2 PERFECT Days in Lisbon BEST Things to Do, See & Eat
They say Lisbon was built on seven hills, but to us, one hour into our time here, it feels like seventy. Ups and downs indeed. Every corner you turn, there's another incline or staircase or trolley climbing up at an angle. But they tell us that's part of the magic here. And the city makes you work for it. Because at the top of every climb, there's a reward of some sort.
A delicious meal. Wow. An amazing viewpoint. And over the next few days, that's exactly what we're trying to find. Between the highs and the lows, we're hoping to find the real Lisbon. So, we're starting this video in the heart of Lisbon. That is this beautiful plaza. This is the Plaza de Comercio. 'm sorry, my Portuguese. It's named like that because this used to be the place where the merchants, they sell their products. This big area, remember, we're next to the sea. Actually, we can see the sea in front of us. It's so,
so huge. And what a great place to start this video. Now, the weather looks a little bit iffy. We will see if it's as sunny as it says it's going to be today. I really doubt it. Um, but doesn't matter because the next thing we're going to be enjoying is something that a lot of people come to Lisbon just to try and personally so excited for it and it's just a few blocks from here. Perfect. Let's Oh, I feel that. We'll see. All right. Let's go over there. The priority for us right now is pastel. These flaky custardy tarts are famous in Lisbon, but there's a debate between the locals of where to find the best ones. Pastes has been making them since the 1800s and it's the obvious choice for most of the people visiting Lisbon. But there's also a new kid on the block
called Mentearia. And half the locals we've talked to say this place does them better. Lucky for us, Menteia is right here. There's no line. So naturally, we had to investigate for science. Uh quatro pastel ginav. Um, I think Juliana's Portuguese is great. She's just humble. Put it in the comments if you think it's good. Anyway, um, we supposed to get only one. At the last minute, we said, They're too small. Let's get two. And that's exactly what we did. And that's a lot
coming from Martine. He is not a sweet guy. No, but I tried these ones before. But these ones, this is the place where you have to try this city. That's where they were born. Oh my god, it was so cool watching them make these. Spoiler for what's coming ahead. We might get the chance to make some
ourselves, but I'm excited to try these. Let's give it a bite. Wow. Holy Toledo. We actually tried some pastel dinata in Porto, but this is a totally different experience. They're way better here. I heard there's a few things you need to look for for good pastel dinata. They should
be a little bit warm when you're getting them. Obviously, the crust is super important. This one's really flaky. And there's almost like this creme brulee sort of texture going on with how the top of it is a little bit caramelized. Oh my god. I just want like a bag of this nata just like I want it I want it IVed into my body. It's so good. Ups and downs indeed. So you guys don't know this, but I will tell you we forgot an important piece, an important uh cord that it goes for our mics.
But then right now we're streaming in a cell phone and we just figured it out. But we need to go back to our Airbnb. So, this wasn't part of the plan, but we need to take a cable car. So, we're going to show that. We don't have any clue how it works. We don't know how to pay, but we will figure it out. Public transportation used to intimidate us, but somewhere along the way of visiting 33 countries together, we realized if you take public transport in one city, you can figure it out anywhere else. And funny enough, these trams may look vintage, but they accept tap to pay, so boarding was easy. That's surprising because this tram was built
in the 1930s and is still used by locals to get around some of the city's oldest neighborhoods. That was amazing. That was beautiful. All style, you know, and also the wooden chairs, the sounds, how shaky it was, everything, you know. Who knew public transportation could be its own activity? I wish we can have that back home. Well, kind of in San Francisco with the cable cars, but you got
me over there. That's right. Now, while we climb these hills and get our court, here's a few other things to know if you're planning to visit. The official language is Portuguese, of course. But we found out that most locals speaks a little bit of English and Spanish will get you surprisingly far, too. Portugal uses the euro, and things here are relatively affordable compared to other Western
European countries. You'll also be able to pay with card almost everywhere. Just make sure you're using one with no foreign transaction fee that earns you lots of travel points like the ones we have linked in the description. Peak season runs from June through August and it could get very crowded then. But we came in February and loved it. Oh, and don't expect everything
to run on the dot. Time in Lisbon moves a little slower, which is kind of the point. Jackets out because one, we're going on the hills as you see. Two, it's very humid because I think it's going to rain. So, we don't want to sweat a lot. And it's winter. It's winter. Just imagine in summer, honey. We do not complain. So, because today is Tuesday, we decided to pay a visit to Ferra da Ladra, this cute antique market in Lisbon. Got a little carried away with souvenirs
in Japan. We really need to scale back what we're buying when we're traveling, or else our whole house is just going to be covered in stuff. So, Martine and I love to buy small souvenirs that are unique. One thing that I've been on the hunt for lately when we travel is vintage photos. So, I'm hoping we find some good ones here. And Martine likes to get coins, which just take up a couple of a little bit of space in your pocket. This market's open on Tuesdays and Saturdays starting
at 9:00 a.m. And it's so adorable. I have to hold myself back from buying more than just my photos, but it is what it is. You walk through rows of old postcards, ceramic roosters, tangled jewelry, and records that haven't played in decades, and you wonder, who owned these? How did they end up here? Is my life going to end up in some dusty suitcase here one day? There's something beautiful about sifting through what people left behind. And it doesn't take long for us to get distracted from what we actually came here for. A piece of Lisman tile. That would be a great souvenir.
