Inside the Lisbon Cathedral

By this time, the sun was already out in full force and it was very warm. It doesn’t help that the terrain of Lisbon is hilly. This made my exploration even slower. I had hoped to take the tram to the top of the trail and work my way down. Unfortunately, the trams were full. I don’t know if this is because of tourists who take the tram just for fun or if the tram is used by the locals. Having said that, I would have wanted to try riding the tram myself. Perhaps it would be easier on the way back. Amazingly the tram was able to climb up the steep streets of Lisbon. I always thought that tram wheels are slippery.

After a bit of walking, I finally made it to the Lisbon Cathedral, one of the major landmarks of Lisbon. The cathedral built on a hill but it was difficult to see it from afar since the streets of downtown Lisbon are very narrow. Even the sidewalks of Lisbon are narrow. Combine that with a tram barreling down and you got a scary situation. Anyway, the cathedral is a welcome respite from the hot sun and I was taking my time to explore it. It took some time for my eyes to adjust to the darkness in the cathedral.

The cathedral was large, almost cavernous. From the look of the arches, it seems that this cathedral is mostly Romanesque in design. Most characteristic of Romanesque design is the rose window outside the cathedral. I was surprised to know that there was a church here since the 1100s. The structure has been rebuilt, enhanced several times to what it is today. It has incorporated gothic designs on top of its Romanesque origins. Curiously enough, it doesn’t have Manueline designs which is a popular design of Portuguese churches and monasteries.

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