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20 to 24 June
Packing the car was a challenge.
The kiddie seat fitted beautifully into the Renault Kadjar, but didn’t leave much room for the parents. Our cases, their cases, a suit pack of wedding gear, camera and computer bags, a portable cot, a stroller and supermarket bags of essential items created a mighty challenge. I ended up with a pile of smaller items under and on my knees, while E&S squished in behind me. The driver was comfortable.
Fortunately our journey wasn’t too long. We had found a wonderful Airbnb in Nazaré. A particularly enjoyed the space to run around while we loved the kitchen table for breakfast and the dining table at the end of the day. But the food in Nazaré was too good to cook at home. The beach was wide and sandy – suited a little person perfectly. It was still too chilly to swim but paddling was good.
I had been to Nazaré in 1972 with mum. she particularly wanted to visit a holy place and settled on Nazaré for Our Lady of Nazareth in Portugal. I’m not sure what prompted her decision because Lourdes and Fatima were also discussed. Can’t remember how this was the choice, perhaps it was a new destination and the furthest from her other destinations during that trip. Perhaps I made the choice?
We had met in Paris and taken a very long train journey to Lisbon, then a day tour to Nazaré. En route we had visited Madrid and Toledo, Barcelona and the Ligurian coast of Italy to see an old flat mate from my days in Genova.
Our journey ended in Munich to meet dad and his colleagues from Siemen’s. Bruce and Denis had made a surprise return to Munich to meet me, and my parents. Were they impressed?
Back to this journey. Nazaré was an easy place to tour. The beach, the market, the excellent coffee on the waterfront, yummiest squid ink croquettas and a magic fresh sardine meal. We found a small restaurant nearly next to our apartment where we discovered the squid ink croquettes. We ate other delicious things but not nearly as memorable as these black delicacies.
The lower part of Nazaré Beach has a beautiful long and wide sand beach. I can imagine it being stacked full in summer but we had it to ourselves here. The beach is made all the more interesting with a flotilla of colourful fishing boats and racks and racks of sardines and octopuses drying in the air. I’d seen them before in 1972 when I was here with mum. And there was a playground on the beach. What more does an 18 month old need?
Supermarket and market shopping was a little more challenging than in Porto, however we managed to find necessary items. We drove out of the beachside town to a larger supermarket for a better choice.
In the afternoon we headed to the other end of town and found the funicular that climbs the cliffs to the curiously named Schwarzlagger Platz where the Church of the Ascension is. This was mum’s destination in 1974.
We played games with the rain, sheltering then braving as the sun shone brightly and promised warmth.
For us the pinnacle of this journey was the Forte de São Miguel Arcanjo da Nazaré. This tiny lighthouse marks the spot of one of the world’s largest surfable waves. A massive underground gorge called the Nazaré Canyon collects the water and tosses it up to the shoreline where waves can reach 30 metres in height. The largest surfed wave was by 115-Foot Wave.
It was a relatively calm sea for us to watch today.
There was a fantastic museum telling the stories of surfers who had survived the waves, and the surfboards they used.
We were wet and exhausted when we returned to Nazaré Beach. We took shelter in a seafood restaurant and enjoyed the best fresh sardines of all time. What else would you eat in Nazaré?
It was a short distance for a day trip to the quaint town of Óbidos.
This little town had been inhabited since the late Paleolithic stone age, and by various groups, including an outpost of the Roman Empire. In later days the original town was abandoned in favour of a more secure hilltop town. The moors of the 8th to 12th centuries were driven out by the first king of Portugal, Afonso Henriques. Earthquakes in the 18th century flattened the Arab and Medieval architecture, and the peninsula wars further damaged the city.
Nonetheless it is a quaint town, meandering around the hilly streets. The beautiful Azulejo city gate marks the entrance to the old town and a perfect spot for a little live music. The town’s focus is on tourism and many of its shops sell the popular drink Ginja de Óbidos, a liqueur made from local sour cherries. We brought a bottle back to enjoy in the evening.
At the top of the town is a famous grand medieval castle with roots dating to the 9th century. Like so many places in Portugal and Spain it is converted into a Pousada offering castle hotel rooms and fine dining. We just saw it from the outside.
There was also some interesting information about the tools and techniques used to build medieval castles, and lastly a magnificent aquaduct.
A was very happy to return to Nazaré and another play on the beach while the grown ups prepared dinner.
Next day we were squished into the car again en route to Sintra.
Unlike the comfortable apartment in Nazaré, this Airbnb posed some interesting challenges. The first was to find our apartment through the extremely narrow and extremely winding streets. The second was to find somewhere to park the car. Bruce is a conservative and considerate driver, but Sintra beat him. He made a decision to park on a corner in a no parking zone.
The apartment, up a very steep staircase, was beautifully presented. I found it a difficult climb. We were presented with elegant furnishings and interesting decorations – wonderful for an energetic 18 month old.
It was early in the day, so we went downtown for a late lunch – perfect timing in Portugal, then an opportunity to acquaint ourselves with this historic town. Of course, Bruce was always keeping his eye out for some decent beer, and was very pleased to find Botica Saloia that provided the necessary beer and wine and some food.
The Sintra region is one of the wealthiest on the whole Iberian peninsula. Its a place where monarchs and important people escaped to the mountains for some relief from the stifling hot cities. The town of Sintra is full of castles and palaces and beautiful big homes.
Its origins date back to paeolithic times, however the two most important places to visit in Sintra are the Pena Palace and the Moorish Castle.
We joined hundreds of tourists on the slow entry to Pena Palace, taking it in turns to entertain young A. And when we finally got into this magnificent palace it was a crawl through the many rooms.
The palace is in the style of 19th-century Romanticism and labelled as a UNESCO heritage site and one of the seven wonders of Portugal. It is certainly lavish.
In the middle ages a chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Pena was erected on a hill just outside Sintra. Over the centuries it suffered lightening and earthquake damage and was abandoned in the 18th century.
In 1838, as King Consort, Ferdinand II acquired the land, then set out to build the palace which was completed in 1847. It was used by the Portuguese monarchs until it was acquired by the Portuguese state in 1889. The palace is set amongst 200 hectares of gardens.
Nearby is the remnants of the Castle of the Moors, constructed in the 8th and 9th centuries. Quite unlike the Pena Palace, it is mostly in ruins, however it is possible to wander over the ramparts and get spectacular views of the countryside and more particularly of the Pena Palace further up the hill.
The Moors provided a lasting impact on Portugal, evident by the many beautifully tiled buildings. With some imagination the Castle of the Moors could be likened to the Alhambra of Granada in Spain
