We’ve been back in LA for a couple of weeks, and I’ve been going through the hundreds of photos I took while Carla and I were in Portugal. I used my iPhone 12 Mini to take pictures, and I’m pleased with the quality of the photos, especially compared to my last phone (an iPhone 8). I learned about the iPhone’s ultra-wide feature on this trip, which is good for taking photos of landscapes and street scenes.
In this issue of The Magnet, I’m sharing photos featuring small places in Portugal. (To see high-resolution versions of the images below, go here.)
The seaside town of Cascais is about 25 minutes from Lisbon by train.This tiny cafe/Internet radio station is called Lusophonica Online Radio. Excellent espresso and croissants. Listen to their station and watch the DJs here. (Map)
Livraria Alexandria is a tiny used bookstore in Lisbon. It was closed when I visited, but I snapped this photo through the window (Map)
Amazingstore in Lisbon sells excellent maker-made items and has a little cafe in the back. (Map)
You will find lots of small temporary structures offering 15-minute Covid-19 tests.
Like this one, some apartment doors in Lisbon are only about 4 feet tall!
Escadinhas Terreiro do Trigo is the narrowest street in Lisbon. It’s barely wide enough for one person. There’s an apartment accessible from it. (Street view)
On this steep stairway in Porto, an entrepreneur sells water and beer on the honor system.
At the entrance to the Jardim Botânico de Lisboa, which has tropical and rare plants, is a truck selling Fábrica coffee, which makes our favorite espresso in Portugal. (Map)
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TThis is a trailer converted into a flower stand at the LxFactory, which is a former industrial complex that now has shops and restaurants,
Every morning, the proprietor of this general store set out samples of his wares, including luggage, shoes, brooms, and leather scraps. (Map)
The same family has been running the Caza das Vellas Loreto candle shop in Lisbon since 1789. Atlas Obscura has a good article about it,
Here’s Carla at the stair landing at Livraria Lello in Porto, described as the world’s most beautiful bookstore. JK Rowling lived in Porto while writing the first Harry Potter book, and while some say its neo-Gothic architecture inspired her to envision Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, she claims she never set foot in the shop, which was built in 1906. Be prepared for a long line to get in.
You’ll find well-stocked mini-markets on nearly every street in Lisbon and Porto. Besides selling good bread, eggs, and produce, they also sell 5GB high-speed SIM cards for 10 euros.
On our third night in Lisbon, Carla and I saw a sign that said “ONIGIRI” with an arrow pointing up a steep, quiet street. We followed it, and sure enough, it was a restaurant selling rice triangles with different fillings. (I came back the next day to take this picture in the daylight.)
