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Peña Palace
The Palace design has a Disney style although it would have been built over 100 years earlier than Disneyland. Our arrival to Lisbon was met with a 2 hour delay clearing customs and subsequently missing our re-arranged taxi to the Hotel, so a slow start! Old Lisbon is a fairly condensed area therefore our Hotel was very central to major attractions and only about 30 minutes from airport. The sunny weather and 30C temperatures more than made up for the airport experience and a relaxing tapas meal on a roof top bar was a fitting end to a long travel day.
Greater Lisbon‘s population is appx 3 million, but the core city is only 550,000. The Portuguese call it Lisboa, which means “quiet harbour” and it was well suited for the country’s Imperial ambitions in the 14th/15th century. At it’s height, the Portugal empire included, Brazil, Macau( twin to Hong Kong), GOA( India), Mozambique and many others in Africa and South America. According to Wikipedia, they even attempted unsuccessfully to colonize Newfoundland and Nova Scotia in the 1500’s (although NFLD cod became an important part of the country’s food culture). Lisbon has quite a few monuments celebrating, what they euphemistically call, the discovery period and the city was at the center of one of the most powerful and wealthiest
Initiation Well — Quinta de Regaliera -Sintra
The owner of this estate was reportedly a member of the secretive Knights Templar (Freemasons) and built this Initiation well for new members. It was fashioned to represent the mythical experience of Dante’s Inferno. empires of the 16th century. . Most of the city was destroyed by earthquake in 1755 and only a remnant of the original city is in tact.
Just a short drive outside of Lisbon is an area called Sintra. It is further West of the city and because it is much cooler, King Ferdinand 11 (1816-1885) restored and expanded an existing ruins of the Peña Palace as a summer residence. Ferdinand was known as an artistic monarch which is very evident in the eclectic architectural styles used in the restoration. It is now one of the top tourist attractions around Lisbon, as is all of Sintra. We were fortunate to have a small tour( 8 people) booked and got there early enough in advance of the tourist hoards.. Sintra is a must see but requires good planning as the crowds are significant.
There are numerous other attractions in Belem district including the Jeronimos Monastery which is one of the main tourist sites. As with Sintra, the crowds are large and visits require good planning. The city has a nice waterfront with promenades and many of the places on our agenda are close to the harbour so we walked
Time Out Market
Large food court with a wide variety of dishes available including an Octopus Hot Dog. Didn’t have the courage to try it but might later! everywhere; one day 27,000 steps according to our Apple phone. I tried to get Debra to rent one of the hundreds of Skooters scattered throughout the city, but she resisted.
Alfama is the last district visited which is the oldest and least affected by the earthquake of 1755. The Castello, which is situated at the highest point overlooking the city, has been occupied by numerous civilizations going back to 1st century BC. Some archaeological discoveries date back to groups even earlier. Alfama is definitely the most interesting part of Lisbon with unique neighbourhoods inside and outside the castle walls.
On our last night in Lisbon, we were able to connect and have dinner with my niece Victoria and her husband Ron who were in the city after touring Portugal for 10 days. It was a fun evening comparing travel notes while eating on a patio restaurant and finishing the meal with custard tarts, port and coffee.
We’re now off to Spain with first stop, Santiago de Compostelo.
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