The Fairyland of Sintra - by Lily

Visiting Lisbon - Day 3

I didn’t plan to go to Sintra until the night before. With more than a half day free at hand before my meeting starts, I decided to search up another place. And I was glad I did. After reading some reviews and pictures online, I felt Sintra is a place I must go. So I was up early in the morning and took another train to Sintra.

There are many places to go once I arrived at Sintra. I followed the signs and went uphill. The Sintra National Palace was in view right away because of its distinct snow-white twin peaks. But up on top of the mountain, among the greens and behind a veil of morning fog, there stood the Moorish Castle. A few more turns along the uphill road, I spotted a rather hidden small gate on the left side of the road. That was the head of the hiking trail. Jocelyn, a girl from Canada travelling alone, happened to be at the gate at the same time. So we headed up together chatting a bit. She had explored quite some places all over the world by herself!

Sintra National Palace

Sintra National Palace

Moorish Castle

The trail was steep at places, but it was in shade and the air was crisp with cool morning breeze. We arrived at the Moorish Castle ahead of major tourist groups. The castle spread its walls along the hill top. From above high it looked like a miniature great wall. We  spent a good hour of time exploring the castle, looking up to view the Pena Palace and looking down to see the green hill extends all the way to the Atlantic Ocean.

After that, Jocelyn went up the hill to Pena Palace while I headed down hill to Quinta da Regaleira, a magic and exquisite estate. The trail has become sunny and noisy with lines of school kids heading up for picnic. I took my time and enjoyed the wild flowers blooming in the sun.

Pena Palace

Moorish Castle

Moorish Castle

The Unfinished Well

The Initiation Well

Regaleira Palace

Regaleira Palace

Inside Regaleira Palace

Inside Regaleira Palace

Quinta da Regaleira consists a romantic palace and chapel, and a luxurious park that features lakes, wells, fountains, and sculptures. Looking at the map I didn’t understand why the layout states 1^st floor, 2^nd floor, 3^rd floor, etc for the park. Walking into it I realized all the places are interconnected not only by the main trail, but also by many hidden stairways, “trenches” on the hill, and underground tunnels. The fun part is going behind the curtain of waterfall and through the pitch dark tunnel reaching the wells, and then climbing up the wells. The park is filled with lush green and decorated with various sculptures and constructions. The Regaleira Palace is as royal as it can be, rich color and delicate carving everywhere.

My camera cannot fully capture what I saw and felt. But check out this website to experience the magic yourself.

http://www.boredpanda.com/palace-of-mystery-quinta-da-regaleira-by-taylor-moore/

Visiting Lisbon - Day 2 - by Lily

Day 2 – Belém and Cascais

Going to Belém and Cascais would require taking the train. Luckily most of the office workers can speak and understand some English, even if not, people on the street are willing to help. I had an old lady explaining to me how to buy the train ticket at kiosk three times in Portuguese! So I got on the right train without much hassle. 

25 de Abril Bridge

Belém was just a few stops outside downtown Lisbon. It was by Rio Tejo. Getting off the train I took the sky bridge to the river side. Walking along the river side I saw the 25 de Abril Bridge across the Tagus River and Christ the King on the east side, and the monument Padrão dos Descobrimentos on the west side. I headed toward the west to get an up close look at the monument. Along the way there were marinas filled with parked yachts. Further west stood the Belém tower (Torre de Belém). The tower was built in the early 16^th century and is a prominent example of the Manueline style architecture. It played an important role in Portuguese maritime discoveries in the 16^th-18^th century. On the ground of the square by the tower there is a giant world map with Portuguese ships marked in many continents. Portugal was once a world power with colonies all over the world!

Taking the next sky bridge across the road I headed back. The other side of the road is where the Jerónimos Monastery resides. The building is expansive with complex sculptural themes and the ornate south portal is rich with intricate carving. Quite a master piece!

Grabbing some tasty pastry from a local shop I hopped back on to the train to go further west to Cascais, a small town by the Atlantic coast. It was a colorful little town with lazy beaches. Many people were sun bathing, others were playing with the ocean, swimming or paddle boarding. Local café displayed fresh fish and cooked to the order. After a nice stroll along the beach, I headed back to the city.

