Imposing statues, refined art, historic buildings, splendid vistas… all very commendable, but a bit much on a Friday, if you ask me. So I give you Lisbon’s colourful bottle banks instead. Some of them are a bit indecent. You’ve been warned.
See what I mean?!
“Glass only”, it says, and “do not leave rubbish by the bottle bank”
But if you stick your umbrella half-way in, that doesn’t count…
On one of the few days when we were blessed with great weather during our week in Lisbon, I found myself down near the harbour at just the right time to take these:
I took a few photos in different places around the city at nightfall:
Several of you (no need to mention names, we all know who you are!) have been bugging me about Portuguese men since my trip to Lisbon.
I’ve not been giving the “homens” nearly as much attention as The Cakes, but one can’t be too selfish with a raucous audience to please. So, I’ve rifled through my photos and picked out those featuring male specimens. Though I can’t vouch for their representativeness…
Surely, this is what every girl dreams about:
… some hot, steamy squash soup at the end of the day!
…but maybe dreamy boys are more your thing…?
…waaay too exhausted to work…! I wonder from what?!
Now here’s one who’s made an effort! Ready for your date??
Maybe if he ditched the costume and swapped the balloons for some flowers chocolates…?
Now that’s more like it!
Ben Affleck, The Kaiser and Legolas rolled into one!
Soz… got distracted from the top half of this specimen by the cute puppy chewing away at the foot end.
Don’t ask me what it’s doing there, all golden and sparkly in the sunlight. A little souvenir from Macau, perhaps…? 
Lisbon’s windows are full of character. I had to stop myself from taking thousands of window pictures. Here’s a small selection of them, each one very different:
Cute 🙂
Elaborate and detailled!
Creative!
Crumbly…
Very 70’s
…and typical, with the decorative tiling.
Linked to Dawn’s “A Lingering Look At Windows” challenge.
Lisbon is a city that seems custom-built for travelwithintent’s weekly Look Up, Look Down challenge. And here’s proof:
There HAD to be a tram picture 🙂
…and a sea view
…and the castle
Entrance to Lisbon Botanic Garden
During my week in Lisbon, I passed Rossio Station every day on my way from the hotel to the town centre. It’s a stunning building, particularly the entrance:
Sadly, there’s a Starbucks inside, you can make out the sign to the right if you look very closely. I’m not anti-Starbucks, per se, but, I mean, Portugal already has fabulous coffee and even more fabulous cakes. Does Starbucks really have anything to add…?!
People have been asking about this already, and, as promised, here it is: the Lisbon Cake Post.
Before I launch into it, I’ll let you in on a dark and dirty secret: The famous Portuguese custard tarts (pastéis de nata) – I’ve never been a fan. Shocking, I know!
I tried them a few times while I lived in London, and found them a bit insipid – quite cartony on the outside, and the flavour of the filling was just too eggy for me.
But now I’m a convert. The authentic article, fresh from the oven, is nothing short of orgasmic.
For my first taste of the real McCoy, I stepped inside the premises of the legendary Pastéis de Belém in the west of Lisbon:
The queue might look formidable, but that’s for the take-away counter. The bakery’s café is surprisingly spacious, harbouring a warren of dining rooms, and finding a table did not prove to be a problem.
There’s even an observation window!
I’ll have six trays, please!
It’s not all about custard tarts, of course. This is the traditional Portuguese Christmas cake:
It’s called “Bolo Rei”, which means king cake.
I don’t remember its name, and it doesn’t look like much, but it’s delicious. It’s the lightest, airiest sponge cake imaginable, with a very moist, almost runny centre. I’ve no idea how this is even achieved, but it totally works.
As you can imagine, I scoffed all sorts of cakeage during my one week in Lisbon, including a gloriously fluffy creation called “bolo de deus” (cake of God), which came in the form of a bun. Now, if I were God and had to entrust my buns to anyone, it would definitely be the Portuguese!
[For Part I of what Lisbon is all about, click here.]
…smokey streets:
The smoke emanates from these little stalls selling deliciously succulent roast chestnuts. They are a common sight all over Europe at this time of the year, of course, but I’d never seen them being roasted in metal buckets before, from which the glistening brown morsels emerge all white, dusted with a fine covering of ash. Maybe this bucket-roasting technique is the reason why they are not in the least bit dry and so easy to peel.
…pygmy fire hydrants
There are legions of these foot-high midgets, perched on their little pedestals, strategically positioned all around town.
…cute little kiosks
The kiosks are just as ubiquitous as the fire hydrants, and fulfill a related purpose 😉 I took this pic on Christmas Day, which is why this little pink refill-station is closed.
…citrus trees in the streets
...and, you’ll have been waiting for this… THE FAMOUS TRAM!
There will be more Lisbon Tram pictures, once I’ve had the chance to go through them all.
Lady Of The Cakes 