LIsbon - Day 4cont - Coach Museum

After lunch I went back to the coach museum

It used to be housed in the stables of the Royal Riding Academy, which I am sure was very atmospheric but this modern building gives ample room all the way around each coach

One of the oldest here, it is French, Louis XIV gave it to his cousin.

On the door panels are the Portuguese coat of arms.

As I walked past them chronologically they became more and more opulent.

Red and gold colours dominated.

Along with the required coats of arms there were lots of cherubs, suns, lions......

They were also getting bigger - this was King Joao V. Inside of course; red velvet.

But it was really all about what it looked like on the outside.

Another one of King Joao V's. He had a few. This one from 1715.

This one was topped by crowns. A little tarnished now but they were designed to impress Louis XIV

King Joao V gave this one to the Pope of the time.

Not just pulled by horses but this one also had carved horses,

snakes carved on the wheels

and all sorts of debauchery going on behind.

This was used by King Joao Vs illegitimate sons. They only rated a coupe.

That first hall also had displays of harness and livery. At the end some restoration work was taking place.

I had the opportunity to talk to the man so painstakingly cleaning the gilt. He was an art historian specializing in wood and he spoke about also having to be a chemist in terms of finding solvents that would clean and not damage. His main issue with this coach was that damage from ceremonial use had been repaired with copper powder which is now tarnished.

The second hall was more diverse - still some ceremonial carriages

Still "Over the top" as one English woman put it

But now there were some carriages that had been used for jaunts around the estates and gardens

They were developing some different suspension systems. By and large the wheels were attached with a wooden frame and the carriage was suspended from it using leather straps.

These were used to carry religious elements, usually statues of the Virgin, in parades.

A carriage used for long distance travel. Inside the seats could be folded down into beds.

Litters were attached to horses or mules and used in narrow streets or difficult roads.

Sedan chairs were used to carry nobility, elderly or sick on even narrower town streets and were carried by two footmen with leather straps over their shoulders.

Carriages for children of royalty or nobility for use in the gardens. They could be pulled by ponies, sheep or goats.

Coronation Carriage for King Carlos I

Now using springs as well as leather for suspension.

This carriage was used for hunting with a straw container for the guns and vented areas under the seats for the dogs. Referred to as a "dog cart".

Used to transport mail and by aristocratic families for long trips.

1895, the first horseless carriage in Portugal. 3hp and ran on gasoline.

I took the HOHO bus back to its terminal and rather than catching one that would take me back to my square I decided to walk home down the boulevard.

Enjoying the mosaics

the statues, the greenery

and the colourful buildings.

On a rebound from the previous nights dining experience, I had a hamburger and glass of wine at a cafe I had been to before. It started to drizzle resulting in empty outside tables at all the restaurants around.

As I was about to leave the waiter and cook put up a plastic wall at each end, a metal pole and table and bought out a television. Withing minutes the cafe began to fill up with locals there for a beer and to watch soccer. This is a tourist area and the other restaurants in the area are focused on getting the tourists in for their seafood meals.

In chatting with the waiter I had mentioned to him that I had had a bad dinner experience the night before. I told him where and he said that one's "known for it" and he pointed out another with a similar reputation. He then said he would tell me where I should eat.

He left the bar and took me down the street and into a smaller street to a tiny restaurant. This was all the signage it had but he said it didn't need more, the lineup out the door said it all.

He also recommended this one next door. Now that's going above and beyond the call of duty!