Old Corners - Lisbon

After seven years, we’re back in Portugal! What do we do when we return to a place? We revisit some of our old favorite corners and then move on to discover new ones. This post explores some (not all…there are so many religious sites) of the older places in Lisbon. A couple of spots have been highlighted in previous posts, but most are actually ones we discovered on this latest trip.

Let’s do this in chronological order. Lisbon predates Rome by about 400 years, and the São Jorge Castle is one of the oldest structures dating around 1050.

Sé de Lisboa is the oldest church in Lisbon and opened in 1150. Don’t forget to wander down the sides to see (and smell!) the orange trees.

Livraria Bertrand is considered by the Guinness Book of World Records to be the oldest operating bookstore in the world. Established in 1732, it sits in the Chiado area of Lisbon.

Many buildings were destroyed in the the Great Lisbon Earthquake of 1755. This place’s claim to fame is being the first café in Lisbon since 1782.

Caza das Vellas Loreto. The oldest operating candle store in the world (it smells of beeswax when you go inside). 1789.

Lisbon’s Oldest Pastelaria and one of the oldest in Europe (1829).

Need some presunto? Maybe some freshly made sausage? A quick bottle of wine? Check out the oldest grocery store in Lisbon (1890).

The oldest and some say the smallest ice cream shop opened in 1936.

Since I’m in a gelato mood as I reminisce about Lisbon, here’s the second oldest ice cream shop (1949).