Week 8: Lisboa and Sintra

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Parque Eduardo VII
So far on this trip, Lisboa has been my favorite city. I think it may be too big for me in the long run (500K population), but it is definitely a place I will want to visit and revisit as it has so much to offer. Here there is history, modernity, wonderful scenery and climate, a very cosmopolitan scene and friendly residents. A week was definitely not enough time here but it has given me a sense of what living in Portugal would be like as an ex-pat and one who really would try to immerse myself in local culture.

The Portuguese language is an interesting one because even though it is a Romance language with Latin roots, mainland Portuguese (from Portugal) has gone through different linguistic transitions compared to Spanish, French, Italian and Brazilian Portuguese. Portugal is more geographically isolated than its Mediterranean neighbors and so its language has been more resistant to linguistic changes. I found this endlessly interesting and frustrating as I really wanted to communicate in Portuguese during my stay, but it wasn't easy. I have heard several Portuguese admit that they can understand when Spanish, French of Brazilians visit their country and speak their native language, but they are often not understood in return. I learned from Portuguese with Leo (one of my favorite Portuguese YouTubers) and other sources that Portuguese has more nasal sounds and diphthongs and many of its words end in sibilants (fricative consonants like s, z, sh, j, etc.) so many people think it sounds like Russian and other Slavic languages! Linguistics differences aside, the Portuguese study English from grade school so are very eager to speak in English with tourists and ex-pats. I found English to be a recognized lingua franca here and so it was quite easy to get by and be understood everywhere I went.

Jeronimos Monastery

I found the architecture in Lisboa really interesting, especially after learning about the devastating earthquake (followed by fires and a tsunami) that destroyed the city in 1755. The city retains many wonderful old structures including some monasteries, forts and castles from the Arabic / Moorish period prior to the 10th century and it also has many modern 
.building and monuments like in Mexico City

Sintra is a beautiful city about an hour west of Lisboa which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. I learned that it's most famous castle, the Palacio de Pena was modeled after the Bavarian castles in Germany like Neu Schwanstein (which is also the blueprint for the Disney castle).

The Tower of Belem (circa 10th century 
Arco de Rua Augusta




Jardim Amalia Rodrigues

Palacio de Pena - has decidedly Islamic arches and mosaic tile (azulejo) that was incorporated into Portuguese architectural style
Palacio de Pena, Sintra


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