It seems that everyone has been to Lisbon lately. I have never been and was happy to finally explore this city on the weekend – exceptionally without any major project behind other than meeting a friend, and discovering a new place.

It’s hard not to fall in love with Lisbon on arrival, especially when your house is covered with white and blue relief tiles. I was happy about my decision to rent an apartment, which in comparison to other cities now was an amazing value. Two bedrooms, lots of light, beautiful decorating, we felt like we could move in for a few weeks.

We stayed in a more quiet neighbourhood, close enough to explore Belém and Barrio Alto by foot. A few steps away was the perfect breakfast spot, Boulangerie, with an outdoor terrace, delicious food options and cool young staff.

While I didn’t see it all (thankfully to have another reason to return soon), I would recommend to stay at least three days and to explore mostly by foot with good shoes.

Some of the prettiest spots were the Maat in Belém, and the Castelo de S. Jorge with the best views over the city. My favourites were the buildings covered in colourful tiles, totally cliché, but I could spend a week photographing every house in Lisbon.

For food, the quality is excellent, though it’s maybe a little tricky to find Vegetarian options, you will instead find really good fish everywhere.

We ate at Oficina do Duque (the best was the Mousse au chocolate with olive oil and salt),

Esperanca (cozy place in Barrio Alto, if you crave pizza), Pharmacia (delicious and charming interior with a Pharmacy theme, you don’t need to listen to their suggestion to share dishes, the plates are large), Noobai (great for the views, the food was ok) and 1300 Taverna at LX Factory (great dishes, beautiful large bright space in the cool Lx factory, also less busy than the other restaurants in the space because a bit hidden ).

For bars we checked the  very cool Park Bar on top of a parking lot. Go there before sunset to fully enjoy the view on the terrace).

Next time I want to see Sintra, Espelho d’agua (thanks for MAD’moiselle Lafayette @layfaette________) for the suggestions), Museo Berardo and Mosteiro Jeronimos, for Vintage and chocolate cake Outra Face Da Lua, and for dancing at Lux Fragil.

Any recommendations ?