It remains one of my favourite things on flights home to Lisbon, to look out of the window of the plane and see Jesus, arms open, before cruising over the bridge, the city’s palaces, and more. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough money for a statue quite on the scale of that from Rio but, nevertheless, with its dramatic setting on the south bank of the river, atop the hillside and nestling alongside the 25th April bridge, Cristo Rei remains one of the most iconic sights of the city. Someone who was absolutely in agreement with that was the bishop of Lisbon and he decided that he would build an equally impressive statue here in Lisboa.
25th april bridge lisbon tv#
I’ve never been to Brazil, but just from my experience of photos, TV & video games featuring the statue that it’s one of the world’s most iconic. On a visit to Madeira, a clergyman from the new-money (at the time) city of Rio do Janeiro decided he would get in on the act and had the enormous, imposing Christ the Redeemer statue built. The statue there stands at the height of just a few metres above the mountain. Not far outside the main city of Funchal, a small statue of Jesus stands, arms open, looking down at the citizens below.
The first of these statues, I was informed on my visit, was in fact built in Madeira. One thing they were very keen to see – and something I’ve never seen myself – was Cristo Rei, the statue of Christ the King. The really great thing about visitors, is that it makes me get off my comfy chair (from which I’m writing this very post) and go out and see some of the amazing stuff that I take for granted, having been here more than a year and a half already. I had visitors here from Poland, my former home, a couple weeks ago. Or at least, I’ve only found a gigantic stone effigy of one. ONLINE TICKET | With this entrance ticket you can gain entry to the Pillar 7 Experience at your leisure.Before you start worrying, I haven’t found god.
25th april bridge lisbon free#
October to April Daily: 10h00 - 18h00, May to September: 10h00 - 20h00Īdult: €6.00, Concessionary: €4.00, Under 5: FREE, Lisbon Card: FREE Utilising modern multimedia devices, the visit ends with an optional immersive virtual-reality experience of parts of the bridge that are inaccessible and a call at the PhotoBooth so you can record this unforgettable moment. A panoramic elevator whisks you 80 metres up to the road level to a panoramic viewing platform that provides an unrivalled view of the city and the river. On show are the support cables which hold the bridge together. Inside the exhibits follow the journey of the history of its construction. The tour excites all senses starting as you arrive with the constant "hum" of traffic above and the shudder of a passing train. The Pillar 7 Experience in Alcântara is housed within a pillar of the great bridge. This attraction was inaugurated in time for the 50th-anniversary celebrations of the 25th April Bridge in 2016. During which time the railway line was added to a new lower deck. To accommodate increased capacity the bridge was expanded to six lanes during the 1990s. It originally carried traffic in four lanes. When taking into consideration the viaduct on the northern bank, the bridge is over two kilometres long. The deck is held in place by cables attached to 191 metre-tall pylons. To allow shipping to pass under and access the docks of Lisbon, the deck of the bridge stands 70 metres above the water.
The bridge's foundations also hold the world record by going 80m (262ft) below the riverbed to stand on basalt rock. The Golden Gates design was emulated because of its ability to withstand seismic activity, a hazard that Lisbon shares with San Francisco. Ponte 25 de Abril is actually 100m (300ft) longer. The construction was inspired by Leon Moisseiff's design of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and is even painted the same colour. The initial construction cost 2,200,000,000 Portuguese escudos or €27 million and took 25 years of collecting tolls to recover the money. Following the Carnation Revolution on the 25th of April, 1974 it was hastily renamed as a commemoration.
In 1958 the plans were approved by Salazer's government, and so the bridge initially acquired the name of the dictator. This proposed bridge would have to span 1013 metres across the estuary. It was only during the mid-twentieth century when technology allowed such endeavour. I was to replace the ferry which linked Lisbon with the suburb of Almada on the opposite bank. The idea of bridging the river at this location first came to mind in the 19th century.
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