Lisbon, Portugal's capital, is ramshackle, trendy, and charming all at once — an endearing mix of now and then. Vintage trolleys shiver up and down its hills, bird-stained statues mark grand squares, taxis rattle and screech through cobbled lanes, and Art Nouveau cafés are filled equally with well-worn and well-dressed locals — nursing their coffees side-by-side. It's a city of proud ironwork balconies, multicolored tiles, and mosaic sidewalks; of bougainvillea and red-tiled roofs with antique TV antennas; and of foodie haunts and designer boutiques.

We were treated to an evening with dinner and Fado singing in the Casa Museu Fundacao Mederious e Almeiros. Fado is fado, a type of Portuguese singing, traditionally associated with pubs and cafés, that is renowned for its expressive and profoundly melancholic character. The singer of fado (literally, “fate”) speaks to the often harsh realities of everyday life, sometimes with a sense of resignation.