Martin Juliana Martin. Or another lighter. Are these lighters? Could be some. There are lighters. I love these places. Also, I like thrifting. You guys already know if you're in the channel because it looks like you're looking or hunting for a treasure. You know, there's little treasures over here that you can find. Oh dear. Uh oh. This fits like a glove. It looks very good on you, actually. Oh no. So much for that opening shot saying I'm not going to buy anything. How do I
turn this down for 40? This is really nice. I think it's real leather, too. It's old. Okay, fine. I'll get it. Wow. Wow. Meow. Meow. I am the biggest hypocrite that ever lived, aren't I, Martin? That's right. Now, we really we really need to find the photos now for sure. Let's go.
And the coins. Don't forget the coins. This market right here, definitely an up for us in Lisbon. I ended up finding some coins and some bills. You're going to got her photos. Everybody's happy. They aren't kidding about the hills here in Lisbon. They are very, very intense. So, we figured we'd take it easy on our knees. They are killing us right now.
And take the funicular all the way down. It is 4.2 each. And all goes according to plan. We have a good lunch waiting for us at the bottom. This is Timeout Market, a modern food hall inside one of Lisbon's oldest public markets. The building itself dates back to 1892, but in 2014, Timeout magazine took over half of the space and brought together the best chefs, bakers, brewers, and wine makers under one roof. And it's awesome.
This is a pretty cute place. It has these bars in the middle and then surrounded by restaurants. And what's really cool is that these are some of the best restaurants in the city. So, you can try couple plates from a bunch of different spots. Um, but it's hard to pick which one we're going to try. Oh, hi. There you are. I think I already ditched you to talk to them. You did. All right. Is it traditional? Yep. Okay, cool. Cuz we're trying to find something traditional Portuguese. That's right. Even though there's a lot of things like American burgers, there's sushi, there's
there's donuts, there's a couple things, but I think we have to try something from here. Yeah, we can't go off of our original mission like I did at the antique market. Exactly. Anyway, this place looks great, honey. Good job finding those. Yeah. Do traditional. Okay. Soles. So to start this culinary trip in this place, we ordered two croquettes. We ordered the traditional ones only to start. Don't worry. Yeah, we got them from a place called Okay, Croquetaria. What a fitting
name. What I think is super interesting about Croquetaria and a lot of these places in this market is Timeout. They they held a competition in order for them to get that spot. Yep. And their whole goal was to highlight people who have real talent that may not necessarily have the money to be able to establish their own restaurant. And this place won by a landslide for best croqueta.
So a happy ending. And now here they are on our plate. And they're going to be in our mouth. Wa. Definitely some sort of connection between this and the coxinha we ate in Brazil. Very, very similar. Super good. It's like this thick paste. It's super hot. Yum. So, this one is for you. Wait, no, that one's yours. Yeah, I know. But this one looks better. Oh, I'm kidding. This is yours.
