A fairytale palace

The Palace of Pena is beautiful but more in the way an eclectic museum is beautiful than a royal palace. Intentionally built for leisure, it looks like a storybook castle. The architecture draws inspiration from Big Ben, the Taj Mahal and the Neuschwanstien castle.

Definitely worth seeing but it all felt very ‘Disney’. The art and furniture and decorations were opulent- meant to impress and demonstrate wealth. I kept feeling as if they lacked character. Sometimes at historic sites, i get a feel for the people. There is something relatable about them. Sometimes their humor shines through. But not here. I don’t say that with criticism- i say that with a lot of empathy.

The castle was built during the downfall of the portuguese monarchy. King fernando II built it for his first wife as a demonstration of his love for her. He also imported trees and greenery from all over the world - turning a once dry and barren region into a lush rolling forest. Together they had 11 children but only 6 survived. After the death of his first wife, he fell in love with and eventually married a commoner. Their forbidden love was a source of scandal and stress for many years.

King fernando’s son and his family enjoyed a few years of leisure here before the monarchy was overthrown and they were all assassinated or exiled.

All of which to say, this family knew tragedy and hardship which might explain the lack of character in the palace.

Except for king triton. He did not look or feel ‘disney’ at all. I loved the detail on him and laughed out loud at his weird nipples.

My favorite part of the visit was walking through the vast gardens. I explored the ruins of the Moor Castle from 1100 and chased lizards and earned a huge scoop of gelato.Läs mer