Date Visited: February 2013
I arrived in Sintra by the late morning and new there was no time to waste. I had only one night and two days in Sintra and though a lot of people only do it as a day trip from Lisbon, I’d certainly have appreciated more time.
A 40 minute walk from the train station takes me through the town almost divided into two parts. The road winds out of town, over and around a hill to the second section where my hostel Nice Way Sintra Palace. I pass a long line of fascinating if strange statues before returning into the city and walking by a few dilapidated but still beautiful small palaces.
I find Nice Way Sintra Palace by looking for the small spire above the rest of the buildings on a back street. I check in, drop of my Mini Suitcase and pack my daypack before heading back out and walking out of Sintra to catch a public bus to Cabo de la Roca, the western most points in Continental Europe. I don’t know whether it’s coincidence, but the far ends of continents so far seem like amazing places to me. Punta Gallinas, South America Northern Most Point was incredible, and so was Cabo De La Roca, even if I got in over my head.
The entirety of Portugal provided a glimpse of the Atlantic Ocean which I’d long been missing, and here on it’s eastern side it seemed even rougher and more powerful than in Nova Scotia. As I climbed out of the local bus I was brought back to Peggy’s Cove, a massive lighthouse sat atop some cliffs overlooking the rough and wild Atlantic. The vista was truly awe inspiring.
I walked along the well trod paths atop the cliffs snapping pictures and marvelling at the waves crashing over up-jutting turrets of rocks. There was tourists around, but not too many of them in the winter and as I reached the end of the trails marked by a wooden fence I noticed a river running through the gorge below and disappearing above the Ocean.
I glanced back around myself before quickly slipping over the wooden fence and hurrying out along the rocks remembering my training as a child exploring Nova Scotia’s rocky coastlines. Quickly enough I got low enough that I was out of sight and then continued on towards the river and the sea at a more enjoyable pace.
The rocks weren’t simple walking but it wasn’t until I came to the top of what I’d hoped for that I had to hesitate and decide if it was worth carrying on. The waterfall was beautiful and tumbled down onto a rounded stone beach which provided a great view of some off the rocky outcroppings and a place of guaranteed solitude to do some more writing.
The only problem was, a decently sheer cliff beside the waterfall being the only way down. But sometimes there are special places in the world. places you need to see so I edged closer to the cliff and managed to find a few footholds to start with. About halfway down things got harder, and after almost falling a good distance I took off my backpack, and tossed it down the rest of the way onto a soft patch of grass, about the only one around. Not only did this restore my centre of Gravity, it also gave me no choice but to make it to the bottom.
A few close calls later and my feet returned to real ground instead of narrow ledges. I ducked under the waterfall despite the less than warm temperature’s and then retrieved my bag and headed to the beach. I did all this with absolutely no idea how I was going to get back up that wet and treacherous cliff.
That thought quickly faded in my mind as I fell in to paradise, watching the ocean crash into the beach, finding a hidden oasis of collected sea foam, and getting still more writing done. Im utterly alone, and in a wondrous paradise, more than I ever expected from Portugal and the western most point in continental Europe.
Eventually the sun started to sink lower in the sky and I decided it was time to face to problem of getting back to the real world before the last bus left back to Sintra.
The climb was difficult and perilous, and when a foot ledge gave out I hurt my shoulders enough that they bothered me the rest of trip. But I made it up and knew without a doubt in my mind that it was worth it.
I barely made the last bus. After a brief stop at Nice Way Sintra I found I had a hankering for Chinese food. I headed back towards the train station and was pleasantly surprised by some of the better Chinese food I’ve had in my life just across the street from the station itself. I headed back through the dark night to my hostel and spent a relaxing night at Nice Way Sintra Palace socializing in the garden before sleeping deeply, resting muscles sore from too much climbing.
The next morning I crawled out of bed but needed to do some stretches before heading down towards the main street of the closer section of town to catch the 434 bus up to the two landmarks which make Sintra so damn popular with foreign and national tourists; Castello Dos Mourros and Pena National Palace.
To do this I boarded a bus running between the town and these two amazing buildings, which zig zags up the mountain on narrow roads full of hair pin turns. It was enough to set the heart fluttering but well worth the ride, as the walk would have been hard going.
I climbed out of the bus and continue the climb up, paying for a combined ticket to the two of them before entering the remnants of Castelo dos Mourros. I wandered around the largely overgrown complex, in awe at the ancient stones around me and Nature starting the process of reclaiming them.
That said the true majesty of the Castle was still to come. Eventually I found my way up onto the remaining whiles, climbing up to the highest point for an unforgettable view of Portugal. The skies were relatively clear and it seemed like you could see forever. I even managed to catch a peak of Cabo De La Roca.
After a while I was forced to move on, lest I arrive at the palace too late. And judging by the view of the palace up atop the castle, it’s something I did not want to miss.
I honestly do not remember If I bussed or walked, though I think both are possible. Either way I got to Pena Palace walking through a forest which cleared rather suddenly to show this quirky snd very memorable palace. The outside of the huge edifice was beautiful, painted multiple bright colours and decorated with fascinating gargoyles among other things.
The views didn’t quite match the castle but the have also turned the inside of the palace into a fascinating museum full or royal relics, documenting the lifestyle of Portuguese Nobles of past times. Wandering through the endless series of rooms was fascinating, one of my favourites had to be the collection of stained glass, displayed in cases and explained in detail.
The day all but done I caught the 434 back down towards my hostel and couldn’t help but return to the Chinese restaurant which is called Restaurante Chinese Da Fu Lou for yet another delicious meal, this time with my suitcase in toe. Then it was an evening train back to Lisbon and a bus To Nazare: my final destination in my all too short sojourn in Portugal.
