Sintra Pena Palace 3.3.25
Our destination today is the Pena Palace and we already know where to catch the bus – it comes down the hill and stops at a particular bus stop. It is a circular service and just goes round and round and I have previously researched the price. What I did not expect was that the driver does not want to sell us the basic ticket. They have been told to sell a rover ticket at a higher price – not the simple return ticket. We do eventually get it. The price difference is a couple of Euros but I dislike being “ripped off” in this way. I suspect for those doing both palaces it might make some sense – but it is a “norty” bus company.
We pass the Moorish palace first and then reach the Pena Palace. As yesterday we are significantly early as the instructions make it clear that there is a need to be present at the time the tour is timed (every half hour). So we are able to walk around the outside parts of the castle and then watch a couple of previous timed entries enter. It becomes clear that if you are given an 11 am timing you can enter over the next 25 minutes. So rather than join a queue and be in the hustle we wait for 20 minutes after our allotted time and then we enter behind the main pack and are not being hustled along by those behind us. And potentially able to get photos without too many people in the way. (Some months later we encounter a very similar problem at St Michael’s Mount and I suspect it has all been born out of covid and no-one has quite managed to relax since).
The Palace is externally an almost glorious clash of different styles representing the contributions from various sources over the life of the palace – the heading picture struggles to convey these variations.
Pena Palace Interior
It takes about 35 – 40 minutes to go around the Palace and hopefully I will have some decent photos of it. The original monastery was destroyed in to earthquakes – the second being the one which also devastated Lisbon in 1755. In 1838 the Ferdinand II acquired the lands and set about turning it into a suitable summer palace for the royal family. A German architect was employed with construction being finally completed by 1854, although it was largely complete in 1847. The Royal family had significant input into various elements of the design. In 1889 it was bought by the State from the Royal family and after 1910 it became a museum. At the end of the 20th Century it was restored to its original colours.
In the evening we eat at the Café Paris which is immediately opposite the National Palace which we are visiting tomorrow. An excellent meal so we will have a light lunch here tomorrow as well. Decent food and well looked after which is always welcome.