Thank you. Now, we pick from this restaurant. This guy, he is like a veteran in comparison with all the people that there over here. An expert. And he does very traditional Portuguese dishes but then elevates it and some people have strong opinions about that. No, but still it looks good. He's known for his rice dishes. So, let's dig in. It's a mix of flavors, chiso, and also has some um mushrooms. So, and and with the risotto that
is perfectly cooked. It's a very good mix of different flavors and the pork also delicious. And I got veal with truffle mashed potatoes, which we all we know this is going to be delicious. So, lunch was another up for us today. And Lisbon is really impressing us. But with the clouds darkening a bit, we're preparing for a storm to hit any hour. So, we should head indoors. And there's a museum I'm very curious about. Of course, in a country like Portugal, there is a museum for the tiles. I'm not surprised. We've been so amazed seeing them all over this country,
especially in Porto and now here. So, now it's time to learn more about them. Before we came to Lisbon, we thought tiles were just tiles. But the mo delejo made us realize that there's more going on here. Their history, religion, storytelling, and identity. The word azulejo actually comes from the Arabic word for polished stone. They were brought here during Moorish rule, and at first they were used just to protect walls and cool down buildings. But over time, they became canvases to tell stories. In a country where literacy wasn't always common, these tiles help people understand the world.
This museum is quite interesting to look at, and it's just €10 to enter and open from Tuesday to Sunday. Holy Toledo. Look at this room. Martine Nappa. Nappa. Bring it to me. Oh, we miss our dog. Just uh I think 19 more days. Yeah. And we're with her for the rest of the year. Yeah. She's in good hands. She's having a blast.
Meanwhile, outside it's starting to rain. Lisbon in the rain is still beautiful, but let's be real. When you're trying to explore, it's not exactly ideal. We wanted to walk this area, but the weather had other ideas. Thankfully, we're able to order a ride, stay dry, and stress free. All thanks to Olafly, who has partnered up with us to bring you this video. We've used Olafly eSIMs in South America, Asia, and now here in Portugal, and we love how easy they are to set up, and they only cost a few bucks a day for unlimited data. And with their regional plans in Europe,
we don't even need to change providers. We just set it up once and we're good to go. So whether it's booking a ride, looking up more info about what we're seeing in a museum, figuring out how to navigate when we're lost, or simply looking up what local dishes to try in a market, we can do it all without worrying about running out of data. No matter where you're traveling, Olafly is a great company to use their eSIM. So for your next trip,
make sure you use the link down in the description or use the code touristtolo to get 5% off a special treat for our viewers. All right, now let's keep exploring. This weather is so crazy, guys. The rain came and went just as fast. Right now, we're in Alfama, which is this gorgeous neighborhood that is kind of probably what you guys think of when you think of Lisbon. Um, up here on the hills, lots of people out here drinking champagne, enjoying the view, trams passing by, and check out the view. Smooth transition, right? When you visit Alfama, it's best to come with no plan and just wander. It's Lisbon's oldest
neighborhood dating back to Moorish times and you can definitely see the influence in the way the streets are designed. They're kind of maze-like, and that's a classic architectural feature of Moorish urban planning. And it was meant to provide shade, a sense of community, and defend the city. And the layout of this neighborhood definitely adds to the charm. There's
laundry hanging above your head, a guitar playing somewhere in the distance. You might stumble upon Mirador das Portas do Sol or Miradouro de Santa Lucia, two of the best viewpoints in the city. Or maybe you'll find yourself in the Lisbon Cathedral, which is the oldest church in the city and has been here since the 12th century. That's where we ended up for a bit.
Lisbon up until now is really impressing me. I mean, we've had our ups and downs, but the city itself is so, so charming, and I'm understanding why it's becoming such a popular destination. And this particular neighborhood, I love it. I could spend days just hanging out here. But now, I think we're going to be finding dinner. We have no clue where we're going tonight, but we've been seeing a lot of fado restaurants, so we'll see if maybe we can get a little bit of a show while we have our dinner. That would be nice. After the sun went down, we walked around Alfama with zero plans on where to go until we heard guitar echoing down a quiet alleyway. We followed the sounds and found ourselves at Fado na Morgadinha, a tiny restaurant with just a few tables, a chalkboard menu, and dimmed lighting that Feels like, well, someone's living room. The menu
here was sangria and a meat and cheese board. Nothing fancy, but in the corner were three musicians playing traditional fado music, which we talked about in last week's episode in Porto. So, this is where we spent the evening, and we're really glad we did it. It's a cash only place, open Tuesday to Saturday, and probably it's best to make a reservation. We got very lucky that there was a seat.
