It's been an interesting weekend. I visited Portugal, ate a lot of codfish pastries, stood at the westernmost point in Europe and I may or may not be a Freemason now. In this post, I'll let you in on the lesser known rituals of the Free Masons and the many sides of Lisbon as it is today.
Song of the Week: Bem Melhor by Academia de Berlinda or by Lagum
Lisbon is a strange place; it is a city in transition. It's just touristy enough to have the typical features of any other large European city, but not enough for the residents to care about making the tourists feel comfortable or make it a popular tourist destination. Most people speak English, but almost all of them are centered around the city's well known tourist spots, like Santa Juan's Lift or Praca Restuadores. The residents seem to just tolerate the tourists, and may be in the difficult process of accepting that they are never going to leave. One of the staff at our hostel explained that many of the residents of Lisbon are moving farther and farther away from the city center as more and more of it is being taken over by hotels, hostels and Air BnB apartments specifically for the increasing number of tourists. That being said, lodging is extremely cheap, since it is high in supply and low in demand. This weekend we had the pleasure of staying at an amazing hostel right on the main square. With free breakfast in the morning and free sangria in the evening, we didn't have to spend much on meals and could spend more on activities and souvenirs.
Lisbon is a city that has a little something for everyone. Sure, there's your typical tourist attractions and shopping, but there are also tons of outdoor activities like surfing or hiking, or those lesser known gems, like the circus-themed sardine shop. Artists, whether street or professional, also thrive in the city. The local government actually encourages graffiti and street art by setting up certain places around the city that are meant to act as outdoor exhibits. Professional artists set up booths in the squares and under colonnades that tourists can view as they walk by. Fun Fact: Salazar Slytherin from Harry Potter was named after the Salazar who led the dictatorial regime in Portugal until 1974. J.K. Rowling spent some time teaching in Portugal during the late 1980s, so some parts of the HP universe have been influenced by Portuguese history, cities and culture.
Portugal is the westernmost country in Europe and, as such, it has a long history of exploration. With the ocean bordering about half the country, why wouldn't you want to see what else is out there? Vasco da Gama, one of the most famous explorers of all time, is actually entombed in Jeranimo's Monastery which we were able to visit on Friday. Da Gama is known for finding a sea route around the southern tip of Africa and opening trade and commerce with Asia (and arguably facilitating colonialism). I was pretty amazed that we were able to see the tomb of a guy that lived 600 years ago and we had learned about in our history classes. The monastery's design is somewhat simple, but the beauty is in the details. We got there right at sunset, and the whole courtyard lit up with a beautiful amber glow that slowly faded as the sun went down.
While everyone in the States was eating Thanksgiving leftovers, we were being initiated as Freemasons. I'm joking, but we did visit a Freemason initiation site that doubled as a summer home in the mountains on Saturday. The Freemasons are a secret society that no one knows much about, but our guide seemed pretty well versed in Freemason rituals and practices. According to him, the Freemasons have some connection to the Knights Templar another semi-secret society that started during the Crusades. Maybe the Knights Templar joined forces with the Freemasons or maybe they died out, but the fact is that the Freemasons replaced them as the one of the most powerful secret organizations in the world. He name-dropped some alleged Freemasons who have played a role in the history of the world like Disney, J. Edgar Hoover and several kings of Portugal.
Our mock initiation didn't include any high profile members, but it was still pretty cool. The guide led us to an upside-down tower hidden inside a rocky outcrop in the side of the mountain. The tower descended nine stories into the ground, symbolizing the descent into the nine circles of hell, as in Dante's Inferno. (FYI the Freemasons are big on symbols.) At the bottom was a cross overlain by a compass (two more symbols), where our guide positioned the eight of us around each one of the eight points of the compass. He stood in the middle and explained that this is where person being initiated would stand. The person would then do a trust fall, and his "brothers" would catch him and lower him to the ground (symbolizing his death), where he would lay until the leader decided he could get up (which could be hours later). With the initiation complete, the new brother was reborn as a member and led out through the very spooky and dark tunnels below the mountain. We made our way through the tunnels, hopped across a pond and found ourselves back in daylight.
The rest of the buildings on the grounds were constructed to look like a lush jungle palace built in the 16th century, but were actually built in the early 1900s. Freemason symbols had been hidden all over the grounds and in the details of the four clashing architectural styles the owner thought would look good together. If you want to go hunting for evidence of Freemasons, you can look for these symbols: a hammer, a compass, a weight scale, a cross that looks like a plus, exact symmetry, the number 9 or 33, and an eye within a triangle (aka the "All-Seeing Eye"). Knock yourself out.
The greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. -- Roald Dahl
Speaking of secrets, I guess I should share one of my own. The past few days, I have started to get a little homesick. While I am still having a great time and enjoying everything Europe has to offer, I also miss my family and am looking forward to being back with them for the holidays. Everyone else is starting to feel it too, and many of us can be seen talking to friends and family at the chateau throughout the day. Classes are also winding down, and everyone is preparing for their final papers or presentations. My friends back in Oxford are much more stressed than I am here, and I am grateful that our professors have structured our classes to keep our weekend travels in mind.
Next week is my last big trip out of Luxembourg, and I am going with a group of friends to Romania. We are hunting for vampires, but will definitely make time for the Christmas Markets there. I'm headed to the one in Lux City tomorrow, and I am very excited for some delicious hot cocoa.
Want to know anything else about the Freemasons? Suggestions for how to capture a vampire? Let me know in the comments!
Until then, I'll keep wandering.
Yes - we all miss you! Thank you for sharing so much of your travels
This looks like a wonderful trip. Great photos! We are missing you here, too.