If you want an excursion away from the bright lights of Lisboa head to Sintra, Portugal's fairytale town on the edge of Europe. It is easy to reach this UNESCO World Heritage Site from the capital, just a 30-minute drive and well worth a sightseeing trip.
Pena Palace Sintra and its mystical hills dotted with fairytale palaces and extravagant villas have bewitched visitors for centuries. The Romans made it a place of cult moon worshiping and named it "Cynthia" after the goddess of the moon. They were followed by the Moors who also fell in love with the lush vegetation and built a hilltop castle, a palace, and several fountains around the town. Later it became the summer residence of the Portuguese royal family and attracted a number of wealthy aristocrats who built huge mansions and villas. Famous British poet Lord Byron stopped by in the 18th century, and wrote that the town is "perhaps in every respect the most delightful in Europe," and calling it a "glorious Eden" in his epic poem Childe Harold's Pilgrimage.
Pena Palace - Sintra, photo by António Sacchetti
In the main square you’ll find the National Palace, dating from the 14th century. Its two gigantic conical chimneys are the town's most recognizable landmarks, while the rest of the building is a combination of the Moorish, Gothic and Manueline styles. Inside it possesses the most extensive collection of colored glazed tiles in the world, and several exceptional rooms. The Sala dos Brasões ("Coat-of-Arms Room") stands out for its domed ceiling decorated with stags holding the coats of arms of 74 Portuguese noble families and for its walls lined with 18th-century tiled panels. The former banquet hall, Sala dos Cisnes ("Room of the Swans"), also has a magnificent ceiling, divided into octagonal panels decorated with swans painted in the 17th century. Other highlights include the "Magpie Room" (named for the birds that decorate the ceiling), the Royal Chapter of King John I, the huge kitchen with a capacity for 1000 diners, and the interior courtyards where poet Camões read his verses to the king.
Surrounding the palace is the Pena Park, filled with a variety of trees and exotic plants from the former colonies of the Portuguese empire, ponds, fountains, and black swans. There is also a charming lodge hidden among the trees that can be visited. At the highest point is a statue of King Ferdinand looking towards his palace, and a viewpoint called "Cruz Alta" overlooking Pena Palace and surroundings.
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