Rua da Conceição: Baixa

Nestled between the city’s two tallest hills, downtown Lisbon is a contrast to the old quarter's mazes of narrow streets. Following the Enlightenment ideals of order and elegance, it’s an orderly grid of wide streets, laid out after most of the area was devastated by the Great Earthquake of 1755.

It was quite revolutionary at the time, for the width of the streets and for essentially being one big shopping mall, clustering different trades. There’s Rua do Ouro means the Street of Gold was for goldsmiths, Rua da Prata means Silver Street was for jewelers, Rua dos Sapateiros means Shoemakers Street for the Shoemakers and others that survive to this day. Now a days most shops are international chains, and many of the buildings are hotels. It’s the most touristy part of the city, with the city’s main pedestrian street Rua Augusta linking the grand 18th-century squares. To the north is Rossio square which is the center of the city, with an iconic wave-patterned pavement, while to the south, on the waterfront, is the majestic Praça do Comércio, one of Europe’s largest squares. To the west is the small Praça do Município, home to the neoclassical palace of the Town Hall, and also featuring the city’s trademark cobbled designs, which are quite recent, from 1997, designed by painter Eduardo Nery, who wanted to create a carpet effect.

The entire area is awaiting World Heritage recognition, as it resulted from the world’s first large-scale earthquake-proof urban planning, using standardized prefabricated buildings. It was a new state-of-the-art city, with modern sanitation and strict building codes, that later inspired the Paris of Baron Haussmann and the Barcelona of Ildefons Cerdà. 
Underground are some of the most significant remains of Roman Lisbon, which are usually flooded, so only open for visits once a year. They are tanks used to salt fish and foundations of a large building. Nearby is an archaeological site with more Roman ruins, on Rua dos Correeiros. In addition to Roman fish tanks and coins, and a well-preserved mosaic, this site reveals traces from the Iron Age to the 18th century.

If you want to explore the downtown of Lisbon, please hop off at Rua da Conceição.