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- Feb 28, 2019
- ☀️ 14 °C
- Altitude: 16 m
PortugalLisbon DistrictCarcavelosSão Julião da BarraCarcavelos38°41’12” N 9°20’11” W
Estoril, Cascais and Carcavelos

What do spies, a casino, the beach, a market, a fort and a haircut have in common? The two of us on a day trip to the coast from Sintra.
I had mentioned to our hostess, Carole, that after two months of travelling, it was time to get a haircut. She suggested that I go to her hairdresser in Carcavelos and she offered to drive us there as she wanted to go to the Saturday market and get her haircut also. Well, that was so nice of her as we had wanted to take a little trip to the Cascais/Estoril area anyways. It is not that far from Sintra.
On our drive Carole, told us a little about the history of the area.
Cascais became a seaside haven for the rich and famous in the 1870s, when King Luís I of Portugal and the Portuguese royal family made it their summer residence. This area is famous for the numerous kings and royal families that have called it their summer home.
This whole area is filled with beautiful beaches (18) and it is only 30 km from Lisbon. During the summers it must be packed!
During the Second World War, due to Portugal's neutrality, several royal families went into exile in the seaside town of Estoril. It became known as the "Coast of Kings". The Hotel Palácio was the chosen home of numerous members of European royalty and was also where British and German spies hung out in its bar. Later, these stories of intrigue and espionage inspired famous novelists such as Ian Fleming and filmmakers. The Hotel served as the set for the James Bond movie "On Her Majesty's Secret Service".
We continued on to Carcavelos where Carole and Stuart’s kids went to an international school. It had a wonderful fruit and vegetable market as well as a clothing market run by gypsies. Carole seemed to know everyone and she is fluent in Portuguese so it was fun to hear what the vendors were saying. The deals were really good but in order to buy anything we would have to get rid of something in our backpacks so we would have space for something new. We are doing a fair bit of flying with our carryons so we can’t add anything at this time.
While Carole and I shopped and then went for our hair fix ups, Chris wandered along the beach and visited an old fort. It was a lovely sunny day so we just took our time and enjoyed a slower day in the land of the rich and famous.
Thanks Carole for a lovely day on the ocean.Read more