August 15, 2022; Lisbon, Portugal:  With an 8 hour time difference from home, we were a bit jet lagged on our first full day in Portugal.  We had booked an all day small group tour to Sintra and the surrounding areas so we pulled ourselves out of bed @5:30 AM, had breakfast, and set off on our day.

The streets were empty on this surprisingly clear, warm Monday as made the ½ mile walk from our hotel to the tour pick-up area in front of the Armani store.  We later learned that it was a National Holiday in Portugal (Assumption Day) which made the streets even emptier than usual for the time of morning.

We met our guide Manuel, a native of Lisbon, and our fellow passengers who would comprise our merry band for the next 9 hours (a young couple from Dublin, Ireland, an older couple from Toronto, Canada, and two young solo travelers: one from Montreal, Canada the other from Los Angeles).

Portugal’s Covid protocols appear to only require masking in government buildings, pharmacies, hospitals, and on public transportation (including tour vans).  So we all masked up and the 9 of us piled into the Fiat mini-van and made our way to the town of Sintra and our first stop, the National Palace, which was the summer home of Portugal’s royal family.

After some photos and a stroll through the hillside shopping area, we stopped for a quick snack at a local cafe.  We were soon back in the van and off to the Atlantic ocean.  Along the way we passed by several small vineyards in the Colares area (many now abandoned) as well as some fairly empty wine cellars.  We were told that Portugal has not been successful in opening the export markets the local varieties of wine and the vineyards were being converted to build housing.

We drove by Praia das Maçãs (Apple Beach) and made a stop at a scenic overlook in Azenhus do Mar.  Pushing on we proceeded West and arrived at the westernmost point of continental Europe, Cabo da Roca.  This area reminded us of coastal Northern California. We did a short hike along the cliff, took some photos of the lighthouse and were on our way to Cascais, the beach resort of the Lisbon/Sintra area, for our lunch stop.

Since we were in Portugal, on a national holiday, we decided to dine on that most universal of cuisine, Italian Pizza! (to be honest we always have pizza at least once in each country we visit); We managed to get the last table at small out of the way restaurant , dined on prosciutto, rocket (arugula) and burrata pizza and house salad. It was OK.  We then went walking in search of the famous Gelados Santini gelato bar for dessert.  We shared a chocolate cone while standing on the sidewalk.

Returning to the van, we headed back to Sintra, this time to visit the famed Pena Palace. There is much to say about this historic romanticist landmark, but it easier to read about it on Wikipedia.  We started in the gardens and climbed the hill to the palace. The palace was as packed as a can of Portuguese sardines so it was difficult to take in much of its interior splendor, but the the exterior views and gardens were beautiful. 

The tour ended @6:30PM back where it began, in front of the Armani store, We bid farewell to our fellow weary travel mates and walked the ½ mile back to our hotel.