Lisbon, Day 3, August 27, 2015

We decided to go to Sintra, an Unesco World Heritage Site. But before we left, I went to the market to get shrimp and squid for tonight's dinner. I was thrilled to find spotted shrimp which are sustainable and wild caught.  BC ships most to Japan and the rest to restaurants in Canada - pity. They are very sweet and delicious.

We caught the train for a 45 minute ride.  Sintra is a picturesque Portuguese town that is set amidst the pine covered hills west of Lisbon. The nobility and elite of Portugal built exquisite palaces, extravagant residences and decorative gardens. The Castle of the Moors is a hilltop medieval fort taken by Christian forces from the Moors after the fall of Lisbon.

The Castle of the Moors

Once we arrived, we lined up for half an hour to catch the bus which would take us to three castles. No photos were allowed inside.

First stop

We could have walked faster to the first stop, but to the next two it would have been a gruelling uphill climb while avoiding cars and coach buses on the narrow road with numerous hairpin turns.

Nice house

Nice castle

When we took the train back, we realized too late that we had taken the wrong train and would need to take two trains to get back on track.  We opted for a taxi to Alfama and hiked the rest of the way. The beer tasted mighty good with the shrimp and squid, which I cooked with chorizo, olives, and white wine, Delish!