March 17: Palace of Pena

Happy St Patrick's Day from Portugal! We got a pretty early start this morning as we made the 20 minute drive to Sintra train station. From here, we took an $8.00 Uber ride for the last 20 minute trek to the base of the Palace of Pena. This brightly colored Romanticist castle dates back to the Middle Ages but was transformed to its present state by Ferdinand II from 1842 to 1854. As a UNESCO World Heritage Site, you would totally expect large crowds and today was no exception. It was literally crawling with people, which made taking pictures a bit of a challenge.

Next, we drove to the city of Cascais where we stopped along the coastline at a place called Boco do Inferno. The  deep chasm along the coast provides the perfect conditions for huge waves to form and slam against the seaside cliffs. It was quite spectacular.

Our final destination was to Lisboa Camping & Bungalows. With a price of only $30/day, we decided to make it our base for our two days in Lisbon.