Your Friend in Lisbon - Sintra + Cascais
There She Is!We booked a private tour of Sintra several months in advance of our trip. We find it helpful to have someone educated and local tell us about what we are seeing. It enriches our experience. Also, we are notoriously awful with directions & determining which buses or train to take. With limited time and huge crowds to beat, we wanted to make the most of our visit to the palace. In addition, it included a trip to Cascais and Cabo da Roca, which we could not have done on our own unless we rented a car. For us, a private guide is the right decision and worth every penny.
We had excellent communication from Your Friend in Lisbon prior to the trip. We agree to meet our guide Elsa at our hotel at 9:00 am to get an early start. The sky is fairly dismal with gray clouds and drizzle threatening the atmosphere so we pack rain jackets and umbrellas just in case. We wait outside the hotel next to the curb. As time ticks away with no sign of our guide or driver, Amy heads back inside to the front lobby to see if anyone is looking for us. An attractive blonde woman standing nearby smiles anxiously and looks at her watch. Amy thinks, "Ah-ha! There she is!" And so she was. Did we mention we are terrible with directions? Yeah, that.
The Drive to SintraWe climb into the back of black luxury van and meet our driver Ricardo. Elsa provides a riveting orientation of the the landscape around us on our drive to the hills north of Lisbon. We cross the Rio Tejo (Tagus River) via the Vasco da Gama Bridge and admire the view of the 25th of April Bridge (named for the date of Portugal's revolution) - the largest suspension bridge in Europe (the 20th largest in the world) - and commonly referred to as the the twin sister of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge because of its similar design. It was the primary connection between north and south Portugal when it was completed in 1966 until the Vasco da Gama Bridge was opened in 1998.
We arrive in Sintra and wind our way up through town on the tight two-lane road. It takes masterful driving and not a trip we would make without a professional behind the wheel. Because we are with a licensed guide, we secure a parking space close to the main entrance at the base of the palace.
The Pena PalaceElsa had procured tickets for us in advance so we are able to "skip the line". Once we are through the gates, we opt to wait at the bus stop for the green shuttle to take us up the to the castle. Because it is raining lightly, it seems prudent to avoid the 15-minute uphill walk on slippery cobblestones. I cannot say enough about arriving early. This is no joke - the place is fairly busy by the time we arrived at 9:30.
It seems to take longer to disembark than the three minutes it took to move up narrow driveway. When we exit, Elsa has us stand with our backs to the castle as she describes the different architecture features - the Renaissance, German, Portuguese, Moorish and Manueline influences that created this fairy-tale, playful palace. When we finally turn around and look up, the massive structure appears in the mist like a dream.
HELPFUL HINT- board the shuttle bus last and be willing to stand - they cram people on and if you're sitting near the front, you will be one of the last to get off. |
Sunday, June 10MILES WALKED
67 °F & partly cloudy (scattered showers) Tour GuidanceElsa brings the Pena Palace alive for us! She takes us throughout the entire structure describing the different stages of construction and details every room inside. She has a great sense of humor, is intelligent and articulate, warm and generous. She really did feel like a friend in Lisbon.
Back Door DiscoveriesWe visited the westernmost point of mainland Europe, Cabo da Roca, meaning Cape of Rock, which we would not have known about without a guide.
What doesn't kill you fattens you up
We devour a huge portion of Sea Bass Portuguese Style during lunch. The waiter helps us determine how much we need for our party of three and we scoff at him, say we could never eat that much. We are wrong. Our fish is sweet and flaky, roasted in onions, tomatoes and potatoes, which infuse it and give it a buttery flavor and caramelize the vegetables.
Fale em portugues, por favorToday we learned how to say "hello" in Portuguese. Any of the following will work:
Lessons LearnedIf joining a private tour, request a photo of your guide, if possible, and determine the exact meeting location. Be specific. For example, instead of agreeing to meet "at your hotel", state that you will be "in the lobby next to the reception desk". It will save time and anguish, especially when you're paying by the hour. Uni-lingual DisadvantageElsa speaks five languages - Portuguese, English, Spanish, French and Italian (and her English fluency is amazing, barely a trace of an accent), which was very humbling as we stumble sloppily through a few simple Portuguese tourist greetings. She explains the origins of the Portuguese language, the slurred "shushes", the guttural throat and nasal sounds that sets it apart from the other romance languages. We learn it was made purposefully difficult to speak, like a secret code, to thwart enemies from discovering what they were saying.
LunchElsa takes us for lunch at a place she and her husband go for special occasions - Meste Zé on Guincho Beach. She tells us guincho means "squeaky" like the sound of the wind and it has some of the best surfing in Portugal. The restaurant is clean and white with sweeping views of the ocean. At our table there are prawns (camarão), white dip and toasts, olives, and a plate of prosciutto with cantaloupe. We read our guidebook before leaving for Portugal so we know to wave away anything we don't want because "Appetizers Aren't Free". The menu is overwhelming. We can't decipher the words , fish is sold by weight, and we are frantically reading our Phrase Book for clues. The waiter speaks no English. We ask, "Fala inglês?" He brings over someone who does. We finally work it all out and order a bottle of wine, octopus salad and sea bass. The waiter assures us it's enough for the three of us to share. He fillets the fish for us table-side and plates our dishes. It's amazing. One of our best meals in Portugal.
Kitchen EnvyAmy's favorite room in the castle, not surprisingly, is the kitchen. It's an amazing space with gorgeous copper pots and wide arches.
Did you know ... the Portuguese brought the ukulele to Hawaii? Yes indeed, when they migrated there in 1878. |
This was a gift of love, Elsa tells us, from King Ferdinand to his beloved Maria. He wanted to give an enchanted forest to his queen. In the 19th century, it was not safe for the king and queen to travel the world so he brought the world to her. Unfortunately, she was never able to enjoy it because she died giving birth to her 11th child before the castle was completed. It became the royal family summer palace and is now a National Park and UNESCO Site. Ferdinand was a widow for 10 years before he fell in love with Elise, an American opera singer from NYC. She encouraged him to finish the home as a tribute to his first wife.
Pena Palace in Pictures
Cascais
We leave Pena Palace and drive to the coastal resort town, Cascais (pronounced kahsh-KAYSH). Cascais is called the Portuguese Riviera, a major tourist destination. There is still an active fishing community along the harbor front. Beach bars, restaurants and chic shops selling cork products line the avenue. Elsa points toward the Hotel Palácio in Estoril (3k across the promenade) and tells us it was the inspiration for the James Bond character when Ian Fleming was a guest there in May of 1941. Standing sentinel by the water is a statue of Carlos I, the second to last King of Portugal. He was assassinated in 1908 while travelling in an open carriage with the royal family. After his death, his son, Prince Manuel, was proclaimed king. He would be the last king of Portugal.
Cascais in Pictures
HELPFUL HINT: Elsa tells us to smell cork products to tell if they are good quality. Bad cork will smell of rubber or plastic.
Cabo da Roca
Our last stop on this tour is a visit to the Cape of Rock. There are cliffs and sandy beaches below. The low-lying vegetation sits nestled between rocks. It is windy here and Elsa tells us we are standing on the westernmost point in Europe. Pretty cool.