Hyundai Lisbon Half Marathon

On the Ground

March is Lisbon before the crowds compress the Alfama into something unnavigable. It rains sometimes, which makes the light do things to the terracotta that no photograph has captured correctly. Eat the pão de deus warm from the bakery on your block. Drink the wine — the actual wine, not the export version. The city is older than the concept of Portugal and does not particularly care if you notice. Skip the tourist tram up to Alfama; walk it. The descent is where the city reveals itself. Pastéis de nata exist on a spectrum and you will spend three days refining your position on where the best ones are. This is time well spent.