52 Weeks, 52 Half Marathons - Stage 25
Lisbon stairs...
Saturday, July 6, 6:17 AM
Sintra woke up to very strong winds and light rain. Not the most inviting scenery to encourage me to step into Lisbon. I am still sour from France having kicked Portugal out of the Euro yesterday - any cursing today will have to be in French.
“Putain!” I forgot my water bottle and already lost 10 minutes driving back to pick it up. And so it began, 4 flights of stairs climbed during pre-game to fetch my precious hydration (and some rain to cool me off).
Cloudy “noir”
Today’s route is packed with attractions, and I am once again eager to show you around. Because of my initial fumble, I had to divert parking to Amoreiras, knowing that this would add almost 2km to my planned climbing feast.
Office building - once home of a bookstore (not sure)
Some of the previous runs also started in the area, an easy parking spot, an easy starting point (going down), a ruthless executioner after 20+ km.
If my memory is not betraying me, we start by an office building that was, for a brief time (about one year), the largest bookstore in Portugal - Byblos. I love bookstores and libraries. You can find the oldest in the world in Lisbon and the magical-inspiring Harry Potter one in Porto.
No time for reading, for hors d’oeuvre, Amoreiras serves me a bitter-sweet descent for the 1st km. I do have a lot of fun planning the routes using Komoot. I get excited about the landmarks and the demanding stretches of the route. A little too excited sometimes. I knew I had to apply rule number 2 of the APF’s running guide at the bottom of the descent - “ What goes down must come up”.
In case you are wondering, rule number 1 is - “Enjoy your runs!”
Amazing climbing pattern
We are going through a residential neighborhood, using the middle of the road, because we - 6:00 AM - can. OK, I did jump into the sidewalk to let a police car go by. It’s a narrow one way street going down and coming up.
It’s stair-steep but paved with a pain-soothing pattern that I had not seen before. Nothing like a beautiful surprise to push us up the hill, pain-free. This would be the first wall-ramp of more than 20 along the way.
Another nice surprise - Paróquia de Santa Isabel
The road leads to the déjà vu Bairro of Campo de Ourique. We have been here before but will explore it through slightly different streets. “Sacré bleu!” the clouds are stealing us precious light. I mentioned before that trash-men are my running buddies but I inadvertently left out public transportation drivers. They also make me company, and the yellow tram and bus colors stand out on the photos.
Entering Campo de Ourique
Campo de Ourique is a flat grid neighborhood where nothing is happening except for some early cafés that are getting ready to open. Still, there are no scents of croissant or café to taunt me. I am free to use the roads at will, and even the very same cop car agrees by stopping at an intersection, and waiting for me cross, not the road, but in the road. The difference between a free state and a policed free state - liberté.
I don’t think many countries have it as we do in Portugal
Amoreiras towers are hard to hide
Campo de Ourique is considered to be chic, but I have my eyes set on the Campolide neighborhood, further to the north. We have a rendezvous with the majestic aqueduct, Aqueduto das Águas livres. I had hopes that we could run on top of it, it’s possible, but we got sabotaged by its tardily schedule (10 AM).
The run goes parallel to the aqueduct, and down a good stretch of stairs that I planned on climbing back on the other side of the aqueduct.
Aqueduto das Águas livres
I am struggling to get a good angle for a photo, we are too close so instead of climbing back on the stairs we proceed north on a road perpendicular to the aqueduct hoping to get a nice frame of the landmark. Tough luck, I could not find a clean shot and was not going to further detour our route. We will have to leave the place without the perfect souvenir.
The houses kept hiding it
Time to climb our way out of Campolide. We escaped the stairs but now face some hills that are just as hard. I know the area but want to follow the plan as much as possible to avoid repeating roads from previous runs. This means that I have to be looking at the map more often than I normally have to and since I don’t want to stop or slow down, I end up making mistakes. Today I made many. The climb takes us to upper class Campolide.
I am curious about the different ceiling heights on the ground floor
We are now at the 6th km, crossing the border into the Avenidas Novas region (new avenues) and enjoying a 3 km descent to rest a little bit before the challenges to come.
Some blue skies are now peeking between the clouds as we go down the well know Rua Rodrigo da Fonseca
Interesting façades on Rua Rodrigo da Fonseca
We are moving from the west-side hills to the east-side hills crossing the main avenue, Avenida da Liberdade, which surprisingly had barely any traffic. We take Rua de Santa Marta, that runs almost parallel to Avenida da Liberdade just one block away.
What an impressive contrast. Avenida da Liberdade being the most expensive retail real estate, compared to narrow, unevenly paved, road and sidewalk. We have to be on full alert during this stretch to avoid twisting an ankle. I mention this because I almost did. I misplaced my left foot on road hole, and got one of those adrenaline punches to the stomach, as I barely managed to escape serious injury - faux pas!
