With the last day off of the tour behind us we find ourselves in Lisbon, surely one of the finest cities in Europe. This city on the Iberian peninsula, at the Western edge of Europe has suffered it's fair share of calamity in the form of earthquakes and before the great shake of 1755, Lisbon was one of the largest cities in Europe. Every time we come here I find myself delving more and more into it's history. The Alfama is one of the oldest quarters in Lisboa. Since it largely survived the earthquake of 1755, the area still retains much of its original layout. The 16th century was Lisbon's golden age when the city became the European hub of commerce with Africa, India, the Far East and later, Brazil, exploring riches like spices, slaves, sugar, textiles and other goods. This explains the many opulent and ornate buildings, those that have survived, and signs of decadence around the old town. I try to imagine what it must have been like for a foreigner to set foot in the port here in the 17th century, before tourism!





Another notable aspect of this place is the fish. We've been here many times and always enjoyed their culinary know-how. I think Lisbon has arguably the best fish in the world and I'll tell you something, they sure know how to grill a sardine!



Campo Pequeno is the magnificent bullring of Lisbon. A venue we played last time we were here although I'm not sure they opened the roof up on that occasion. Tonight they did. The bullring was built in the 1890's by Portuguese architect António José Dias da Silva. His design was inspired by the Plaza de Toros de Ventas of Madrid, built by Emilio Rodriguez Ayuso, where we will be in a few days. In 2006 the building was completely renovated and now hosts many events apart from bullfighting. The temperature in Lisbon at the moment is a heady 30-34 degrees C, and inside the bullring there was no let up.



Since we are in the middle of a run of bullrings, a regular topic of conversation in the dressing rooms of Spain and Portugal is the recent heightened debate in Spain over the future of bullfighting. The morning papers today announced the decision made by the parliament of Catalonia to prohibit bullfighting in the region. It is the first time any mainland region has voted in this way, the Canary Islands decided to ban it in 1991 but it was never that popular there.



whilst Kerry and the crew boys sweated it up during line check...

...Angus and the team took full advantage of some of the seafood on offer at the markets here. Shrimp in garlic with octopus, sliced fried potatoes and a chorizo stew..drool..



This evening's show was much anticipated, the film crew who were shooting a documentary when we were in the UK came out here to shoot some more footage. A wise choice of venue as the Portuguese crowds are known for their excitement. They didn't let us down and in some ways they were noisier than even the Spanish. I couldn't say who was best, they are just different. Because bullrings are usually quite tall and circular, the sound inside the arena gets amplified and so enhances the level of the audience who tonight insisted on applauding practically everything that went on onstage. Once again though, they were so respectful in the quieter sections in Romeo and Telegraph etc. The usual runner was planned. Regular readers of my diaries will know that we 'run' off stage at the end of the show (particularly large, outdoor events) to avoid being stuck in any residual traffic which starts up within minutes of the show ending. The plan tonight was for Mark to be joined in the car by a cameraman and director. Unfortunately, I'm not quite sure they grasped the immediacy of the maneuver. They weren't there. Mark got in, waited a moment for the other cars to fill with sweaty band members and then issued instructions to go. Back at the hotel within 10 minutes a few of us had a quiet drink in Mark's room and enjoyed a couple of bottles of delicious Portuguese Douro wine, similar to a Bordeaux or claret, the region enjoys Portugal's highest wine classification.

Tour Internet Cafe...




pic Tiago Faria


pic Tiago Faria