This past weekend I took a weekend getaway to the beautiful and colorful city of Lisbon in Portugal with four of my girl friends. We planned this trip two weeks prior and I’m so glad I was able to convince them to visit Lisbon. Many of my teammates and friends from college back home were either from Portugal or Brazil, so I’ve picked up a few catch phrases in the language and I am a huge fan of the music. I was excited but other than that I didn’t know much about Portuguese traditions, culture, or history.

Since Portugal is one of the oldest countries in Europe, I was surprised to see so many colors EVERYWHERE in the city. Seriously- the most colorful city I’ve ever visited! Fried sardines and Port wine are traditional here, as well as cork. The city is veryyy hilly so bring comfortable walking shoes (thanks Dad for the advice). On another father-like note, I never feel like I have truly visited a city until I learn its history… So, here are some of the coolest facts I learned about Portugal whilst my time in Lisbon:

Portugal is the oldest nation-state in Europe.

~It became the kingdom of Portugal in 1139, and its borders have barely changed since 1297.

Portugal is a founding member of NATO and an EU member
~It joined the European Economic Community (EEC), now the European Union (EU), in 1986.

An earthquake, tsunami & fires?
In 1755, Lisbon was struck by one of the most powerful earthquakes in European history, about a 9.0 magnitude earthquake, which was followed by a tsunami, and fires that brought the city to rubble! Furthermore, the earthquake struck on All Saints Day, a major holiday when the churches were filled with burning candles. The earthquake struck, toppling the candles, causing major fires. 275,000 residents were killed and 85% of the buildings were destroyed! People talk about the devastating earthquake to this day.

Lisbon is older than Rome, and among the oldest cities in Europe
~Archaelogical finds dating back to 1200BC reveal Phoenecian populations in and around Portugal’s capital city.

Around 81 percent of Portugal’s population are Roman Catholics
~Christianity came to Portugal when it was part of the Roman Empire

The longest bridge in Europe is in Portugal
~The six-lane, cable-stayed Vasco de Gama bridge crossing the Tagus River to the north of Lisbon is over 10 miles long.

My personal fave: The Portuguese are fatalists
~Portugal has a tradition of fado, the idea that one’s fate or destiny cannot be escaped, and it’s the name given to a form of traditional Portuguese singing that’s been given UNESCO World Intangible Cultural Heritage status. You’ll often hear fado in bars, cafes and restaurants – melancholic songs of love, loss, hopefulness and resignation – accompanied by soulful guitars, mandolins and violins. Fado also appears in in everyday speech: people often use the expression oxalá which means ‘hopefully’ or ‘if only’, from the Arabic inshallah = ‘god willing’.

The Livraria Bertrand (Bertrand Bookshop) in Lisbon is the world’s oldest bookshop
~Founded in 1732. Sadly it was one of the many casualties of the Great Lisbon Earthquake of 1755, which scored 8.5 on the Richter scale and left around 60,000 dead. The bookshop set up shop on Rua Garrett in 1773, where it still stands.

I visited this book shop and I can personally attest it’s one of my favorite places in Europe. I also bought a book by my new favorite poet, Fernando Pessoa, and I’m already almost done with it (for the first time through).

Sport Lisboa e Benfica is considered the world’s most widely supported football club
~According to the Guinness Book of World Records, with 160,389 paid-up members as at 9 November 2006. Cristano Ronaldo, my hero, was also born in Portugal in 1985.

Over half the world’s cork comes from Portugal
~Portugal has the largest cork oak forests (montados) in the world and its cork oak (Quercus suber L) is protected by law. Cork is stripped from the trunk of the cork oak every nine years without damaging the tree.

Yes there really is cork every where. You can find almost any gift for your loved ones made out of cork in the many gift shops in Lisbon.

Portugal is a world leader in renewable energy
~By July 2014 around 70 percent of its energy came from renewable sources such as wind, hydro and solar power. One of the world’s largest photovoltaic farms is near the town on Moura in south-east Portugal. Innovative projects include a floating wind farm (the WindFloat) and WaveRoller, which converts the movement of ocean waves to energy and electricity.

I wasn’t aware that Portugal was a world leader in this field but environmental responsibility is huge for me so I was pleasantly surprised to learn this fact.

And not to forget….. The world’s largest omelette was made in Portugal
~In Santerém on 11 August 2012. It took 55 people, six hours, 145,000 eggs, 880lbs of oil and 220lbs of butter to make the 6,466kg omelette.

My question is – who ate the omelette?

I had an amazing time in Lisbon and can’t wait to go back with my family in April. It’s always fun to go somewhere before my family does so I can be the tour guide 🙂 Hasta luego!