The Land of Port, Cork and Pasteis- Part 1

10 - 14 days in Portugal.. that was the plan. We wouldn’t need more than that right? Ha! 1 month later, if we hadn’t locked a flight in I think we probably would have found an excuse to stay for ‘just a few more days’. The itinerary was heavily inspired by instagram - just search #portugal and you will understand why. It’s not only the incredible combination of mountains, ocean, cliffs and magical rock formations, but also the castles and gardens seemingly plucked straight from a fairytale that make Portugal so unforgettable. This is the way we did it…

Lisbon

This city has everything. Gorgeous architecture, cute shops, funky wine bars, traditional Fado music, plenty of sites and loads of entertainment. Granted we definitely ate too much in Lisbon but it’s not our fault - the options are amazing and the prices incredibly reasonable. If you visit you have to take a trip to the Time Out Market. I believe it was set up as a temporary event and it was so great that it stayed! Its a great big hall where you can go and try delicacies from some of the best restaurants in Lisbon paired with wonderful wines but without hefty restaurant prices. Do what we did and park yourselves there for a few hours - enough time to let your stomach recover and fit in a couple of courses..

Another favourite was Chapito. You work for your dinner as you climb a pretty steep hill to get there, but it is absolutely worth it! We decided we were hungry at about 10.30pm and went in search of this place as we had heard we might be able to hear some traditional fado music there. When we finally found it, we passed through a gorgeous little gift shop and were soon greeted by brilliant views and surrounded by circus equipment (apparently it doubles as a circus school). After an amazing midnight meal we then went down two flights of stairs and found the music we had been seeking which I could have listened to all night. You must find a fado bar if you’re visiting Lisbon!

Another highlight of Lisbon included a visit to Jeronimo’s Monastery. I’m a sucker for gothic architecture but this was my introduction to the late Portuguese gothic or “Manueline” style. This incorporates maritime symbols or elements and is quite ornate.

Possibly equally as enjoyable was the warm pasteis (we Aussie’s know them as a Portuguese Tarts!) from the famous Pasteis de Belem that is situated just near the monastery. It was easy to see why people were buying them by the half dozen…. per person!

And speaking of local delights.. our visit wouldn't have been complete without a trip to the ginjinha bar. Ginjinha is a traditional Portuguese liquor made from sour cherries. It’s definitely a polarising taste. If you have tried (and like) sloe gin you will love it. If you think anything cherry flavoured tastes like cough syrup - you will hate it! (I fall under category 1 ). Our first ginjinha experience was at the very tiny and very traditional A Ginjinha bar - essentially just a small window where you order this wonderfully potent goodness complete with alcohol soaked cherries in a plastic cup and go on your way!

And on our way we went.. to a performance that was part of the Festa Do Jazz. We stumbled upon the theatre, walked in and managed to get amazing seats. Every single word spoken was in Portuguese but luckily, the language of music is understood by all and we got to listen to 4 absolutely incredible acts - one of my favourite performances I’ve seen on this trip.

And it didn’t end there, we visited beautiful churches, the design and fashion museum, walked up and down the amazing cobblestoned streets and got our exercise by climbing many a decent incline. I could keep going but we have quite a few more places to cover!

Sintra

One. Big. Fairytale. Land. That is all.

Okay that’s not all! But truly, this place is out of this world.

First stop - The Quinta da Regaleira was built by a wealthy Portuguese business man in the late 19th Century with the help from an architect from Italy - and it is spectacular. The buildings on the site are beautiful but it’s the gardens that are truly something special. The grounds are like an enchanted forest, with, fountains, lakes, wells (the most famous one is called ‘the well of initiation’) and much of this is connected by an underground system of tunnels.

It’s hard to explain until you see it yourself but if magic was to happen it would happen here - which makes sense as it is said that many of the structures bore symbols relating to practices such as alchemy and masonry and some may have even been used for rituals. I think we were especially lucky to be there on a beautiful day in the low season, I would imagine it get’s incredibly busy in the summer. Either way if you are ever near by you must visit and give yourself plenty of time to do so.

Then to the Pena Palace. This colourful castle with it’s high archways romantic turrets seem to be plucked straight from a storybook. It’s set up high on a peak overlooking the town. The vibrant red and yellow walls make it look almost lego like but it’s saved from being comical by the interspersed greys and muted blues. The architecture is a mix of Gothic and Moorish. The elements of the latter elements reminded me very much of Morocco - in particular the keyhole shaped archways and ornate tiles of blue and yellow bearing star shaped patterns. The day we visited was grey and stormy and we unfortunately didn’t get to visit the very soggy gardens but the brilliant, crazy if a little over the top building was definitely a highlight.

While our time in Sintra was short and very much focussed on the main attractions, the surrounding area is filled filled with natural beauty however we didn’t see much this until returning here after travelling further south. Next stop was Lagos on the stunning Algarve Coast, which I will cover in part 2..