Two Days of Spain and Portugal

Our third port day was to the City of Cadiz. The weather was less than promising, predicting rain, clouds and cool weather all day.

We didn’t plan a tour but thought we would walk to the old city, find some WiFi and savor some bakery delectable. I didn’t bring my Nikon either because of the rain so all pictures were taken with my phone.

It was a quick walk into town, maybe 10 to 15 minutes from the ship. The streets and alleyways reminded us a lot of Malaga.

We walked into a Catholic Church where We said a few prayers and then wandered a long the alley ways.

As we strolled through the streets, the rains and winds were getting quite strong.

We decided to head back to the ship for some spa time and to have coffee with friends. It was a lovely little city but unfortunately it was not a nice day for walking the streets.

Friday we had a tour from Lisbon to Sintra and Estoril. Our ship sailed up the Tagus River traveling past several iconic structures. Emerald forts are at the start of the Tagus River. Fort of Sao Lourenco do Bugio looked more like a little island with a lighthouse. The first fort at the mouth of the Tagus was Forte de Sao Julião da Barra originally built in the 16th century.

Belém Tower, built in 1519, stands tall and regal on the shores of the Tagus. It is a UNESCO world heritage site.

Lisbon with its colorful rooftops is the backdrop for the River. There is the Palacio Nacional da Ajuda and Palacio Nacional de Belém along with several castles.

The 25th of April bridge spans the River and connects Lisbon to Alamada. Originally called the Salazar Bridge when it was constructed in 1966, it later became the 25th of April Bridge after the overthrow of the Salazar Regime on that date. It was designed by the architect of the Golden Gate Bridge.

There is a large statue of Christ, Christ the King, standing by the bridge watching over the River. This statue was erected in the 1950s and represents Portugal’s gratitude for avoiding the horrors of World War II.

Another grand statue is the Discoveries Monument, celebrating Portugal’s age of exploration in the 15th and 16th century. It opened in 1958.

Our tour guide from Spain Day Tours, picked us up at the port for a whirlwind day. Our first stop was the Pena Palace in Sintra.

It was a magical palace with Moorish influence built in the 19th century although older parts of the palace were originally a monastery built in the Middle Ages. King consort Ferdinand transformed the ruins into a palace for the Royal family. Unfortunately Queen Marie died during childbirth of her 11th child so Ferdinand lived there with his 10 surviving children.

The rooms were decorated with furnishings from that era. The Queens room was the most opulent of them all.

From the wall of the keep we could see the Castle of the Moors which was built in the 8th century.

The town of Sintra resting at the base of the mountains was adorned with beautiful buildings and a historical palace.

We even had time to sample a local favorite pastry consisting of sugar, flour, eggs and almond.

Portugal is known for exporting cork and cork grows on trees. Here our guide showed us some samples of products.

We traveled on to the seaside village of Cascais where a large green statue of King Carlos looked out over the bay. He was the last real Royal before they became a republic.

The villages of Cascais were lovely seaside towns.

Our next stop was a visit to what was once a monastary but is now a cathedral.

When the monastery closed, one of the monks collaborated with a local baker and since the 1800s the bakery has been selling these delicious pastries.

We continued our journey to central Lisbon and were treated to famous cod cakes.

We walked many miles today but learned a lot about Portugal, it’s heritage and it’s food.

The streets were tiled with limestone. Over the years the roads started to deteriorate. The Portuguese have started a program to train people in this lost art of tile work.

One shop struck Bruce’s eye! I wonder why?

We fell in love with Portugal and would love to come back and spend sometime. Eight hours was hardly enough!

#Portugal. #Sintra. #Pena Palace. #Belem#25thofAprilBridge#TagusRiver