Fri 22.Apr.2011
Lisbon, Portugal
What looks like the bay here is really the estuary of the river Tagus
(Tejo in the local language).
The Cais Sodré train station sits on the bank.
A cute wood-frame cafe sits by the station.
The heart of the old city, in a low area between two hills, was demolished
in the 1755 earthquake. The area was re-build on a rectangular grid pattern,
something rare in old European cities.
The slightly ogre-looking figure in this poster doesn't come through
very well in the photo. I thought he looked curious.
Belém
The Belém district, past the "Golden Gate" bridge, on the edge of
the Atlantic proper, features some waterfront parks, and a famous picturesque old
monestery,
Also a bombastic memorial to Portugal's colonial past.
It is good to find -
these things now and then, if only to keep in perspective that the communists
had no monopoly on massive self-importance.
Contents Copyright 2012 Jeff Bulf