Portugal continued

Portugal continued......

Our last few days in Portugal were fantastic. We felt comfortable with driving, loved the high standard of food and the friendly people. There's so much beauty in the countryside, architecture, antique furniture and attractive décor. Portugal is a great introduction to Europe.

On the way south from Porto, we photographed a gothic monastery at Batalha. It was built of limestone so its age (600 years approximately) shows compared with buildings in the north built with granite.

In Lisbon we went on a tour of more churches. We slipped into a Catholic church and watched a sermon. The acoustics were impressive. It was built so that many people could hear one person speaking. We are not familiar with all the patrons and rituals and unfortunately there wasn't much else to see. It was January 1st so many places were closed, except one - Pasteis de Belem. Their speciality is baking the Portuguese tart! I have been eating them in Hallam with my teacher colleagues and they are like a custard tart with a creme brulee top and flaky pastry crust. Yum!!

On our last day we drove to Sintra. Katelyn had completed a project and studied its history and architecture for her year 12 speaking exam in Portuguese. It was great for her to see the place and show us its magical beauty. First we went to the gardens of Quinta da Regaleira. The tour guide told us the story of a man who was born in an incredibly rich family who had made money from sugar and coffee plantations in Brazil. He didn't need to work and he set about building a home which incorporated his fantasies and knowledge about Greek mythology, Knights Templar, the Masons and Catholic religion. He built tunnels and a well that had something to do with the spiritual journey of life and being reborn again. He was, I think, a very mixed up and eccentric man. We did like exploring the manor and the gardens as they were so beautiful and creative.

On the hilltop above there was a Moorish castle. We had been to so many castles, so we decided to visit Pena Palace that was built on an even higher hill. What a thrill! The palace at Sintra had a theme for various rooms. One circular room had stag heads, all looking down from the walls. Another room was decorated in an Arabic style. The queen had beautiful rooms with furniture that included a writing desk, telephone and rooms for the ladies in waiting and the personal secretary. Another room was just for getting dressed. The kitchen was huge. This photo only shows one corner.

It took a few hours to explore the royal summer palace. It was like exploring a fairytale castle and I found it difficult to believe that it was real and part of Portuguese history.

We could easily imagine people living there.

Neptune!

We could also imagine ourselves living comfortably in Portugal so it was sad to leave the country.