The best thing about Lisbon is that a sampling of everything Portugal has to offer can be found within the city but without the ado over nothing that other inferior European cities seem to be masters of. Visitors are in awe of the Gothic cathedrals and magnificent monasteries along with the public baths and patio restaurants in the narrow lanes of Lisbon.

And Lisboans being a fun-loving people, tourists will find that there is a festival going on somewhere in the city and in the country at virtually all days of the year. Said festivals may not spill out into the streets but the love for laughter and life is still evident. The best thing is that it is infectious in a very positive way.

One of the best ways to enjoy the local culture is to attend the festa. In all of Portugal, big cities and small towns alike celebrate the feast day of their patron saints. The celebrations are marked with a joyous attitude towards family, friends and visitors alike coupled with copious consumption of food and drinks, spectacular displays of fireworks and processions as well as singing and dancing. Just because the melancholic fado comes from Lisbon does not mean that Lisboans do not how to party – trust us, they do and they do it so well leaving the city is bittersweet parting.

Because of the city’s strong Catholic heritage, it is to be expected that Christian holidays are also observed. These holidays include the days of Lent especially Ash Wednesday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday as well as the Epiphany and Christmas Day. Tourists are bemused to see that Catholic traditions are seamlessly blended with pagan customs, thus, the holidays centered on cults, superstitions and even magic. Still, these are expressions of the love of life that Lisboans have in their culture and which visitors love in turn.

The most notable cult in Portugal that has a strong following in Lisbon is dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima. From May to October, hundreds of thousands make the pilgrimage to Fatima where the Virgin Mary appeared to three children in 1917.

Lest anybody thinks that Lisbon is caught in a Catholic time warp, more modern holidays are springing up inspired by the increasingly cosmopolitan vibe the city is catching on. The most notable of these festivals is the Rock in Rio-Lisbon, a music festival considered as the world’s largest in its kind with many international superstars in performance.

The Fantasporto International Film Festival, one of the oldest film festivals in the country, is held with much gusto in the city. Like the music festival, it also attracts the biggest names in the cinema industry from all over Europe and the rest of the world.

Lisboans exhibit their love for laughter and life in such eloquent ways. It is up to the visitor to become an active part of said love by booking a holiday apartment, which will serve as their second home, online before arriving in the city.

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Category: Recreation and Leisure/Travel/Destinations
Keywords: Lisbon, Portugal, holiday, holidays.