Portugal – Belem, a crowded district of Lisbon

We thought that only in Baixa and Alfama there are crowds of tourists, and that leaving for the suburbs, some peace and respite awaits us. How wrong we were, we found out in Belem.

Ok, Belem is a well-known district, there are world-class monuments, but we did not expect such crowds in the off-season. Our dreams were quickly verified by reality, that is. the moment we stood at the bus stop on Praça do Comércio facing just Belem.

By streetcar to Belem

We mentioned in an earlier post that while riding the 28 we saw a queue for the streetcar towards Belem, so we hoped that as dawn broke we would be able to fit into it without a problem. Hope dies last ;)

Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to be early in the morning – we were at the square around 10 or 11, and people could barely fit at the stop, without even thinking anymore how all those waiting were supposed to fit into the streetcar. We managed, so somehow, on Portuguese sardines or, again let me use our local term, on algae, we managed to squeeze in and drive towards Belem.

In general, there might as well have been no handrails on the streetcar, because we rode in such a squeeze that no one would have fallen over anyway, but at least the pregnant woman was allowed to grab onto something. At least that much, because the privileged places we were not able to see, and anyway we were over-happy that we were going at all ;-)

By the way, we were standing right next to the seats where four people were sitting, at first glance rather young and certainly belly saw, but somehow the view in the window was so fascinating that they did not even look away for a moment afterwards, and not to mention to give way. Well, the important thing is that we are going.

The joy subsided after just a few stops, when it hit us how hot it was, and the air conditioning didn’t work…. Well, again – it’s a good thing we’re seasoned ;) As you can guess, the streetcar was full, all the way to Belem (it even rhymes!).

We have arrived!

What to visit in Belem?

What’s the deal with Belem? Where do these crowds come from? Well, the Vasco da Gama expedition set off from Belem. Where to? In the same direction as Columbus, but he actually succeeded in discovering the sea route to India, not to some America ;) In his honor, the Hieronymite Monastery was erected here, which is now actually Belem’s biggest attraction.

Before heading toward the Monastery, however, we decided to head toward the promenade, right on the waterfront, to see the Monument to Discovery (Padrão dos Descobrimentos) and the Belem Tower (Torre de Belém).

The Monument to the Explorers measures 52 meters high and depicts, as the name suggests, people associated with geographical discoveries of the 15th and 16th centuries, including Vasco Da Gamma, Ferdinand Magellan, Henry the Sailor and others (33 figures in all). They are not only sailors, but also people indirectly involved in the discovery of new lands and sea routes.

The monument resembles the prow of a ship facing the river, and at its base is a mosaic with a world map and the routes of Portuguese sailors. It is also possible to drive up to the very top for a panoramic view of the city and the river.

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Then we went to the Belem Tower, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Designed in 1515, the tower primarily served a defensive function.

Hieronymite Monastery

After these two landmarks, we headed toward the tracks and took a footbridge over them toward the aforementioned Hieronymite Monastery (Mosteiro dos Jerónimos), passing the manicured gardens (Jardim da Praça do Império) along the way. You can see the monastery from a distance, and from a distance you can also see the crowd of people at the entrance. Two queues form here – one to enter the monastery (entrance fee 10 eur) and the church (free entrance).

As for the monastery itself, it is impressive from the outside, but the tour inside disappointed us. It is a monastery from the 16th-17th centuries. Founded by order of Manuel I the Lucky (King of Portugal). The facades, are renovated, the courtyard looks nice, and the place is interesting for photography, but…. unfortunately, there is nothing remarkable in the interiors.

We expected little more than almost bare walls in the various rooms (the biggest attraction was the “flipchart exhibition”) and we really wonder why there were such queues to get in.

What we liked most was the courtyard:

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As for the church, Igreja Santa Maria de Belém, on the other hand, you can go inside through the main entrance and thus bypass the queue, but there is one catch: you won’t get close enough to the tombs of Vasco da Gama and Luis de Camoes, and that’s what the queues for the side entrance are for.

Pastel de Nata from Belem

But that’s not all. There is another popular and even iconic place in Belem. A pastry shop that specializes in the Portuguese delicacy Pastel de Nata, which here are called Pastéis de Belém (that’s where the sweets originated).

Sweets have been baked here since 1837, and the recipe is closely guarded. Guess what you will recognize this place by :) Well, exactly, by the long queue to enter.

So far, we don’t know whether people waited for free tables or ordered take-out, but we’re betting on the latter, as there are a bagatelle of some several hundred seats inside (!). Seriously! The biggest candy store we’ve ever been to! We went inside to see how with the seats in general, and wandered around the small and large halls for probably 5 minutes.

Along the way, we passed a glass-enclosed kitchen, where you can preview the process of baking sweets. And even though you can see everything, everything fresh, made on site, it begs the question: can this still be called a family-oriented, cozy place where sweets are baked with heart? No, it is definitely already mass-produced, and as for the taste…. unfortunately we didn’t have the opportunity so we don’t comment.

To sum up…

To be honest, Belem is a place we quickly escaped from. Crowds of tourists, zero space, it’s hard to even walk on the sidewalk, queues everywhere – a place unsuitable for the huge number of tourists.

Fact, we were on a Sunday, but still before the season, so all the way we don’t want to think what the place looks like during the vacations. It’s a shame, because such situations take away from the pleasure of visiting. How can one stop for a moment, try to get to know something, see something, when every now and then another tour overflows, which “passes” the next point on the map as quickly as possible?

If you haven’t been to Belem yet, but are planning to, pick another day of the week and gather at the crack of dawn.

If you have already been, we beg you to console us that we were the only ones who got it so wrong, and you managed to see the local attractions in peace :)

Zobacz galerię zdjęć z Belem >>>