I visited the rather disappointing Igreja de São Francisco, which was built in spare, Gothic style in the 15th century, but then it was Baroqued up with so very much elaborately carved gilt wood. ItLes mer
I visited the rather disappointing Igreja de São Francisco, which was built in spare, Gothic style in the 15th century, but then it was Baroqued up with so very much elaborately carved gilt wood. ItLes mer
A van picked me up early in the morning for a small group tour of the Douro Valley, where wine has been produced for at least two thousand years. As we left Porto it was cool and rainy - the van wentLes mer
I couldn't resist a ride on the Gaia cable car along the Douro for lovely views of Porto. I had tripas a moda do Porto at Restaurante Braganca - one nickname for people from Porto is tripeiros, tripeLes mer
Sintra is in the mountains outside Lisbon - it's been inhabited since the paleolithic era and became a popular summer resort for Portuguese nobility due to its cool, green hillsides. Apparently it'sLes mer
It seems like every town in Portugal has its own pastry specialty - in Sintra, it's the travesseiro. I had one of the flaky, almond-cream filled pastries at Piriquita, the bakery which invented them.Les mer
Cabo da Roca, west of Sintra, is the westernmost part of continental Europe, and it is extremely windy. Very, very windy with dramatic cliffs. The lighthouse here started operation in 1772. Then ILes mer
I loved the Jeronimos Monastery - the courtyards and all the carving and the church were all amazing. Uplifting church, peaceful cloisters, and disturbing stone carvings - what's not to like?Les mer
After the monastery, I visited the Torre de Belém, built in the 16th century as both fortification and celebration of the expedition to India of Vasco da Gama. I ate pastéis de Belém, little eggLes mer