Sintra is a fairytale village near the western coast of Portugal, not far from Lisbon. It used to be the home of Portuguese royalty, and a lot of money came there from Portugal's glory days of exploration and colonization. There's an ancient Moorish castle that sits on top of a mini mountain and also a famous palace. The town itself has been remarkably restored and many of its wonderful palaces and homes are more colorful now than ever before.
Here's a view of the Moorish castle hovering over Sintra.
Walking up the mountain to the castle, it was surprising to see how green and tropical-like the forest was. They weren't sure exactly how old the original castle was, because before the Moors were expelled from that area of Portugal they abandoned the castle because it had lost strategic importance. Thus the Portuguese took it over once again and rebuilt it.
Here's me with Sintra below. The biggest central building is the Palace of Sintra.
And here is the more impressive Pena National Palace, an increible structure of many colorful towers.
One of the guardians of the palace.
It was windy, and I had yet to get a haircut.
Several Portuguese royal families lived part time in the Pena National Palace. It was the project of one of them, in the mid-19th century. Some 400 years earlier, actually, the original site belonged to that of an ancient monastery and chapel (over which the newer palace was constructed).
After I visited Sintra, I took a bus to the nearby coastal town of Cascais, one of the most westernmost cities in all of Europe. I went outside of town to get a better view of the Atlantic Ocean so that I could watch the sunset, but unfortunately it was a cloudy day. It still made for some nice lighting, however, and the surrounding nature was quite beautiful.
A little lighthouse on the edge of town.
The port of Cascais, with many colorful little fishing boats.
There were several nice beaches in Cascais also, which practically touched the ocean (the Tegus River flows into the ocean just past the city).
Here's a view of the Moorish castle hovering over Sintra.
Walking up the mountain to the castle, it was surprising to see how green and tropical-like the forest was. They weren't sure exactly how old the original castle was, because before the Moors were expelled from that area of Portugal they abandoned the castle because it had lost strategic importance. Thus the Portuguese took it over once again and rebuilt it.
Here's me with Sintra below. The biggest central building is the Palace of Sintra.
And here is the more impressive Pena National Palace, an increible structure of many colorful towers.
One of the guardians of the palace.
It was windy, and I had yet to get a haircut.
Several Portuguese royal families lived part time in the Pena National Palace. It was the project of one of them, in the mid-19th century. Some 400 years earlier, actually, the original site belonged to that of an ancient monastery and chapel (over which the newer palace was constructed).
After I visited Sintra, I took a bus to the nearby coastal town of Cascais, one of the most westernmost cities in all of Europe. I went outside of town to get a better view of the Atlantic Ocean so that I could watch the sunset, but unfortunately it was a cloudy day. It still made for some nice lighting, however, and the surrounding nature was quite beautiful.
A little lighthouse on the edge of town.
The port of Cascais, with many colorful little fishing boats.
There were several nice beaches in Cascais also, which practically touched the ocean (the Tegus River flows into the ocean just past the city).
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