#84 Of magical castles, mystical forests, and enchanted gardens

March 2-3, 2022: Sintra

J. Sintra is a city that is not far from Lisbon, but so different. Located in the mountains, surrounded by dense forests and huge rocks, Sintra is home to a variety of castles, palaces, and enchanted gardens. It feels surreal, like Alice in Wonderland. We walked through deep, mystical forests, full of ferns, where large rocks and tall trees were covered with moss, almost like with the Wood Elves in Lord of the Rings. The only thing missing was the fog to make this place even more mystical than it already was. In the middle of the forest is a castle, atop the mountain. The long wall with battlements, and the towers can be seen from anywhere in Sintra. The castle was built on the rocky peak. So, in the middle of the castle, you can see huge rocks, some even built into the castle walls. From up here, you can see all the way to the sea and to Lisbon, and have an overview of the many castles, palaces, and mansions in Sintra.

Right next door is the colorful Palácio Nacional da Pena, surrounded by a huge garden where you can go hiking and easily get lost. We passed landscaped gardens and very wild areas, walked along the seven lakes, came across a greenhouse in the middle of the forest, and occasionally encountered lonely lanterns, like in Narnia. But we hadn't strayed far from the palace, the vast depths of the estate remained hidden from us. The palace itself looked like something out of a colorful, vibrant children's fairy tale and would fit perfectly in Alice in Wonderland. It shimmered in the colors of red, yellow, orange, blue-purple, gray, and black and white stripes, and was full of small arches and towers. You could creep around on a small walkway high above the forest, discovering new things at every turn.

The biggest highlight was the Quinta da Regaleira. This garden was built in 1910 by the then richest man in Portugal, the coffee baron and millionaire Monteiro. It is an enchanted garden full of things to discover. Although we were given a detailed map with pictures at the entrance, which almost resembled a game board, we kept coming across long underground tunnels that led us to surprising places. We suddenly found ourselves behind a large waterfall and had to use our flashlights in the labyrinth around the underground lake just to see our hands in front of our faces and not fall into the lake. Sometimes the tunnel went steeply uphill and suddenly we were several floors higher. The sloping location of this garden was put to good use. We came across small towers that turned out to be the towers of large castle facades. Suddenly, we were in the scenery of an ancient theater. Behind one of the castle facades, there was not a castle, but a greenhouse, and many of the beautiful facades had no house behind them. Doors, stairs, and corridors never led to the interior of a house, but always to a new part of the garden. However, there was one house, the castle where the millionaire himself lived, of course with many servants. I hope his children were allowed to play treasure hunt in the garden, as it is very suitable for that. The most famous "building" of this garden and of Sintra as a whole looks like an upside-down tower that grows into the ground. You can look down into this spiraling, downward spiral from the top and also go down yourself. I heard that this spiral, which slowly goes down and inwards, is supposed to symbolize the path of inner reflection. It is magical to go down here and admire the different perspectives on the building, the earth below, and the shrinking circle of sky above. Below, as expected, begins a long tunnel with several branches that lead to new, unknown, and discoverable places.

Day 139 - Total tour 9,047 km

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