Essentials: Lisbon

1) Picturesque and Moorish: If you stroll through Lisbon, you will notice the many house facades covered with azulejos, the typical Portuguese tiles. The Moors once brought the ceramic tiles painted with floral and geometric ornaments from the Arab world to Spain and Portugal. Even then, they were not only used for decorative purposes, but were also intended to protect the buildings from the salty sea air.

2) Modern contraband: Feira da Ladra, the “thief’s market” on the Campo de Santa Clara in the Graça district, is considered one of the oldest flea markets in Europe. It has existed since 1272 and was once a hub for stolen goods. Today, the sellers at Lisbon’s largest flea market mainly trade in antique tiles, handicrafts, and other vintage rarities every Tuesday and Saturday. 

3) Pious sweet tooth: Monks from the Hieronymus Monastery in Lisbon’s Belém district invented the delicious pastel de nata around 200 years ago. How did they come up with the idea for the now world-famous cult pastry? Back then, there were tons of egg yolks left over in the monastery because the nuns fortified their hoods with egg whites. The monks therefore used the yolks to bake puff pastry tarts with egg custard. Their recipe for success is still closely guarded today. Only Miguel Clarinha, owner of the traditional Lisbon bakery Pastéis de Belém, and his two head pastry chefs know it.

4) Not British at all: Portuguese Princess Catherine of Braganza invented the legendary British afternoon tea. After her marriage to King Charles II in 1662, she introduced the ritual to England. The brewing of the precious leaves was already widespread in Portugal at the time, as the country traded directly with China – so the princess brought tea with her to her new home and from then on invited women of the nobility to teatime. At the meetings, the ladies drank the then still very expensive drink from the finest Chinese porcelain and exchanged the latest gossip.

5) Well-read: According to the “Guinness Book of Records,” Lisbon is home to both the oldest bookshop in the world – the Livraria Bertrand, which opened in 1732 – and one of the smallest bookshops, the Livraria do Simão, which only has room for one person but an impressive 3,000 books.