Gulbenkian Museum

Calouste Gulbenkian was an art collector who came from Armenia to Portugal during World War II.  This museum holds 6000 of his collections.  Gulbenkian was especially interested in oriental art.  I also like oriental art and these were some of my favorite pieces from the Chinese and Japanese gallery.  

 Portugal is also known for their famous tiles, which are called azulejo.  They are ceramic tiles that are found everywhere here.  They are on the walls at the monastery where I live, the church that I go to, the subway stations, anywhere and everywhere.  The Portuguese word "azulejo" comes from an arabic word, meaning polished stone.  I have found the most typical azulejo are blue and white but I found these to be quite pretty.  They come in various patterns and designs, some much more intricate and detailed paintings, while others are more simple. 

More sights

Once again, I did not blog this week, due to the fact that I was in Madrid, Spain.  We went on a stake temple trip.  The temple was a spiritual uplifting experience of course and very neat because I did ordinances in three different languages! (Spanish, Portuguese, and English). I am now back in Portugal and sightseeing once again.

This is an important building in architecture,

because it was one of few buildings that

survived the earthquake of 1755.

 Here is the Pantheon, also known as the Church of Santa Engrácia.  It was a church in the 17th century, but now the Pantheon.  They still hold church services however, as I went on a Sunday, we could hear the music.

Many important people are buried here as you can see.  

Also, a famous fado singer is buried here.

Here is a view from upstairs.

Here is the view from the top! It is located in the nice Alfama.

The Residence

I apologize last week for not blogging.  

It was carnival break, thus we had a week off of school!  

For break, I actually went to France so it wasn't very

 applicable to my Portuguese culture blog, 

however here are a few pictures before I left. 

Here are the dorms where I live.  They are the university 

dorms, except they are a 40 minute commute to school

everyday!  It's a 10 minute walk to the metro station, 

another 10 minutes on one subway, another 10 minutes

on the second subway, and last another 10 minutes

to walk from the metro station to school! The dorms are 

quite neat, because they are what used to

 be the 17th century Santos-o-Novo Monastery.

They are in a beautiful location as well overlooking the Tigus river.

Might I add that I only pay 200 Euros a month, everything included.

It's a great deal and cheaper than what I pay at home.  

I have two roommates, one from Italy and the other from Czech Republic.

We all have our own desks, dressers, and we have our own bathroom.

Besides the commute to school and the lack of heating, it's been a 

nice place to live so far. 

MUDE

This is MUDE, the museum of design and fashion.  It is in Baixa Chiado and the best part about it is that it is free!  Here is a lips couch that I thought was appropriate for Valentines day.

 Right now there is a fado and fashion exhibition going on.  Fado is a popular style of Portuguese folk music.  To what I have seen, it looks like you can make a reservation on any street corner to dine to some live fado music.  I would assume the best place to hear fado would be in the narrow streets of Bairro Alto.  In this genre of music, the lyrics are sad and melancholy.  Sometimes, they can be accompanied by classical guitars or mandolins.  Below is a dress that was worn by a famous fado singer, Amália Rodrigues.

Here is an example of her music.

Here is the museum

Here is a cute car, a 1959 BMW

 Izetta, also known as the bubble car.

It was produced in Post WWII.

Aquarium

Yesterday we went to the Lisbon aquarium.  They had a special turtle exhibit going on which was awesome because I love turtles!

 I don't know what this is, but I thought it was unique and ugly. 

Here is my ticket.

Here is another ugly fish.  I think it is a is in indian spiny turbot if I'm right.

Jellyfish

Another ugly fish

I like this fish

Across from the aquarium is the Parque das Naçōes . It has all the flags from around the world!

Feira da Ladra

Yesterday, we went to the street flea market.  They have it every Saturday.  In our residence halls, we have a community kitchen.  During breakfast, we were invited to go with a group to the fair.  Like planned, we met at the game room a half hour later like planned, but nobody was there.  Fortunately, we were able to find our way without any difficulty.  It was a five minute walk towards the Santa Apolônia metrô/train station.  Instead of turning left, you turn right, go up the hill, and there it was, the market!  It is very close to our dorms.  To me, it was like one big garage sale!  There were all sorts of gypsy type people selling anything from used items to antiques to crafts, pretty much anything. 

The word "ladra" in Portuguese is a flea, so it literally means Fair of the Flea.  This fair began in the middle ages, and is actually the oldest functioning fair in Lisbon.  Below is the Santa Engracia Church, also known as the National Pantheon.  The market stays open until night.  It seemed very small at first, but as we continued walking, it just kept on going, continuing on to many other small connecting streets.  Although I did not actually buy anything, it seemed to be a good place for anybody into vintage things.  Also, the prices were low!

Santa Justa

Today I went to the famous elevator called Santa Justa Lift.  It is also called the Carmo lift.  It is in the historical part of the city, Baixa and takes you up to Carmo Square.  It was only 1.50 Euro with my ESN (erasmus student) card.  When you get to the top of the elevator, there is a spiral staircase that takes you to the top where you can see this amazing view. At the top, there is also an old cathedral and archeology museum that we visited.  At the top of the elevator, you are at a close walk to Bairro Alto.  The elevator is great because this is a hilly area and can avoid much walking.  

 The view from top