From left: Sweet sips at A Ginjinha Espinheira; brightly coloured ceramic tiles; street art in Alfama
42
spring 2019
CAA Manitoba
a steep incline from Restauradores Square to
Bairro Alto. The creeky yellow funicular, one of
three operating in the city, holds up to 42 people
and makes the winding journey up Calçada da
Glória in about two minutes.
You can tell a lot about a city by its food. As
I bite into the crumbly crust of a warm pastel de
nata (custard tart) at a sidewalk café, I can tell
Lisbon is my kind of place. In one mouthful, the
city’s signature pastry hints at palace intrigue,
secret recipes and religious strife. (In truth, it only
offers up hints of vanilla; the historical placard on
my table says the rest.)
Pastéis de Belém is the birthplace of this
uniquely Portuguese confection. The west-end
bakery began life as a sugar refinery and general
store, supplying the kitchen of the 16th-century
Jerónimos Monastery, which acted as a pre-
departure stopover for sailors setting out on long
sea voyages. Many navigators and seamen spent
their last nights on land within the church, praying
for safe passage.
The Liberal Revolution of 1820 saw the govern-
ment close all convents and monasteries. Clergy,
cooks and servants found themselves evicted and
jobless. Before fleeing, one quick-thinking monk »
opposite:
million residents live in the city and its suburbs.
After arriving on a late-day flight, I get my first
taste of Portuguese cuisine at Lost In. Nestled in
Bairro Alto—meaning “upper town,” owing to its
perch atop a hill—the eatery is one of Lisbon’s
many rooftop establishments. After ogling terra-
cotta roofs, wrought-iron balconies and São Jorge
castle in the distance, I turn my eye to the menu.
On offer: a multi-ethnic mix of classic Portuguese
cod, Indian samosas and Asian-fusion dishes.
Though I’m not a fish eater—a near treasonous
trait in pescatarian Portugal—the platters of
swordfish and sea bass flying out of the kitchen
look fresh and flavourful. I settle on grilled orien-
tal chicken with zucchini and green beans. Asian,
African and Moorish influences abound, thanks
to the early Portuguese explorers who established
trade routes and land claims from Goa and Macau
to Mozambique and Brazil. The country’s famed
piri piri spice, for instance, hails from Africa.
After dinner, I head across the street to my
hotel, one of the city’s many boutique-quality
guesthouses. Whatever your budget, consider a
hotel at the top of one of Lisbon’s hills. You’ll be
able to walk down in the morning and hop on a
tram or funicular for the return jaunt up after
a long day. For more than 130 years, Ascensor da
Glória has been transporting weary Lisboetas up