to meet the 10’o clock starting time, Miguel greets me with a wide smile. He sets us up on our bikes — the rest of the group is mostly American — fires up a Camel Light and off we go.
Lisbon in February is a magnificent sight — a pleasant chill in the air, the rays of the sun descending on bright colourful rooftops, and the muddy green waters of the Tagus river glistening in the distance. In just under four hours and over 15 km, Miguel promises to take us through many of the Portuguese capital’s incredible architectural treasures and introduce us to a cultural past like no other in perhaps all of Europe. Even as metropolises around it have succumbed to rapid modernisation in recent decades, Lisbon, with its famous yellow trams, cobbled streets and infectious laid-back vibe, continues to retain a gorgeous old-world charm.
Riding a bike in Lisbon is fun: the cycling lanes are almost as wide as the roads, the traffic is seldom heavy and you can take your bike pretty much anywhere you want. Our first stop is the Praça do Comércio, the city’s main square. It once housed the Royal Palace, before the great earthquake of 1755 wiped out almost all of the city, including the imperial residence. Now, of course, the square is a defining symbol of Lisbon, home to shops, cafes and government offices. Youngsters perform kickflips on their skateboards in one corner as photo hunters queue up to get clicked alongside the statue of King José I.
When I tell Miguel where I’m from, he’s quick to point out that the pastel blue government structure down the street overlooking the Tagus was once used to build ships for Portuguese explorers — the São Gabriel, which was commanded by Vasco da Gama on his maiden voyage to India in 1497, was put together in one of the bays of this very building.
Vasco da Gama is, in fact, immortalised in a monument — Padrão dos Descobrimentos (Monument of the Discoveries) — along the banks of the Tagus. The boat-shaped memorial also features Ferdinand Magellan, as well as Afonso de Albuquerque, the general who went on to become the second viceroy of Portuguese India.
But the most popular landmark along the river is the Belém Tower, a ceremonial gateway of sorts to
Lisbon that serves as a sterling example of Portuguese renaissance architecture. One of the sides of the tower is adorned by a sculpture of the Indian rhinoceros — the story goes that when a rhino arrived on the shores of Lisbon as a diplomatic gift in 1515, thousands lined up to catch a glimpse of a specimen that had not been seen in Europe since Roman times. The Belém Tower is also where the Tagus merges with the Atlantic Ocean.
Its monuments and museums aside, Belém is perhaps most famous for something entirely unrelated: pastel de nata, a traditional Portuguese tart made with egg and custard, and then dusted with cinnamon. Originally invented by Catholic monks, the tarts have been made famous around the world by Pasteis de Belém, the shop serving them for the last 183 years. Miguel suggests that some 10,000 tarts are sold by the café every day. I take back a pack of six for home, hoping they won’t spoil before I reach Delhi. We finish our somewhat exhausting but extremely rewarding tour with a dash through LX Factory, once the setting for a sugar mill but now a fashionable nightlife haunt that teems with revellers post dusk.
In the evening, I hop on to the famous Number 28 yellow tram, a quintessentially touristy experience that is too hard to resist if you’re, well, a tourist. The creaky tram, complete with wooden interiors from a bygone era, is a wonderful homage to the city, passing through the bustling tourist hubs of Graça, Alfama, Chiado and Bairro Alto. Alfama, a quiet neighbourhood located atop a hill, offers a stunning panoramic view of Lisbon. Its up-and-down streets, multi-storey homes — their exteriors often painted yellow and blue — and relaxed feel is everything Lisbon in a nutshell.
Later that night, I trudge off to Bairro Alto, the scene of Lisbon’s dynamic nightlife. The narrow alleys play host to a number of bars, all booming to loud international music even as some musicians on the street entertain the crowd with fado, a form of Portuguese music characterised by melancholic tunes. After searching for the best places online, I step into Majong, a cosy, dimly lit restaurant with cabbage-shaped lights on the ceiling. I’m a beer person but Hugo, the bartender, coaxes me into trying a gin cocktail with ginger, which, to my surprise, I enjoy immensely.
Two days later, as I head to the airport, I run into Miguel again — he’s leading a new group of cyclists out to see the marvel that is Lisbon. I wave out to him from the backseat of my Uber; he looks up and blows a kiss in my direction, wishing me a safe flight. That’s when I realise that Miguel and Lisbon will both be missed.
RIDING A BIKE IN LISBON IS FUN: THE CYCLING LANES ARE ALMOST AS WIDE AS THE ROADS, THE TRAFFIC IS SELDOM HEAVY AND YOU CAN TAKE YOUR BIKE PRETTY MUCH ANYWHERE YOU WANT