Padrão dos Descobrimentos

Padrão dos Descobrimentos

Torre de Belém

Torre de Belém

Jerónimos Monastery

Jerónimos Monastery

South Portal of Jerónimos Monastery

Cascais

Cascais

Fish at a local cafe

Cascais

Visiting Lisbon - Day 1 - by Lily

Lisbon, Portugal is not on my list of city to go yet, but opportunity calls, so here I am J

The day before I left home I started to panic. I realized that I had not traveled and toured all by myself ever, and I had no time to plan it yet. The day I left was the day Justin returned home from his 2-week tour in California, with a couple of his friends, without a car. My brave son set an example for me, so off I went, with a 15-page tour information on Lisbon downloaded on my phone.

            

Praça da Figueira

I glanced through the information and picked out a few places, a couple near downtown and a couple in longer distance. But knowing that I’d be arriving in Lisbon early in the morning, I forced myself to sleep as much as possible on the plane. It was a smooth run getting through the custom and checking in at the hotel. With a city map and metro map in hand, I was off exploring the city by 11am.

Terreiro do Paço

Santa Justa Elevator

Praça da Figueira

I took the subway to Rossio station to explore Lisbon downtown area (Baixa). The minute I stepped out of Rossio station, I saw Praça da Figueira (Square of the Fig Tree) in front of me. Following the crowd led me to the Terreiro do Paço (Commerce Square) near the Tagus River (Rio Tejo). The statue of King José I is in front of the Arch facing the Tagus River, glistening in the sunlight and looking grand. There are lot of activities on the square, music, performers, and of course food, a lot of food! Along the way I spotted the Santa Justa Elevator, there was a line of people waiting to get on to have a good view of the surrounding area. I decided to head uphill as I saw the tips of the towers there as I remembered from the tour brochure.

Terreiro do Paço

The winding roads uphill are much like San Francisco, there are also stairways to cut through the buildings, as long as you know the general direction you are heading. When in doubt, I just followed the tourists or tour bus route (tram track) J Sé Cathedral is in Romanesque style and solemn looking, the service was on and the music was touching. The National Pantheon was originally Church of Santa Engrácia, and currently entombed many of the illustrious Portuguese. The design was simply ingenious and magnificent. Reaching to the terrace on the 4^th floor I had spectacular view of the city, from hilltop to the river. São Jorge’s Castle required some time to explore, the forte was extensive and intricate.

Sé Cathedral

Inside Sé Cathedral

Inside National Pantheon

Inside National Pantheon

Inside São Jorge’s Castle

São Jorge’s Castle

Heading down hill, I passed through the Alfama area, where street arts, café, and Fado music are everywhere. It reminded me the hutong in old Beijing J

Alfama

Alfama

Alfama

Back to the Commerce Square, I had my meal of the day, egg tart and sausage sandwich, two famous items in Portugal.

The city spread from hill top to Tagus River

São Jorge’s Castle

A city packed with red roof tops

Two Love Songs

 "Thinking out loud - people fall in love in mysterious way",

"Because you loved me",

These are two relative old songs I heard during watching NBC show Voice competitions, which resonated with me. I dedicate them to my love.

----

For all those times you stood by me

For all the truth that you made me see

For all the joy you brought to my life

For all the wrong that you made right

For every dream you made come true

For all the love I found in you

I'll be forever thankful

You're the one who held me up

You're the one who saw me through through it all

You were my strength when I was weak

You were my voice when I couldn't speak

You were my eyes when I couldn't see

You saw the best there was in me

Lifted me up when I couldn't reach

You gave me faith 'coz you believed

I'm everything I am

Because you love me

You gave me wings and made me fly

You touched my hand I could touch the sky

I lost my faith, you gave it back to me

You said no star was out of reach

You stood by me and I stood tall

I had your love I had it all

I'm grateful for each day you gave me

Maybe I don't know that much

But I know this much is true

I am blessed because I am loved by you

You were always there for me

The tender wind that carried me

A light in the dark shining your love into my life

You've been my inspiration

Through the lies you were the truth

My world is a better place because of you

I'm everything I am

Because you love me

----

We find love where we are.

I am everything I am because you love me.

We will grow old together.


Note  - excerpted is partial lyrics of the song "because you loved me", changed some grammars and words for this post to fit my purpose