Rua de Santa Marta
We must not get too carried away by the sweet baits ahead of us. To our left, a few stairs could take us to the top of the east hill, but we are looking for the special one.
Unfortunately, there are way too many graffiti
At 8.8 km, we hit jackpot. I was drooling to get here, my favorite genre, the funicular Ascensor do Lavra - 188 m at 22.9% average grade. What a beauty. I got here before operation time, so it is perfectly safe to ascent the “col do Lavra” right through the middle of the track.
Too bad there is some renovation going on
The lamps inside the cars looked amazing
Respect! There is no escape
Riding these is a must in Lisbon
The funicular cars were parked half way through the climb. It was too tight to comfortably pass through the middle, and I was not sure if there was a way out at the top. The detour is a stair climb massacre. I got to the top with my body on the red line, so intense that it just affected my breathing as I write - that’s when you know that the moment memorable.
Universidade Nova - Medicine
At the top, besides the interesting architecture of the University buildings (old and new), there is a cozy park, Jardim do Torel that I have yet to explore - it’s still closed this early. It has a great view to the city. We cross Campo do Mártires da Pátria, encore, the 3rd time, and head down for another reconnaissance itinerary around the castle.
Palácio da Bemposta
There is no shortage of interesting buildings, many in dire need of renovation, and I like to dream about how much more beautiful Lisbon can become if we take good care of existing buildings.
At the 10.5 km, after crossing one of Lisbon’s main avenues, Almirante Reis, I am confronted with a harsh reality. Around the church there are numerous tents set up by homeless people. I was not expecting that. The streets are filled with way too much trash in this area. Sad in every aspect.
Target in sight
We move along roller coaster road that will climb around the castle hill. There is no shortage of shortcut paths, aka, stairs to take us to the top.
It’s also fun to skid down that handrail
The streets remain tram-friendly but not car-friendly. Maintaining the cobblestone road is no easy task but is necessary to preserve the character of the city. Some of these climbs are so steep that they have to be undercover stairs. The roads are still mostly mine.
_Huffing and puffing to the castle wall _
Every now and then, we get to peek to the city down below and up and above. There is no such thing as a flat road around here. I like climbing but I also like predictability and even though I know the area, I certainly am not a connoisseur, so I keep getting a few surprise climbs.
Interesting view from someone’s backyard
Some of the streets in the area are in impeccable condition and that makes a total difference. Portuguese tiles are indeed remarkable. It’s only the 12th km and Lisbon has been beating me up, kindly. Going down some stairs is just as punishing as climbing them up.
_I removed a crane from the photo - because ML can. _
Our legs gain a live of their own when we are running, a kind of auto-pilot that fine tunes their movement for optimized battery usage. Stairs, going down, mess everything up. It’s as if you no longer know how to walk and awkwardly limp your way down. I don’t want to take any risks descending (I leave plenty of that for my MTB rides when I have padding around my body).
Every alley has a surprise for us - only the blue sky is missing
I am starting to realize that it’s going to be a longer-than-usual run today. I am lucky that the weather is perfect for running. There are several leftovers from the Popular Saints parties that went around town during June - the Lisbon version of Mardi Gras.
We are moving through narrow petite alleys and desert streets. I have never felt an inch of insecurity. That’s priceless.
Keeping the festive look
I am collecting more photos than usual, it will be hard to filter out of this hoarding activity. We roam through multiple interesting streets, all of them providing great snapshots of the city. They are still ours for grabs, not a coup d’état, just our usual morning benefits.
Another set to go down like C3PO
I planned on visiting a key tourist attraction close to the river and completely forgot that we would fly by an event better one on the way there - Sé de Lisboa - a simple yet magnificent Cathedral en route to the castle. The whole area is a tourism boutique, where you can easily observe many of Lisbon’s postcards. It’s my lucky day and I get to frame the local tram with the Cathedral on the back. I do make a running squat to try and frame it - that’s hard.
Not perfect but I could put a stamp and mail it
I do have to change my route slightly to correct my planning mistake. Totally worth it as we go down the street and around the Cathedral from the 12th century (with multiple modifications over the years).
The cathedral with its beautiful silhouette
We keep navigating our way down to the river line, making another mistake, as there are too many small streets and alleys. I come to realize that most of the people that are now going around in the city are immigrants on their way to work. I hope they feel welcome here. Many people do not have the slightest idea on how hard it is to leave home and struggle away from your loved ones to make a living. It’s like being an entrepreneur, but instead of having capital at risk, it’s your life that is being invested. Not that there is a physical threat, it’s your heart and soul that get tested. Never, ever forget that - fraternité
Lisbon famous - Casa dos Bicos
Finally, close to the shoreline around the 15th km, we are offered an almost full km of resting-flat terrain cutting through the middle of Baixa Pombalina. We have already collected fine souvenirs from this neighborhood during previous runs, but carefully select non-overlapping routes to complete the painting of the map. Next spot on the list are the Chiado stairs challenge.
