Saturday morning dawned clear and bright – absolutely perfect weather. Looking out the fourth floor balcony window we could see the white spire of Sao Vicente peeking over the top of the building across the street, framed by brilliant blue sky.
Bri headed out alone into our neighborhood (Sao Vicente in Alfama), and came back with groceries and sustenance. The kitchen was close quarters but serviceable.
After breakfast, we all headed down the street to the nearby Feira da Ladra, "the thief's market," a famous (and enormous) flea market just below the Arco da Grande Cima (part of the massive Sao Vicente) and above the Panteao Nacional (the National Pantheon – more on that later). 
Every Tuesday and Saturday, the Feira takes over about four blocks’ worth of road , median, and park space, and hundreds of vendors of new and old set out their tables, stalls, and spreads anywhere they can find a spot.
We wandered through the densely packed sellers and buyers and soaked up the ambience and the street musicians playing "Fado" (literally "destiny" or "fate"), Portugal's guitar-heavy famously morose version of flamenco music. The girls and I picked up some clothing, Bri rifled through piles of old money and coins at a few tables, and Thomas looked for a new wallet as we wandered. After a bit Thomas and the girls pooped out after our long night and headed back to the apartment, and Bri and I wandered the cut stone streets and felt just like we were in an upscale version of Angola. It was wonderful to hear Portuguese and understand what was being said and to mix and mingle with the affable and relaxed Portuguese. Eventually we had enough too, and made our way back to the apartment to find all the kids asleep. Yesterday was a big day!
We regrouped and headed down in search of lunch, and ended up at the lanchonete down the street on our block called A Parrerinha de Sao Vicente, a cozy little place that we ended up at several times (and where Bri snuck off a few times to get his beloved pasteis de nata, little cream-filled pastries for which Lisbon is famous). We got some pork and chicken and paozinhos, recharged, and decided what we needed was a tuk tuk tour. Tuk tuks are little trikes with seating in the back, and they were everywhere in Lisbon, especially in Alfama where we were staying. Bri made some phone calls and arranged for one of the tuk tuks to pick us up and take us for a spin.
Laura, our tuk tuk driver, picked us up shortly thereafter at the Arco da Grande Cima, and showed us Alfama from her little tuk tuk.
Alfama is one of the most famous neighborhoods in Lisboa and the traditional center of Fado music, with lots of dark bars and smoky restaurants performing nightly shows. Alfama is on a steep hillside with crazy streets and alleys and stairs and ancient buildings that zig zag up the hillside and up the hill – getting a bolea on a tuk tuk was definitely a less painful introduction for us! Laura took us to a few of the famous churches near us, including Sao Vicente (and its monastery and gardens and the residence of a Cardinal) and the National Pantheon which is itself an ancient church that still holds masses on occasion.
Lisbon is full of tiles on the sides of their buildings that are uniquely different in design and color. We couldn't get enough!
Laura also took us to the Miradouro da Nossa Senhora do Monte for a great view of the Moorish castle Sao Jorge and the city and Tagus river below, and down to the biggest and oldest church in Lisbon (which is saying something), the thousand-year-old Sé Cathedral of Lisboa and the seat of the Bishop of Lisbon. Each church was more awe-inspiring and enormous than the last, and each sat in its own picturesque little neighborhood of colorful four-story buildings set on steep winding roads with cable cars running up and down. Alfama and Lisboa are truly lovely and cozy places. Over and over Bri kept saying “I could live here” and “we could retire here,” and I wasn’t fighting him on it. ;)
After stopping briefly by the Miradouro das Portas do Sol on our way down, we decided to head to the nearby city of Belem. There we stopped by the massive Sao Jeronimo Monastery, the biggest church yet, a truly awe-inspiring sight and the final resting place of the famous Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama. After wandering through the enormous vaulted cathedral and paying our homage at da Gama’s tomb, we headed back out and down to the Tower of Belem, one of three gun ports erected to protect (pretty ineffectively, as the Spanish demonstrated 500 years ago) the mouth of the Tagus river and the approach to Lisbon.
The 500-year Torre was lovely (and closed – a worker's strike), and the kids played in the tidewater at its base for a bit before we rejoined Laura and headed to our last stop, the Padrão dos Descobrimentos.
The Padrão dos Descobrimentos is a huge monument erected by Salazar, Portugal's prime minister (dictator) from 1932 - 1968, that depicts the several Portuguese explorers, religious leaders, and strong men who pushed forward Portugal’s exploration and rise to empire. Leading them all at the front of the monument is Henry the Navigator, the fifteenth-century creator of the Caravel and the European explorer of West Africa, Madeira, and the Azores.
