So good morning from Sintra, Portugal. Today is a pretty special day because it is actually
our last day in Portugal and our last day in Europe. We're getting ready to fly back
to Canada tomorrow and enjoy winter. So yeah, we thought we would take one last day trip.
Sintra is only 40 minutes away from Lisbon so it is super easy to get there and there
is a really cool castle that we're planning to visit. But first up, we're really hungry
so we need to find some food ASAP. So let's go.
Well, well it's an early lunch for us at eleven thirty AM. Yeah, we get hungry early. Anyways,
we've really enjoyed Portuguese food. We walked by this Chinese restaurant and we had such
a craving for Chinese food, so we're going to try Portuguese style Chinese food for the
first time.
So I got some wantons soup because it is actually a little bit chilly. You know, winter is on
its way. So it looks really nice here. Piping hot. And also check out the biggest spring
rolls I have ever seen in my life. Like that is basically the size of my face. An egg-roll.
Yes, but it is huge.
Oh, I think I'm probably supposed to be eating this with my hands since I'm basically destroying
it on my plate. So I've got a bit of soy sauce. So messy. Such a messy eater. You really are.
Mmmmm.
That's really nice. These are homemade. They taste homemade. And then the salty soy sauce
is just a perfect combination.
So the food has arrived. Yeah, we ordered the lunch for two and we generally Chinese
restaurants give generous portions but this place is really outdoing itself. Check out
what we've got here. We've got sweet and sour pork, we've got fried rice and we have bamboo
shoots with mushrooms and shrimp. Looks delicious. Let's dig in. Dig in!
Alright, I'm going to try some of this sweet and sour pork with a bit of rice. Good choice?
Oh, yeah.
Oh, yeah, he says. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah! It must be good.
Now that our bellies are full I think it is time to go explore. We're just going to walk
around the town and I know that they've got a really cool castle here so we're on the
lookout for that.
So something a bit unique and quirky about Portugal is that it is the only country in
Europe we've seen a tuk-tuk and this reminds us so much of Southeast Asia. We had a lot
of tuk tuk rides in Thailand and Cambodia and all kinds of other places.
So this is one of those days where we're a little bit lost. We didn't plan this trip
in advance. We kind of just showed up here and then picked up a few maps but they're
actually really confusing maps because if you look at the roads they are curvy, windy
little lanes. So yes, we know we're in a really pretty park and there is lots of nice homes
here but we haven't found the castle or the palace we're looking for. So, patience people
and let's keep our fingers crossed that we get there.
King of the forest in his tree-trunk throne. Who needs a castle when you're the king of
the forest? Hahaha.
You were aiming for the colorful Pena Palace and what happened? We ended up going to a
Moorish Castle. The story of our life. We finally got our act together. We realized
we were taking the very scenic nature path. Definitely the longest way to get up here
but it was rewarding because we hardly saw anyone on the path.
The Castle of the Moors located in Sintra, Portugal is a hilltop medieval castle dating
back to the 9th Century. It was taken by Christian forces during the fall of Lisbon from the
Moors and is now classified as a National Monument and UNESCO World Heritage Site.
I'm the King of the Castle and I suppose that makes you the dirty rascal. What?
Sleepy kitty. Sleepy kitty. Hi, Kitty. Sleepy kitty.
So it is time to wrap things up in Sintra and now we're going to go catch the train
back to Lisbon. And tomorrow it is back home to Canada. Woo!