Day 15. Sintra and beyond

A guide took us to Sintra first thing in the morning where we saw first hand "tourist pollution ". There were thousands of them fighting for parking spaces etc.
Our first destination was the Palace of Pena a former home of Portugal's royal family. We were taken to a small entrance, away from the maddening crowds, to purchase our tickets. Only for the gardens and Palace terrace. Buying Palace tickets depended on the queue.
On our arrival at the main entrance it was quite obvious we were not visiting the Palace. The waiting time in the queue was estimated at 1 hr30 mins. In the heat we would have become boiled lobsters. Not on.
From the Palace terrace we headed to the high cross. The highest point with great views all around. From there in the shade of the garden, quite extensive, we headed down through the Valley of the lakes to meet our guide Nunu.
The Quinta da Regaleira was our next port of call. An exhuberant collection by some of Portugal's best artists. The ceiling panelling were fantastic.
The gardens were a labyrinth and despite being discombobulated several times we managed to see all the highlights, which included the following;
The Iniciatic Wall. A submarine tower that sinks 27 metres into the earth by a spiral stairway and the exit was through a tunnel.
The Regaleira Tower, the Grotto, the Balnearium Fountain and the Chapel.
Weary and dusty we then drove to the most Western point in mainland Europe. The Cabo da Roca. Very dramatic coastline.
I might add we manage lunch amongst all the activities.
A walk round Cascais with an ice-cream and we were ready to return to Lisbon. Tired, dusty but very satisfied.Read more