A Palace in Sintra

October 22, 2022

Sintra

We awoke several times in the night to the sound of rain, and when we woke up for good in the morning it was still heavy rainfall. We watched the weather, and our weather apps while we enjoyed breakfast. We also considered our options.

That is a balcony, not a fountain, really it is!

We had been hoping for a good hike today, but (don’t laugh) I was concerned about my shoes. Not that they wouldn’t be okay to hike in, they are just fine. That they would end up a muddy, wet mess was my worry, and since I only bring one pair of all purpose shoes that wouldn’t have been a happy prospect. We settled on a tour of the Peña Palace. It turned out to be a fantastic decision. We also got a hike in. It was a great day.

An organized tour group setting out to explore the town.

We left in heavy rain, Goretex, rainpants, umbrella, bucket hat, we had it all. The hiking trail to the palace was closed because of the rain, so we had to walk up the road before we got to the park that surrounds the palace. The road was just fine. Things became a bit goofy once we entered the park as the signage was poor, the GPS was all over the place and we had 12:30 entry tickets. They were very clear when I bought the online tickets that “there is no delay tolerance”. I was getting anxious as we hoofed it up. Turns out with my mature eyesight and without my glasses I read 11:35 as 11:55 and we had lots of time. The number of fellow tourists at the palace itself was intimidating at first look, but the people in charge had it very well organized and it was just fine.

If she was a bride, we didn’t see the groom.

The exterior needs a good paint job, but the interior was very interesting. It wasn’t the highlight of the visit for us though, that was the views. Lucky us, for a few hours the sun came peeking out as well. It was very windy and it all added up to a lot of fun.

The detail in the whole place was extraordinary.

How Keith thought he might feel by the time we got out.

People came in both directions. I kept to the inside.

Look at that blue sky and the good looking guy.

We didn’t think the day could get any better, but the rain held off and we hiked through the park to the Cruz Alta (High Cross), which is the highest point in the Sintra hills. From there, we literally took every fork in the road, and there were many. At one point I found some steep steps, partially hidden by foliage. That is how we found Alto de Santa Catarina (St. Catherine’s Heights) and sat on Queen Amelia’s stone throne to admire the castle in blissful solitude.

I couldn’t resist these. We are so glad we went up.

Just a magical place. I like to think Ferdinand II would be happy that we enjoyed it so much.

Next up were the stables, the greenhouses and most fascinating for us, Condessa d’Edla Chalet. We were the only ones there, other than the gate keeper, and the history of the chalet was so interesting. The privilege of having it to ourselves wasn’t lost on us. It was built by King Fernando II and his second wife, the Condessa. They were both interested in botany, and they spent much time creating the incredible park with all its hidden secret spots. It is said Ferdinand II wanted to create the perfect fantasy forest and brought in exotic plant and tree species from around the world. We were constantly being surprised as we poked up paths by little waterfalls, gravity fed fountains, stone benches. A magical place.

The trails were so much fun and not well used. Maybe there would be more people on a sunny day?

These two even had their own comfortable home.

Condessa d’Edla Chalet. All the window and balcony trim is cork.

Eventually, we headed back towards town, passing the Valley of the Lakes on the way down. Once out of the park, as we walked down the road we watched several tour buses head up to the palace. I assume they were picking up Lisbon day trippers. We were glad the traffic was one way, it would have been pretty hard to walk on the road with buses going in both directions. It was too bad the hiking trail at that point was closed. Not that there were many of us walking anyway. Most people were in tuk-tuks or cabs. When it started pouring again I wondered if they weren’t the smart ones.

These four were sitting in front of a small waterfall, virtually motionless, in the Valley of the Lakes.

Back in town we dripped in to a restaurant and had our second indoor dinner of the trip. They didn’t want to serve food outside, even under their huge umbrellas. We could have drinks out there but no food. We were unclear about the logic of this, but got a table near the door with lots of fresh air. With a flight just four days away we want to stay healthy. We explained this to the server who told us he understood because his mom was elderly too, and being careful. Thanks buddy!

One great thing about Portugal, you can get dinner anytime. No more waiting until 9 PM. Good thing too because it was 5:45 and we hadn’t eaten since breakfast.

Dinner was delicious. We have had an amazing day. We may go for a quiet walk tonight, or we may not. We are pretty cosy in our bed and breakfast, Palacio de Sintra Boutique House. We are still hoping to ride into Lisbon tomorrow.

I didn’t think to start Strava in Sintra. Keith suggested it after a few kilometres.

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David MathersGreat to see you are making the most of your wet days at the end of the tour. Hang in there! Let us know if you need a ride home or anything else. We’ve really enjoyed following your adventure 👍
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2 years ago

Keith ClassenTo David MathersThanks David for the offer - we have our pickup all set up. Look forward to getting together when we get home. We just checked into our hotel in Lisbon and are going to spend a couple days here.
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2 years ago

Rachael AndersonWow! What a great way to make lemonade out of lemons! You probably wouldn’t have discovered this if the weather was good.
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2 years ago

Kathleen ClassenI agree! We would have ridden into Lisbon, left the bikes and taken the train to Sintra as originally planned, which wouldn’t have given us as much time.
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2 years ago