Bairro Alto

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A street in Bairro Alto

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Bairro Alto, Lisbon

Bairro Alto (literally upper quarter in Portuguese) is an area of central Lisbon, Portugal.

The first terrain division occurred around 1500, when the court of D.Manuel I moved from the castle to the royal palace in Terreiro do Paço. The need for housing led the king to force farmers to resign their lands.^[1] Nowadays, it functions as a residential, shopping and entertainment district. Bairro Alto is one of the oldest districts of Lisbon. Dozens of fado singing clubs animated the area. All the major Portuguese newspapers had their offices in there. Prostitution was visible and considerable.

Since the 1990s, Bairro Alto went through major changes. Lisbon's city council made extensive repairs, and dozens of new restaurants, clubs and trendy shops were opened. Many young people moved into the area. Cars were banned (except for residents and emergency vehicles). Today, Bairro Alto (or just Bairro) is the heart of Lisbon's youth culture and nightlife. Lisbon's punk, gay, heavy metal music, goth, hip hop and reggae scenes all have the Bairro as their home, due to the number of clubs and bars dedicated to each of them. During daytime, the Bairro is a traditional district where older people shop for groceries, and the younger generations visit art galleries like Zé dos Bois, bookshops like Ler Devagar or arty gift shops like Hold Me.

Despite the heavy police presence, illegal drugs are sold in the streets.^[2] In 1995, a group of far-right skinheads attacked and killed Alcino Monteiro, a Portuguese citizen of African origin.^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]^[7] This zone struggles with a problem of vandalism, with graffiti destroying historical buildings, such as the place of death of Fernando Pessoa and Almada Negreiros.^[8]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

mini-guide to bars in Bairro Alto student guide to the Lisbon nightlife

v • d • e Parishes of Lisbon municipality

Ajuda \| Alcântara \| Alto do Pina \| Alvalade \| Ameixoeira \| Anjos \| Beato \| Benfica \| Campo Grande \| Campolide \| Carnide \| Castelo \| Charneca Coração de Jesus \| Encarnação \| Graça \| Lapa \| Lumiar \| Madalena \| Mártires \| Marvila \| Mercês \| Nossa Senhora de Fátima \| Pena \| Prazeres \| Sacramento Santa Catarina \| Santa Engrácia \| Santa Isabel \| Santa Justa \| Santa Maria de Belém \| Santa Maria dos Olivais \| Santiago \| Santo Condestável \| Santo Estêvão Santos-o-Velho \| São Cristóvão e São Lourenço \| São Domingos de Benfica \| São Francisco Xavier \| São João \| São João de Brito \| São João de Deus São Jorge de Arroios \| São José \| São Mamede \| São Miguel \| São Nicolau \| São Paulo \| São Sebastião da Pedreira \| São Vicente de Fora \| Sé \| Socorro