Bom Dia,
It rained hard over most of last night--apparently much to the relief of the Portuguese who had suffered from drought. The season is turning. It's a bit cooler, and there's more rain in the forecast for next week.
I really wanted to see the archeological site under the bank and booked a tour. The tours are free, but they must be reserved on line or by phone. They are given in Portuguese and English. The place is actually very close to where I live. I walk around the corner and down the street a ways, so it was easy for me to arrive a bit early. The tour takes about fifty minutes and is not physically taxing. There are stairs and places one has to duck, but no one in our group had a problem.
The tour is led by an actual archeologist who did a good job giving us a sense of the history and structure of the city from the Iron Age on. She pointed out how the Phoenicians influenced the inhabitants building techniques and life style. The major portion of the ruins are Roman including the remains of a fish factory. Conservas are truly an ancient tradition, but the Romans had a taste for fish left in salt to--uh--mature in the sun. Garum and liquimen were ubiquitous seasonings for all classes. A sort of modern analogy is South East Asian Fish sauce. But Olispo also exported olive oil and some wine. We learned that each product and each province had its own uniquely shaped amphorae. There's an excellent selection of objects retrieved from the excavations.
If you visit Lisbon and have limited time, a better bet is to take this tour rather than hike up to the Roman Theatre. Fortunately I had time to do both.
My tour wasn't until later, so I had time for shopping, and I did not have to go far afield. I got more groceries. I also picked up some cork products and treated myself to a pair of exquisite hand painted candlesticks from a beautiful shop around the corner. The shop folks understand the needs of travelers, and she wrapped up my purchase in plenty of bubble wrap.
But all this money spending and archeology does work up an appetite. And appetite means apero. I'm having more ham and green tea. I actually googled pork fat. Apparently it's not as bad as I thought being less saturated and full of B Vitamins.
To accompany dinner I have a lovely pink wine DOC from the Douro Region. The label proudly proclaims that the winery is family owned. They do good work!
Bye for now
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