Rossio

You'd think that, since the Castelo de São Jorge is the highest point in the city, that the rest of my day touristing around was pleasantly downhill, but no such luck - Lisbon has seven hills. Rossio is the popular name of King Pedro IV Square, which has served as a public square since the middle ages. Twice, I tried to visit the ruins of the Carmo Convent, which was destroyed in the 1755 earthquake and never rebuilt. But it was closed both times, so I had to make do with looking at only the exterior. The Igreja de São Roque is a Jesuit church built in the 16th century which survived the earthquake almost intact. The baroque gilded wood ornamentation was added in the 17th century. St. Roch is apparently the patron saint of plague victims. Cheery!Read more