Archive for the 'Lisbon people' Category

Quality Restaurant Café Martinho da Arcada & Fernando Pessoa’s table

Opening in 1782, Restaurant Café Martinho da Arcada, located in the corner of the Praça do Comércio 37 near the Tagus river, is the oldest café in Lisbon.

The terrace under the beautiful arcades. Movie Praca do Comercio: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhuLEkL0Ue4. Situated downtown, this cafe was once the ideal setting for the so called ‘tertúlia’s‘ (café talks). […]

Lisbon people: Pessoa, Portugal’s famous poet and writer

Nowadays lots of tourists walk around in Lisbon’s Chiado area and the beautiful Rua Garrett. They take a break in cafe ‘A Brasileira’ (Rua Garrett 120) to make pictures near the statue in bronze of the poet Fernando Pessoa (1888-1935), once a regular customer. But who was Fernando Pessoa?

Pessoa was largely unknown in Portugal until after his death in 1935. The […]

Lisbon people: Viviane Durieu’s (Belgian) favorite places

Viviane Durieu is creator of ‘A Travessa’, one of Lisbons best restaurants, set in a 17th-century convent, with a picturesque courty yard.

“When I arrived in Lisbon in December 1969, two days before Christmas, I thought the climate and the light were fantastic. Especially because I had arrived from Belgium where it’s cloudy for nine […]

Lisbon shopping: Rua dom Pedro V, a fancy new art gallery & jacarandas

Walking around in Lisbon is even better after spring has sprung. The streets, squares, parks and avenues are even more beautiful now that the jacarandas are beginning to blossom. Originally from South America, these trees of the Bignoniaceae family arrived in Lisbon in the mid-17th century and ever since, between May and June when they’re […]

Lisbon’s craziest night: June 12 (1) a mix of religion and sex

In June, the month of the Festas dos Santos Populares (Feast Days of the Popular Saints), the Lisbon nights are filled with lively festivities that take over the city’s historical center. On the eve of Saint Anthony day, June 13th, Lisbon turns into one big party!

Bica, near Bairro Alto - partying in the small street […]

Bar/Cafe ‘Side’ Bairro Alto, trendy gay meeting point

Whether you’re gay or straight: ‘Side’ is a trendy meeting point in Rua da Barroca, open from 18:00 pm. Most bars open their doors much later in Bairro Alto.

…..A few friends of mine enjoy a glass of wine……

Sebastien and Nelson

Rua da Barroca, Bairro Alto, in June, the month of the Saints Festivities

Bairro Alto at night: Capela bar & owner Pedro, very goodlooking

Posssibly one of the best spots in Europe for a night out! Wander through the lanes of bars, fado houses and clubs - every night hundreds of people are drinking mojitos and cheap beer out of plastic cups, listening to everything from samba to African rhythms, but mainly electro and techno. Don’t expect to get […]

Erika Reusens’ (Belgian): favorite places in Lisbon & the Tagus river

My name is Erika Reusens, I was born in Belgium. I moved to Lisbon in 2004, which was quite an adventure, because I had to start all over again.

I live in a quiet part of the area Bairro Alto, ‘the place to be’ when it comes to nightlife! Bairro Alto means ‘High neighbourhood’, as it […]

A recommended tour by foot from the Mouraria neighbourhood to Miradouro da Graca by Julie

“Starting from Praca da Figueira, where the metro stops or from Praca Martim Moniz, you walk up Calçada dos Cavalheiros to Largo do Terreirinho. This is where the Mouraria neighbourhood starts. This antique square is a nice place to have lunch. Taverna de Poco Largo is a real traditional Portugese restaurant where you can have […]

Boat trip: Dutch sailor Dirk Gesink challenging the waves of the Tejo

Around 1986, the Dutchman, Dirk Willem Gesink, decided to spend his honey-moon in Portugal. At that time he was a successful businessman in Holland and since his childhood a passionate sailor. He had started sailing when he was four years old at the “Loosdrechtse Plassen” in Holland.

Obviously he looked for a company that organized sailing […]