The World Heritage Belem Tower is to Lisbon what the Eiffel Tower is to Paris or Big Ben is to London. It is the city's most photographed landmark, which along with the marvelous Jeronimos Monastery should top your list of must-see monuments.

But Lisbon's biggest attraction is the city itself, a city that is not spruced up for the tourist to see, but an authentic place that stands out in a world where everywhere is starting to look the same.
Although it boasts a range of must-see sights, its biggest pleasures are its streetlife and setting, admired from a pavement café, from the top of a hilltop miradouro, or simply by wandering around the atmospheric old quarters.

Not too many other cities have such an intriguing mix of the old and the new, or so many contrasting faces, making this a city for unhurried exploration and a place to get lost in, discovering its many distinctive sights and characteristic images.

There are two unique architectural styles -- the elaborate 16th century Manueline of the Belem district (named after King Manuel I), and the uniform but elegant 18th century Pombaline of downtown (named after Marquês de Pombal who oversaw the area's rebuilding after the Great Earthquake of 1755) -- along with fine art nouveau shops and cafés that have almost disappeared elsewhere. Just as distinctive are its striking centuries-old tiled façades in the old quarters, and the turn-of-the-century trams and colorful funiculars that have been retired throughout Europe but that remain a common sight in this city, as there is no easier (or more charming) way to climb its hills.

The picturesque beach of Tamariz has a number of bars and restaurants, and a castle overlooking it that is owned by the royal family of Monaco. Behind it is the casino surrounded by attractive gardens with tall palm trees. Known to give out the biggest weekly prizes in Europe, it also presents top international shows. It was also the inspiration for Ian Fleming's James Bond and Casino Royale, and the Hotel Palacio facing it appeared in one of James Bond's first films ("On Her Majesty's Secret Service") and served as a backdrop for Richard Wilson's novel, "A Small Death in Lisbon."

Rising from the river and reached by a footbridge is one of the world's largest aquariums, designed by American architect Peter Chermeyeff.

It is the closest thing visitors get to deep-sea diving without any of the risks, with about 25,000 fish, seabirds, and mammals in an enormous central tank, the size of four Olympic-sized swimming pools. Visitors can look into it from different levels for close-ups of the various creatures, including different species of sharks.

But it's the design rather than the size that makes it outstanding. It is the first aquarium ever to incorporate world ocean habitats within a single environment, with impressive recreations of various ocean ecosystems -- the Antarctic tank containing penguins, and the Pacific tank with otters playing in rock pools. They are all separated from the main tank by invisible acrylic walls, giving the impression that all the creatures are swimming in the same space. There are also high-tech multilingual interactive displays explaining the development of ocean life.

Sintra
Eight miles north of Estoril and Cascais is Sintra which requires a full day to explore. Sintra is up in the mountains and was described by the poet Byron as 'glorious Eden'. In Sintra there is a very luxurious 14th Century Palace which was a former Royal residence. The Palace has a very sumptuous interior with many styles including Gothic and Moorish.

Just outside of Sintra is the Palace of Pena which is a folly built in 1832 which like the Palace at Sintra has many styles incorporated. It was designed by a Bavarian and as such looks very much look like the fairytale Germanic castles. There is a display of jewelry, pottery and other effects that the Royal family left when they went into exile in 1910. Outside the Place is Pena Park with formal gardens as well as more wild areas. A haven for anyone with an interest in gardening.