Day trip to Sintra, Portugal. We caught a train at Rossi Central Station and about 45 minutes later we arrived in Sintra. We didn’t have a plan, other than 2:30 tickets to see the Palácio Nacional da Pena. Thankfully Lily wanted a hot dog and while it was cooking, Jay and Ty found a guy that knows the area. Don’t worry, mom. I asked him if he was a serial killer before we climbed into his vehicle. He said no, so we were pretty sure it was safe. Here’s the thing. The Sintra train station is allllllll the way down here. And the Palace is allllllll the way up there. We would all have been cussing if this guy didn’t save us from a day of misery.

Recommend!!
We stopped for a photo opportunity and our driver pointed out this tree. It’s cork! Did you know that Portugal is the world’s largest exporter of cork? I didn’t – now we all know.
I spy a palace
Castelo dos Mouros is very close to the palace. We had some time before our Palace entry ticket, so we wandered the paths leading to this 10th century Moorish castle.
The blue is tile…. Wow
The castle was first a chapel built in the medieval ages, the became a monastery in 1493. It remained the home of no more than 18 lucky monks until the earthquake of 1755 when it was mostly ruined. In 1838 Prince Ferdinand purchased it and began restoring it for use as a summer residence for Portuguese royalty.
Not sure if you can tell in the picture, but the bed is really short.
Not exactly a “lounge in the bath for hours” sort of tub, but it serves its purpose. Ty couldn’t believe they didn’t have showers, bro.
The tile in the courtyard was gorgeous.
But the tile in the queen’s room….
Under construction but still beautiful
Hey Jay – if you need a last minute Christmas present idea for me, I could use a new statue of a guy holding a lamp.
I love how colorful the palace is!
Not exactly a warm welcome to the castle
There are caves and secret passageways all throughout the castle grounds. Apparently the Boy Scouts get to go explore the passageways.
Lily needed to rest her weary feet on this surprisingly comfortable granite couch
We took the cobblestone trail down the mountain (so much better than climbing up). Photobombed by a medieval castle
Someone needs to give this guy the Born & Raised tour guy’s information. Or point him in the direction of the nice pathway. Clearly he likes to do things the hard way.
A prince on his throne
We found a delicious Italian restaurant at the base of the hill and we all devoured our food. We were stuffed, but we had to stop at Piriquita to bring home some of their famous pastries –
travesseiros (a light puff pastry with an egg and almond filling, shaped like a pillow). And a piece of chocolate cake. 🙂
Yum….
Because you can’t walk by one of these without posing for a picture. 🙂

We ran out of time (and energy) to visit the Initiation Well. I guess we will have to come back someday….

Train from Lisbon to Sintra: easy.

Ride from a non-serial killer stranger who was super helpful and friendly: life (and marriage) saving.

Short walk to the Moorish Castle: worth it.

Ticket to the Pena Palace: worth it.

Hike down from the Palace to town: peaceful and beautiful – a bit strenuous, but lots of steps to make it easier.

Sintra Pastries: not good for my diet but heaven in my mouth.

Wandering the shops of Sintra holding my baby boy’s hand: priceless.