Sintra

Sintra is a world heritage site situated 10 miles north of Lisbon. We took a pleasant drive along the windy roads to this village up in the hills.  The whole area is made up of several palaces and castles.  We have an arrangement between us, I do all the driving and Jane is the tour guide, and so its up to her (generally) what we see and in what order.

Palacio National de Sintra

The first palace we visited was a short walk from the car park, it was very interesting with great decor and some stunning tile work and a nice garden, but this wasn’t what had caught Jane’s eye in the guide book…….

“Where is the Palacio National da Pena” she inquired of a friendly local.  When he pointed to the top hill beyond and said 1.5 kilometers straight up, the blood just drained from her face!

Halfway 

But with the bribe of an ice cream at the top, off we set.

Castelo dos Mouros

The walk/climb was very hard work.

Nearly there

Even when we got to the gate, we still had a 20 minute walk uphill till we got to the entrance.

Finally 

All the effort was rewarded by a very ornate castle, but what made it for us were the breathtaking views.  You could see Lisbon in the distance……

The wind played havoc with my hair !

And through the arched window…..

After the long hike up the hill (or mountain as Jane refers to it) we thought we would descend in style.

Our 2CV to the bottom of the hill.