First set of Chiado’s stairs
Today my legs are shouting back at me, I slightly exaggerated the climbing effort, my brain was given carte blanche to plan, but my legs had no voting rights - égalité.
We are at the 15.5km, and the dictator starts computing the total distance ahead of us. Oops! It’s going to be a lot more than 21k today. As an efficient tyrant… proceeds to the second flight of stairs in Chiado.
The pink elephant marks the spot
There is a Belgian beer bar halfway through the stair climbing that has the power to have my stomach convince my legs to cooperate - “-If you behave, you might be rewarded with some of this nectar… “.
How typical, use vice and addiction to manipulate the sufferers. The apéritif will have to be for later, we are almost 9 km away from finish line.
Lucky mistake
I make another wrong turn and start going uphill, distracted by the tram track and another photo opportunity. I start glancing at the end of the road and remembering that there is no way out at the top. Of course, I am on the wrong street, down we go.
A climb that could have been avoided
Eventually, we cruise down some additional stairs taking us to where the bar quarter where all the night action happened. I have no fine adjectives today, as the stench and trash repulse me. The cleaning crew has not arrived yet and the party animals lost their minds last night. Several blocks are tainted.
My montage hides the sad reality on the ground.
We have another flat km ahead of us, cruising by the TimeOut market. An old regular market that has been transformed into an interesting dining/drinking place. You can sample all kinds of cuisine, a nice spot for gathering with some friends. The few times that I have been there, it has always been way too packed for my taste.
Lisbon market
We are running on a parallel street to the main avenue, 24 de Julho. It’s a premium spot and is slowly being taken over by the money holders. The main Portuguese power company, EDP, has built here their brochure-worthy headquarters building. It’s a fine work of architecture that fits the landscape. I am running a little low on power and water. I planned a loop in the area before beginning the final ascent to the finish line.
EDP Headquarters
It has been a long run, and my phone battery has seen better days too. Between the map navigation and all the photos that I have been shooting, it drained way too much. The last thing I want for my battery to die before finishing my run. I have to start rationing my photos and better memorizing the route until the end.
ISEG - School of Economics and Management
There is still climbing involved in the loop, and a run through ISEG Economics and Management school (they had a great mobile APP that a team from my company developed for them) - it is a fine institution. We are going parallel to the river and then coming back at two different heights - so I thought. It is two different average heights, but with ramps at both levels. This intermittent punishments are starting to take a toll.
Tram spider webs also make interesting shots
The sky is alternating between some blue openings and dark gray shades. I wanted the sun to color the city, but I also don’t want it now because I am running low on water. It’s the 20th km and we are still down here. Amoreiras is a long way from the river. Today is one of those days where Lisbon seems to have infinite attractions. We have just run past the museum - Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga.
Igreja de Santos-o-Velho
It’s time to search for the trail back to the top. Don’t ask me why, but I picked a really narrow alley to begin my incursion back into the mountains. Not a bad option, because it hides the hardship of what’s to come.
Blind alley
Just as hidden as the previous alley are, you guessed it, another set of stairs before breakfast - parfait, says the brain. You lunatic - shout my legs in chorus with my lungs.
These were as hard as they look harsh
The stairs are the least of our “problems”, the climb after is brutal. Today has been a total slaughter of my calves and Achilles but they are holding strong - what an amazing feeling. Another stair-steep hill to climb. I confess that I am now suffering quite a bit. We are close by the 21st km. It should be game over.
Let's not bother calculating how steep this is. Let’s just say it is stair-steep
Everything is now entering into power-saving mode: low battery on the phone, low on water and low fuel in my legs as well. Still, like a magician, the street kept hypnotizing me up the hill with Lisbon showing off like there is no end to it.
Another variation of the road blocks
It’s going to be almost 4km going uphill, following a hacksaw shape. We can take a peek at Assembleia da República as we approach Largo de Jesus looking at the beautiful Igreja de Nossa Senhora das Mercês.
Interesting on how the stairs remind the parliament stairs that is a few blocks away
My 12 Max battery is dying on me. There are so many things to photograph and keep me distracted from the hard climb. I guess I will have to concentrate on remaining injury free by not pushing too hard. Just one last photo of a renewed building that reminds me a Parisian style. I will have to say, it’s the other way around. They made it Lisbon style.
Lisbon in Paris
We are finally back at the top, having to make some last minute changes to the route to shorten the already too long run. Strava keyed in 24.08 km. Maybe more than the real distance, but you can’t fool the climbs and the stairs, 534 m, 1750 ft.
They have been an absolute slaughter on my legs. C’est terminé.
When I am passionate about something I won’t stop talking about it.
I had a hard time to stop writing today. Vive le Portugal!
Enjoy you runs!
-APF
