The Belém and Ajuda Neighbourhoods

The Belém neighbourhood is where you'll find many of Lisbon's main attractions. It's actually quite a way out from the city centre and it's almost like a town in and of itself. On the morning of my second day in Lisbon, I went there on the suburban train, which took about ten minutes. I had planned to see Torre de Belém and Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, but there turned out to be more things there to see than I realised!

Once I arrived at Belém station, I set off towards Torre de Belém, which is about a kilometre away. On my way there, I came across Padrão dos Descobrimentos, a monument celebrating the Portuguese Age of Discovery. I don't think this is something that should really be celebrated, but it's certainly an imposing monument to look at.

Then I arrived at Torre de Belém. Situated on the banks of the Tagus river, it's a really beautiful building to see. A musician was playing nice music on an accordion while I was there, and the overall atmosphere of the place was very peaceful and calming.

Next, I crossed over the road and turned back in the direction I'd come from to go towards Mosteiro dos Jerónimos. I certainly hadn't expected to meet the Sorting Hat on my way, but as a fan of the Harry Potter books, it was a nice surprise!

Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, a former monastery, was an impressive building to see. I had a walk around its gardens, but unfortunately due to the huge queue outside the building and my limited amount of time, going inside wasn't really an option.

Going back towards the station, I passed through Jardim Vasco da Gama, where I was surprised to find a beautiful pagoda. I found out later that it was a gift from Thailand to Portugal. Maybe it seemed a little out of place, but I really enjoyed visiting it. Southeast Asia is a part of the world I would love to go to, but that's a travel dream that will probably have to wait a few years before becoming reality. So it was cool for me to discover a bit of Asian culture in Europe!

I was intrigued by this pink building that I saw next to the train station. I found out later that it used to be a royal palace but is now the official residence of the Portuguese president. I hadn't realised that Belém contained so many of Lisbon's attractions!

I made a stop off on my way back to the city centre in the Ajuda neighbourhood, as I wanted to see the Necessidades Palace. I can never resist visiting castles or palaces! But it was a long walk up steep hills to get there from Alcântara train station, and I'm not sure it was entirely worth it. The palace is lovely to look at, but it's not open to the public, being the headquarters of the Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. However, there's a public park behind it (where I saw a little cat!) and I had nice views on my way back down the hill.

To sum up, a visit to the Ajuda neighbourhood is not an essential part of a trip to Lisbon, but a visit to the Belém neighbourhood definitely is! I loved seeing Torre de Belém, and the Thai pagoda was a real hidden gem.

My final post about my time in Portugal will be about Castelo de São Jorge, which was one of the highlights of my trip!