Small and insignificant

I have always wondered how does it feels like when the ground you stand on is shaking. One of those things I did not really want to feel but was just curious about the feeling.
Well, now I know.

This morning, around 60 km off the coast of Portugal, the earth moved. It was a 5.4 earthquake (according to some sources) that shook a large part of Portugal. It was also the biggest one in 10 years.

You can read more about it here if you want.

There are no major damages, and it wasn't strong enough to make things fall off the shelves like in the movies (or from reports from other unfortunate places). But it was a bit of a surprise to wake up at 5am to a shaky room. And I admit - I did get scared.

All that makes you realize, at least for a while, how little and helpless humans are.





Back to Lisbon on photos though, as this place was almost completely destroyed in the biggest earthquakes a few centuries ago.

Lisbon earthquake of 1755, series of earthquakes that occurred on the morning of Nov. 1, 1755, causing serious damage to the port city of Lisbon, Portugal, and killing an estimated 60,000 people in Lisbon alone.
_source

Now the city is so pretty and so versatile. A lovely Art Deco building on the first photo, which currently is a hotel with some shops on the ground floor.
I have passed it many times, and every time I admire it equally.

On the photo above there was an interesting display of items fished from the ocean with the time of their decomposition. Tires, toilet seats, washing machine engines...
For some reason, the guard there did not allow me to take photos. But it was a cool thing to see nonetheless.





And back to the old part that I never tired of. So many streets, all similar, but also so different. With large statues, decorated walls, and a whole lot of tourists :p

I believe this one is part of the arch when you enter the city from the river side.





This olive tree was growing in the middle of the stairs between the buildings. Very old and crooked. How did it survive there?

So many people everywhere...

Bonus monochrome song for today:
DEAD COMBO - Esse Olhar Que Era Só Teu
year 2011