Good morning, sleepy heads. I love what you end up learning in English. I never know what's going to come out your mouth. This morning, we decided we want to have breakfast in a really authentic way. So, we are asking finano. We want to keep trying as much Portuguese food as possible because guess what? It's our last day in Portugal. Can you believe it? Yeah. I'm very sad we're leaving
the place. But right now, you know why I'm sad? Because I'm hungry. Funny. I know. Me, too. Martin did some research and he was looking up some traditional dishes that we should try when we're in Portugal. And one is at this little shop right here. It's tiny. There's a lot of panas around the city, but I heard this is the best one. Let's take a look inside. It's small. Locals only dining in there, so I don't know how much talking we can do. Try our best. That's right. And we are going to be one of the first customers this morning. Let's go. It might not look like much, just pork on bread, but it's the way the meat is cooked that makes this bifana delicious. The pork is marinated with garlic, white wine,
paprika, and some other secret ingredients. And here, they only cost €3 each. What a deal. Now, we aren't going to lie to you guys. Filming in restaurants is the most awkward part of our job as travel creators. Yeah. I mean, sometimes we have to report over there and it's very crowded or
I don't know, like yesterday night that we were literally sharing a table. A table. Yeah. So, you never know what you're going to get when you go into a restaurant and whenever we can, we like to take things to go. Hunting creators, they don't talk a lot about this, but for instance, we have uh do you remember that experience in a market in Japan? In Japan, you guys, our Tokyo food video, we showed sashimi. The couple next to us was making fun of us. It was an older couple, you know, like they were, I don't know, they were making fun and so we always try to keep it down, like we don't want to bother anyone. We're just trying to do our job, but sometimes people just don't get it. Anyway, anyway, enough of our gripes. We're going to try this. Wow. Mmm. The bread,
I thought it would be dry. It's incredible. But with this, the, with the meat, it, it makes it perfect. Yep. It's incredible. The bread is so soft. The inside reminds me of carnitas. Delicious hot sandwich. Perfect for this morning. After breakfast, we make our way up to one of the most iconic sites in Lisbon, Castelo de São Jorge, or St. George's Castle. Perched on the city's highest hill. This place has watched over Lisbon for centuries. It was originally a Moorish fortress taken by Christian forces in the 12th century during the reconquest. Today,
it's a place tourists can come explore for €15 each. And there's tons to see here. This place is massive. This is such a beautiful place. I cannot believe we're here. It's not a simple castle. It's surrounded by nature and has one of the best views, if not the best, of the entire city. Wait, are these real? Like this place wasn't lovely and beautiful enough. They have peacocks. Now, I'll be honest. We were contemplating how on earth can we bring pastel de nata
back home with us because we still have six cities we're visiting after this in Europe. Well, we have an idea and it won't be bringing the physical pastel de natas back home with us, but maybe, just maybe, we can learn how to make them. So, that's what we're going to be doing next. We met up with Karolina, a local who knows how to make a good pastry. Now,
pastéis were invented back in the 18th century by Catholic monks at the Jerónimos Monastery, not far from where we are now. At the time, egg whites were commonly used to starch laundry. So, monks had a lot of leftover yolks. And what do you do when life hands you yolks? You make custard. Okay. Wow. Look at that color. That's where, that's where the yellow comes from. Oh,
yeah. One thing I thought that she said was very interesting is that when you're mixing the custard, you need to do it very slow. Two reasons. Portuguese are very relaxed. They don't want to work too hard. Second of all, you don't want to incorporate too much air into it. Anyways, so the monks came up with this recipe and sold the pastéis de nata to support their monastery and they Became so popular that when the monastery closed in the 1800s, they sold a secret recipe to a businessman. That guy opened a bakery called Pastéis de Belém, the one we told you before that is still running today. We're going to use the parchment paper and tap it to make a little smoother and straighter edge. Cube. Solid cube. Solid cube. Now, back to the kitchen. The
truth is that making the custard is easy. It's the pastry part that's hard. Today, we're making puff pastry from scratch. And we learned that there's a lot of margarine involved. Lots. It's only after we finish the dough that Carolina suggests that if we make these at home,
we probably should just buy pre-made puff pastry to make our lives easier. We agree. I had no idea this, but there's actually a swirl at the bottom of every pastel de nata. And that's what we have right here. I would have to look for it, honey. Yeah. What are your impressions after watching that? That was very hard. You didn't even do anything.
