Portuguese Alheira, Lardons and Asparagus Pasta

And things I miss about Lisbon

*Note I made this dish recently in summery Lisbon. Substitute asparagus for peas or another veg in season where you are*

Before we departed Lisbon, for our last stop Paris, I knew I would miss the old city terribly. I spent the last day in Lisbon walking past the Bairro Alto to the square in Chiado that we become well acquainted with during the past three months of on-off living like nomads, with nice luggage. I pointed out the pavements (like I had been for the months prior to that, you might have noticed via my instagram feed) and had to be pushed along by the crowds on the narrow walkways, to move forward. But I didn’t want to move, I wanted to trace the shapes with my eyes and burn them into my memory.

ornate pavement Lisbon – down town

I looked up at the buildings in our street, Rua dos Ferreiros, some pale pink, yellow and powder blue, others with facades covered in tiles – green or blue and white. And that word facade- so apt for the front faces of buildings in many European cities, as opposed to the meaning of putting on a front, faking it, as per the applied usage at home. And elsewhere.

Old peacock visiting our street

That street of ours, Rua dos Ferreiros, where the s is pronounced ‘shh’ and the second e is an a. How long we took to finally deliver the name flawlessly to cab drivers. How we would stifle giggles each time one of us said it and it was far from the perfect execution. Never mind. The joy was living in a street where a cab would arrive in two minutes, most times. And where the famous number 28 tram would ra-ra-rattle and chug down steep, you-better-not-be-wearing-stilettos Calcada da Estrela, meters from our front door and all the way to Alfama and up and up to the majestic Sao Jorge Castle.

catching the tram Lisbon

A few times the neighbourhood peacock arrived on our street. What a surprise that was. “Looking for snacks?”, I asked him.

Two mini grocers (the Mom and Pop variety) on the right of our building’s door. Another three just to the left and up the road.

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