By this point, we were all cold and hungry. Laura drove us back to our perch on the hillside in Alfama, Bri made us some french bread, we watched The Bee Movie on the kindle, and went to bed.
Easter Sunday was also clear and blue, and the kids and I got ready while Bri headed out to check if we could find an Easter Mass to attend for the education (LDS church was too far away for us to get to). Sao Vicente and the Panteao Nacional were both closed for the day, and Bri ended up exploring Alfama while we got ready. After breakfast, we all headed out on foot past Sao Vicente and up the hill to the ancient moorish outpost Castelo do Sao Jorge.
This hilltop was used as a fortification by Celtic tribes, then Phoenicians, Greeks, and Carthaginians before the Romans built the first lasting fortification in 48 BC. The Moors built extensive fortifications when they controlled Iberia, and upon reconquest by the Portuguese during the Second Crusade in 1147, it became more heavily fortified, the chair of the governor of Portugal, and finally the royal palace before being converted into military barracks by occupying Spanish forces and then finally falling to its current ruined state. A lot of history, and very impressive! We luckily arrived early and beat most of the crowds, and wandered the castle walls and the grounds and pondered all of the history that occurred on the site.
At one point, Bri, Savvy, and I were separated from Thomas and Rhea, and walked all the way down the steep Torre do Sao Lourenco (steps leading far down the hill with sheer drops on each side of 60 feet and more, and leaned over the edge below and looked down on the street below. To our surprise, we saw the T family from the embassy, who we knew were on vacation in Portugal as well that week and who just happened to be right where we were looking! We said hi, and later on met them on our way out and caught up and took photos. The castle ruins and the walls were immense and the view of the river and of the city from the hilltop was spectacular. 
Our thigh workout. ;)
Kambell, Ella and Nik with Savvy and Rhea
After watching several strutting peacocks put on their display and call for several minutes, we headed back down the hill looking for lunch.
We found a food cart in the shadow of Sao Vicente, and we all had some burgers, hot dogs, pork, and eclairs for lunch. Afterwards, we decided to seek out the famous Tram 28, a well-known trolleycar that runs up Alfama to Bairro Alto (and, we thought, back).
We found our way to Miradour Porta do Sol, waited for the tram, and squeezed on. We were packed in like sardines, and ended up finally squeezing to the back of the tram and a little more window to enjoy the scenery. It was fun to ride the tram but it was very crowded and hot and not nearly worth all of the effort. Tram 28 is famous for pick pockets and we watched an older latino chase down a guy that had been standing next to Bri before we squeezed to the back of the bus and accuse him of stealing his wallet. The trolley lumbered off as the two argued and nearby police moved in to evaluate. Glad it wasn’t us!After about twenty minutes of trolleyride, we ended up out in the middle of nowhere and everyone was told to get off and that we had to purchase a return ticket if we wanted to get back. The tram was not cheap, Bri and the lady conductor argued for a bit, and we ended up sitting on park benches playing with pigeons for a while before we decided to hoof it the 45 minute walk back. En route we saw some other pretty sites.
We stopped at the enormous Jardim da Estrela park, and the kids played on the playground and Bri and I enjoyed a break and watching the bright green parakeets flying around in the trees. We eventually pushed on, found our way to the Rossio neighborhood, the Carmo Convent (a ruined church that is monument to the 40,000 killed in Lisbon’s cataclysmic 1755 earthquake on All Saints Day) where we bought some art. 
We took it to go and watched the street performers at the praca at the top of the hill (stand outs: the bride and the guy in silver on a pole) before descending to a gift shop in the shadows of the Hotel Mundial. Thomas wowed the Pakistani shopowners with his Rubik’s cubes and won a bet and earned some treats for him and his siblings.
We climbed the steep hills of Alfama back up to our perch in Sao Vicente, and dropped the kids off to eat their McDonald's.
Bri and I took a minute to rest before heading back down into the heart of Alfama to a little restaurant off the main square by Porta do Sol for dinner. We ate and chatted with our Portuguese waitress, a short-haired woman in her fifties, about the city, what she’s seen change in Lisboa, and life generally. 
After a pleasant evening together, we headed back towards our apartment, enjoying the gathering darkness and cozy street lamps of Lisbon. We tucked the kids in, arranged for a taxi for the next day in Sintra, and fell asleep. 
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