Out of a Little Dream. Bom dia Lisboa. Voltei (de novo!)

Sunrise from the airplane window. Landing in about an hour

Those who have read the posts recounting my two previous trips to Lisboa are probably aware that I am at least mildly infatuated with Portugal’s capital city. Many who know me are also aware that for more than a decade I’ve been considering adopting a second home somewhere in Europe. That search began with a trip to Malta in 2012 but a second visit there in 2017 left me seeking an alternate landing spot. Portugal topped that list but the Covid-19 pandemic delayed my trip to this westernmost country in continental Europe until April 2022. The real surprise for me was the connection I felt with Lisboa because I’d come here expecting to find a place on the country’s southern coast in the region called the Algarve. And with its mild winters, stunning coastline, and abundance of small seaside towns like Portimão,

the attraction is easy to see.

I am also, to coin a word, an incrementalist particularly when making major life decisions so I proceed methodically. Incrementally. I’m of the belief that before voluntarily choosing to relocate one should try to experience the destination during the weather season that’s least appealing to you. If you don’t like hot weather, spend at least a few summer weeks in Phoenix before moving there. It’s easy to love Montreal or Budapest or Stockholm in the summer but their winters might leave a different impression.

For me, I’m looking for a place where the winters are mild and the threat of snow or even frost is all but non-existent (unlike what’s happening in the DC area which is experiencing its coldest and snowiest winter in years). This is a trait both Malta and Lisboa share. They can also both be overcast, rainy, and cool for days upon end. From the standpoint of the weather, I found the city more than tolerable during my two weeks here last December and January making the next incremental step extending my stay for most of the winter.

Much of my time here will be an experiment in daily living so I won’t be writing in my typical detail or making daily posts. However, I will have family and friends visiting from the U.S. and I’m anticipating some happy reunions with the two people I know in Portugal and these will likely create some opportunities for me to write. Now that you have some background, I hope this

Sounds like a fine place to start.

And I’ll start with this, many people reading this blog likely saw a photo like this one

that I took the night of my arrival and sent in an email with a subject of “Lisbon is getting ready for Christmas”.  Displays like this span many streets throughout the city and, even for this atheist, contribute to creating a festive mood wherever I wander. You can see other lights decorating Lisboa in this photo album.

I took this photo facing rua Augusta from Praça Dom Pedro in my preferred neighborhood of the Baixa-Pombalina section of Santa Maria Maior. This is the neighborhood where I stayed in my first extended visit and where I stayed again on this trip. (I wrote in this post about the pros and cons of my choice.)

As a second starting point I’ll say that I enjoy having visitors from the States (or anywhere for that matter). I take pleasure in being able to show off what may become my adoptive home in a way that many tourists would and wouldn’t see. While I certainly don’t know Lisboa like a native or even a long time resident, I think the folks who spent time here with me this winter would say that I know the city well – particularly for someone who had essentially spent a total of a month (2 weeks in 2022-23 and two weeks in December 2023) here before they arrived.

I attribute this in part to being an observant walker. While I frequently use Lisbon’s expansive and efficient public transportation, I have also walked through many of the city’s neighborhoods and am attentive when I do.

As Rebecca Solnit wrote in he book Wanderlust: A History of Walking,

Cities have always offered anonymity, variety, and conjunction, qualities best basked in by walking: one does not have to go into the bakery or the fortune-teller’s, only to know that one might. A city always contains more than any inhabitant can know, and a great city always makes the unknown and the possible spurs to the imagination.

I walk for the exercise. I walk to reach a specific destination. And I walk to learn the city and to spur my imagination – paying attention to sights like this one.

With that said, had I known my visitors’ schedule in advance, I likely would have extended my stay for an additional two or three weeks. Keep in mind that the principal reason for this stay was establish a sense of what my daily life would be should I commit to relocating. That, of course, included shopping, cooking, and completing all the other activities of day to day living.

My first visitors arrived two weeks after I did and stayed for two weeks. My second visitors reached Lisboa the day my family left and were here for another week. Thus, thanks to their generosity, I had virtually no expenses beyond the rent on my flat for the entirety of those three weeks. I ate breakfast at home but that was about all. And I told them frequently that one aspect of the city I don’t know well is its restaurants because when I’m here on my own, I eat in most of the time. It’s nothing I can’t deal with but it did leave me feeling a bit unbalanced in making my earliest assessment.

Another way of looking at this is that using so much of my time in my first two weeks here preparing for their visits meant that I not only revisited some areas of the city I knew but also explored parts of the city I hadn’t yet seen so I could plan viable alternatives should the weather be uncooperative or should they express an interest in seeing someplace that would be new to me as well.

And for my first two weeks here, I did just that beginning by reconnecting with my friend and tour guide extraordinaire, Ana. I’ll have more on that day and the two weeks that followed in the next post.

Music for Charity

This edition of the #MusicforCharity contest honors a Broadway legend who should be easily identifiable. Although most of the references – from the titles of the posts to the section headers – are related to this person, not all of them are. Sometimes the reference will be a song title. Sometimes it will be a lyric fragment. It’s also possible that only the title of the song or the specific lyric I use will be appropriate for the post rather than the theme of the song or the entirety of the lyric. However, I’ve also made things a little easier. For this contest, the clues are not in the text. They are all post titles (all of them) and section headers (at least one per post but not all of them). There are some bonus references that I will use in case of a tie. Your tasks:

• Identify the legend
• Name all the referenced songs both his and others
• Name the show in which the songs appear
• Attempt to identify bonus items

As with previous contests entries will be due 72 hours after the final post on Gruncleodd.com. They must be submitted by email or DM on the X (AKA Twitter) platform. As in past years, I will make a contribution in your honor to the U.S. 501c3 of your choice. First Place earns a $300 donation; Second Place $150 and; Third Place $75.

ADDED 24 April 2024:  I will donate $25 to the charity of choice in the name of anyone who enters the contest and provides correct answers to at least the three of the following:

• The legend’s name
• At least one show by this legend referenced in a post (include the post title)
• At least one song by this legend referenced in a post (include the post title)
• At least one show not by this legend referenced in a post (include the post title)
• At least one song not by this legend referenced in a post (include the post title)

Provide correct answers to all five and I will contribute $38 in your honor to your chosen charity.  First, second and third place prizes are unchanged. 

The deadline for entries will now be midnight 9 May 2024.