Fado In Lisbon

We arrived in Lisbon late in the afternoon. This large capital of 3 million people, sits right on the river Targus. Its' architecture combines old and new, and some of the medieval buildings even pre-date the disastrous earthquake of 1756. By bus, our excursion was transported to an old section, the Alfama. There we saw a show of Portugese dance and song, including some "Fado," melancholy chants that our guide compared to American blues. But lively dances in folk costume predominated compared to fado we'd seen previously in Lisbon. It was interesting walking through the narrow "Alfana" quarter streets at night, full of fado clubs, the ancient cathedral, and houses decorated with tiles, on our way back to the bus. - Dan