Alfama from the Cruise Terminal: The Quarter That Survived

I'm Prof. Julian Sato, and we're beginning our walk at the Terminal de Cruzeiros de Lisboa, where the Tagus flows past Lisbon's most ancient district. Alfama's tangled street pattern is still here because the earthquake of 1755, which flattened the lower town, largely spared this quarter. On our way up we'll stand before a stone portal that outlived the church it once opened into, we'll reach the Sé, the cathedral Lisbon began building in the very year the city was taken from the Moors, and we'll step onto a terrace where the whole quarter lies at your feet, before a final surprise at the top of the hill. A word of honesty about the ground: Alfama is built into a steep hillside, and this walk climbs some sixty-five metres from the river, a little over two hundred feet, much of it on narrow lanes and steps. Take it at Lisbon's pace: slowly, with a pause whenever you need one. The route ends within easy walking distance of the ship. Let's begin.