You did one. Let's give this a try. So hot. They're still very, very hot. But tastes good. Dang, this is super cool. I'm glad we did this because gives you a whole different idea of all the effort that goes into one of these pastel de nata that you inhale in like 20 seconds if you're me. Um, I want to try making these at home. I need to buy some of those little tins. I think there's no option anymore. You need to make it at home, please. We'll leave a link down in the description if you would like to book this tour because you got to book it ahead and it's awesome. After learning how to make pastéis de nata, we figured it only made sense to visit the place where it all began. So, we made our way to the Jerónimos Monastery and honestly,
we weren't prepared for how stunning it would be. It was built in the 1500s to honor Vasco da Gama's voyage to India and funded by Portugal's growing spice trade. We recommend you buy your tickets online in advance since the lines are crazy. It costs €18 each to enter here. This is so beautiful. One of the most beautiful cloisters that I have ever
seen in my entire life. And this started like a little church where the mariners they spent the night before their expedition. So it's very important. And then it became this that is a monastery. I cannot tell you how beautiful it looks from here. And a lot of people, they come over here only to see this place that is of course beautiful. Beautiful indeed. Not too far is another popular spot, the Belém Tower. Between the monastery and this spot,
it's the first time we've really felt the crowds here in Lisbon. Yeah. I mean, we didn't feel it in the castle because we arrived very early. But over here, the line is so long. So long that it arrives to Porto. No, I'm kidding. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. It's one of those places that you really have to think about with your own itinerary, like is it worth it for me to stand in this line for maybe 30 minutes or longer? At the monastery, I think it was. It was very nice inside there. That's right. But here, I mean,
the tower is the tower. I don't think we need to go inside. I think it's beautiful from right here. But people from Lisbon watching this, tell us, have we made a giant mistake by not going inside? I'm curious. And of course, I think it would be much shorter if we arrived when it opens or when it's about to close, you know. But you can't always do that, right? Nope. No, you have to choose the specific places that you're going to visit. So, we're going to admire it from out here on this beautiful lawn right in front of it.
And I also want to see this Golden Gate Bridge dupe over here as a San Francisco girly myself. That's right. So, let's go see it. Oh, it's pretty much it. So, for my Bay Area people, this is the Golden Gate. And over here, wherever you can see the crane, that's Oakland. Somewhere over here is Alcatraz, but you just you cannot see it right now. Lisbon really is a city of ups and downs. The hills, the stairs, the ancient trolleys, sure, but also the moments that surprised us. Finding that perfect jacket at a market stall we
almost skipped. Watching a fado performance in a restaurant we wandered into by accident. And yeah, getting caught in the rain, forgetting part of our mics, crowds we didn't expect. But that's travel, isn't it? It's never a straight path. And maybe that's the point. You climb, you stumble, you laugh, you learn. That's what it means to travel.
After the sun goes down, we head out for our last activity in Lisbon, dinner. And this place doesn't feel like a typical restaurant. This is Rosa da Rua. For our last stop, Martin did his research and he said, I'm going to take you to a buffet tonight. He knows I love buffets. This does not
look like any buffet I have ever been To in my life. It feels more like you're in a Portuguese family's living room. Um, they put out a couple of dishes for us to try. It's €20 each for us to eat as much as we want. And um, this is exactly how I'd like to end our time here in Lisbon. This looks good. There's a lot of dishes over here. A lot of vegetables,
which we need. Yes, we do. Soup, bread, everything. If you stay till this, you saw that restaurant. Please come. It's like a very hidden gem. Yep. Next week, we're headed to Spain, a destination you guys have begged us to go
to for a while. We're going to leave you a video over here so you can follow our adventures. So long, travel well. Make the world your neighborhood. See you guys next time. Bye.
2025-05-03 22:59
