Cascais and Sintra, Portugal

 

We drove to the nearby coastal town of Cascais. Once a fishing village, in 1870 it became the residence of the Royal family. During World War II it became the home of many royal families escaping the Nazis including, Spain, Italy, Hungary, and Bulgaria. Today it is known for its beaches and marina.

Palace of Sintra

We learned that Portuguese is the sixth most popular language in the world, largely because of Brazil and Portugal’s many former colonies. The second largest concentration of Portuguese people is in New Jersey. We drove along the coast to the Western most point on the European continent. Then up into the hills to the town of Sintra. Here we toured the oldest royal palace in Europe, built in 1385. Most of the rooms are tiled with tiles as old as 500 years. The rooms also had unique ceilings: the swan room with 27 swans (the age of Isabel when she married Philip), the magpie room with 136 magpies (the number of her handmaidens). The tiles in the third room were newer because they featured corn stalks – corn was discovered in the new world. The most spectacular room was the Coat of Arms room with 72 coat of arms. King Manuel I is in the center with the king’s children surrounding and other relatives below. On the walls are large scenes in blue and white tiles from the 15^th century. 

Coat of Arms Ceiling

The Castle is unique because of its two symbolic chimneys above the kitchen. Fires were maintained in the arches above the floor, then the coals were moved to the holes beneath the shelves where the pans were heated. This was a different royal palace.

The Kitchen

We had lunch across the street from the palace. After lunch, I climbed the hill, trying to reach the Castle of the Moors, built in the 8^th and 9^th century. I got to within 200 yards but ran out of time.

Castle of the Moors