Darkness on the edge of town

Crossing the bridge

One of the nice things of going from Lisbon to Moita by car, is crossing the Tejo. Either using the Ponte de 25 de Abril or the Ponte Vasco da Gama. Which one you take depends pretty much on your point of departure, time of day and the driver’s preferencen. Since we were leaving from Amadora, the distance would be more or less the same. The Ponte Vasco da Gama spans a bigger distance so you have more time to enjoy the wide view over the river and - depending on the season - you may even be lucky enough to spot some flamingos. Easy choice, right?

Some facts about the structure

Spanning approximately 17,2 km, the bridge is the second longest bridge in Europe, after the Crimean Bridge, and the longest in the European Union. The structure is built up of substructures:

• North access roads: 945m
• North viaduct: 488m
• Expo viaduct: 672m; 12 sections
• Main bridge: main span: 420m; side spans: 203m each (total length 829m); cement pillars: 150m high; free height for navigation in high tides: 45m
• Central viaduct: 6.351 km; 80 pre-fabricated sections 78m long; 81 pillars up to 95m deep; height from 14m to 30m
• South viaduct: 3.825 km; 84 section of 45m; 85 pillars
• South access roads: 3.895 km; includes the toll plaza (18 gates) and two service areas
• At the inauguration, a feijoada was served. The 5,050m table setting even made it into the Guinness World Records

And then… Moita

This is the region where the bread pigs on an industrial scale, so… Yeah, it takes a while before you stop smelling that. No big deal, you like to eat bifanas and leitão, you don’t complain about the odour of pigs.

Once inside Inlive Caff, the wall of stale beer, sweat and cigarette smoke from the night before takes over pretty quick, and there’s work to be done, so take a deep breath and get to work!