Cheap bars, alfresco food, fewer tourists and longer hours of daylight make Lisbon shine even brighter in the cold months, says Jane Mulkerrins. And no hint of dry Jan
by Jane Mulkerrins in The Times UK: In the shadow of the imposing Padrao dos Descobrimentos, a not uncontroversial monument to Portugal’s “Age of Exploration” on the north bank of the mighty Tagus River, I am lunching alfresco on fat local oysters and vinho verde in the winter sunshine, while a nearby busker plays Coldplay’s Yellow on an electric violin (you can’t have everything).
It’s January, and I’m not even wearing a coat. And my lunch of three enormous oysters and wine, from the Ostras Sobre Rodas (oysters on wheels) food truck, has come in at just £8. My inaugural, firmly off-season visit to Lisbon is off to a good start.
With its mild climate and still relatively low cost of living, it’s not hard to see why up to 20,000 digital nomads from the US, UK, Brazil and other countries have decamped to Portugal’s capital in the past four years, encouraged by generous visa schemes. Alfama, the picturesque area below Sao Jorge Castle and one of the oldest neighborhoods, is one area that has boomed in response. Read more
