Letter 103: TLC Travel Guide: Lisbon
When we visit Portugal
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Happy Wednesday!
Welcome to the next installment of our new TLC Travel Guide series! We asked several of our friends and fellow writers to share their favorite parts of their cities with each of you. Last week was Boise with Addy, which you can read here.
This week, we’ll visit Lisbon, Portugal, with Madison Kiernan Paine (my absolutely wonderful and fabulous sister-in-law). You might remember Madison from her letter “Choosing to Pivot” as part of our Women’s Work series. In June, Madison and Rob visited Lisbon with a group of friends to celebrate a friend’s wedding—a delayed celebration due to covid precautions. While they were there, I was so jealous of the gorgeous views, the incredible food, and the not-atrocious weather. So, naturally, I had to ask if she’d mind putting a few spots together for our travel series. I’m so happy she agreed. And, she sent me a lot of photos, so I just had to post them all here. —Emily
“By day Lisbon has a naive theatrical quality that enchants and captivates, but by night it is a fairy-tale city, descending over lighted terraces to the sea, like a woman in festive garments going down to meet her dark lover.”
Erich Maria Remarque
Great Restaurants
Leonetta
A really lovely little Italian place.
Faz Frio
Traditional Portuguese with a modern flair. Founded in 1872!
La Matta
Yummy pizza.
Dear Breakfast
Gorgeous breakfasts.
Beach Donuts
So donuts on the beach are a thing in Lisbon. And now I will always eat donuts on the beach.
Favorite Bookstore
Livraria Bertrand
The Bertrand bookstore opened in Portugal in 1732, in Chiado, and has held the Guinness World Record since April 2010 for the oldest bookstore still in operation.
Outdoor Activities
San Antonio Festival
An all-day party throughout Lisbon that culminates in a wedding ceremony held for several couples at once at Lisbon’s Sé Cathedral. There are sardines involved, which, to be fair, is true for a lot of festivities in Lisbon.
Boat
What could be better than a boat day with friends?
Cascais Beach
A picturesque beach is a glorious way to spend an afternoon!
Miradouros
Lisbon’s Miradouros are a network of terraces spread throughout the city where you can relax and enjoy the views of the city.
Indoor Activity
Massage
Outside of eating, there wasn’t much that we did indoors! However, we did treat ourselves to a two-hour massage on our 4th wedding anniversary, which I would recommend in any city. We visited EcoMassage (there are a few around the city) and would give it five stars!
Favorite Parts of the City
Príncipe Real
An exclusive and really fashionable neighborhood.
Bairro Alto
The party district!
Graça
The young, hip borough.
Favorite Vintage Shops
A Outra Face da Lua
If you can only go to one vintage shop, go here! There was an incredible selection of robes, slip dresses, scarves, vests, and more at reasonable prices. I made the mistake of visiting this shop on our last day, about 45 minutes before close, and felt the pressure to tear through the store at lightning speed! I could have easily spent a few hours combing through their inventory.
Ás de Espadas
This adorable shop is tucked away on a side street and could be easy to miss if you’re not looking for it. They had dresses on dresses on dresses from all eras, it brought me so much joy to look through them. Sadly, I struck out on the pieces I tried, as pregnancy and vintage don’t always mix.
Sons of the Silent Age
This was the first vintage shop we stumbled upon and was thisclose to swiping my credit card for a beautiful fringe leather jacket before logic got the best of me. That thing was oversized and there was zero room in my luggage. Aside from the large inventory of leather, this shop also had some wonderful archival designer pieces, including a leopard Versace bodysuit and a Miu Miu bomber jacket.
What to Wear/Bring?
Comfortable shoes with traction!
I knew the hills in Lisbon were no joke, but I was surprised at how slick the cobblestone that lined them was. Most of the time, I was perfectly fine in my Converse or Birkenstocks.
Light layers in the evening.
Even in June, it was a little chilly in the evenings, at least to this Texan, so packing a versatile layer that matched many different outfits was helpful.
Credit Card, and just a little bit of cash.
Most places accept and even prefer credit cards, so don’t go overboard on packing too much cash.
Your Uber App
Being six months pregnant, my body was feeling pretty tired by the end of the week. Luckily, Uber was super convenient, readily available anywhere in the city, and only a few Euro for most rides.
Camera.
My partner and I love photography and historically lugged around a full bag of camera gear across countries. We are no longer those people. While looking for the smallest camera possible, we landed on the mirrorless FujiFilm x-t30 ii and picked up a 27mm pancake lens. I am beyond impressed with the quality and ease of this camera! I could preload “recipes” of how I edit my photos, so they were ready to go the moment I clicked the shutter.
Your friends!
While I’m sure couples would find Lisbon romantic, our experience was greatly enhanced by the friends with whom we traveled! It was such a special time to bond and reconnect with our friends and their partners, and we all left with warm fuzzies that we had shared an incredible week together.
With gratitude,
Madison Kiernan Paine
P.S. Have you been to Lisbon? Add your favorite spots in the comments!
