Sintra, A Wonderful Day Trip from Lisbon
It took us less than an hour to get to Sintra from Lisbon. We went by bus which we took from the lot right behind the Marques de Pombal monument. I believe we paid 20 euros each for the trip which included the Hop On Hop Off Bus fare in Sintra.
We still had to buy our admission tickets to Pena Palace which happened to be Sintra's main attraction. Unfortunately, we were not able to go inside the palace since there was a long line to get in and we were told of the very long wait. We opted to just buy the ticket for the outdoors and the gardens. By the time we left the area, the line to get inside the palace had gotten even longer and we felt lucky to have just toured the premises. The palace was indeed a sight to behold.
This was the very first impressive building we saw when we arrived in Sintra. If I am not mistaken, it was being used as a government office.
What a tower and a façade for a government building, eh?
A view of the Pena Palace as we walked up the ramp towards it.
Blue and white tiles covering buildings sure are pretty.
This was inside a small chapel at the palace.
This was one of the most visited part of the palace grounds.
Isn't it pretty?
Another side of the palace with a very pretty design.
Taken from the restaurant at the palace
One last look at the palace as we left it.
The city center
A tile art on exhibit inside the admission tickets office to the Palacio Nacional de Sintra or the National Sintra Palace
We left Sintra around 5 pm. We were the only ones on the bus back to Lisbon. We met a very talkative and friendly driver who spoke very good English. Apparently, he lived and worked in London for several years, at a hotel, which was why he spoke English so fluently. It was he who told us that it wasn't worth it going inside the Pena Palace. Having heard that, we didn't feel bad anymore about not having been able to get in. He dropped us off at the Amoreiras Mall and he strongly urged us to go up the tower at the mall for an aerial view of the city of Lisbon.
Souvenirs galore
A local church
A Moorish gate in the city center
Loved this blue mansion
