Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(adult/child €12.50/10; 9.45am-7pm)
Rising up from a thickly wooded peak and often en-
shrouded in swirling mist, Palácio Nacional da Pena is a wacky confection of onion
domes, Moorish keyhole gates, writhing stone snakes and crenellated towers in pinks and
lemons. Ferdinand of Saxe Coburg-Gotha, the artist-husband of Queen Maria II, commis-
sioned Prussian architect Ludwig von Eschwege in 1840 to build the Bavarian-Manueline
epic (and as a final flourish added an armoured statue of himself, overlooking the palace
from a nearby peak).
The kitschy, extravagant interior is equally unusual, brimming with precious Meissen
porcelain, Eiffel-designed furniture, trompe l'oeil murals and Dom Carlos' unfinished
nudes of buxom nymphs.
Convento dos Capuchos
(Capuchin Monastery; 219 237 300; adult/child €6/5; 9.30am-8pm)
Hidden in the woods is the be-
witchingly hobbit-hole-like Convento dos Capuchos, which was originally built in 1560 to
house 12 monks who lived in incredibly cramped conditions, their tiny cells having low,
narrow doors. Byron mocked the monastery in his poem
Childe Harold's Pilgrimage
, re-
ferring to recluse Honorius who spent a staggering 36 years here (before dying at age 95
in 1596).
It's often nicknamed the Cork Convent, because its miniscule cells are lined with cork.
Visiting here is an Alice in Wonderland experience as you squeeze through to explore the
warren of cells, chapels, kitchen and cavern. The monks lived a simple, touchingly well-
ordered life in this idyllic yet spartan place, hiding up until 1834 when it was abandoned.
You can walk here - the monastery is 7.3km from Sintra-Vila (5.1km from the turn-off
to Parque da Pena) along a remote, wooded road. There is no bus connection to the con-
vent (taxis charge around €35 return; arrange for a pick-up ahead).
MONASTERY
Palácio & Parque de
Monserrate
(
www.parquesdesintra.pt
;
adult/child €7/6; 9.30am-8pm)
At the centre of a lush, 30-hectare park, a
manicured lawn sweeps up to the whimsical, Moorish-inspired
palácio
, the 19th-century
romantic folly of English millionaire Sir Francis Cook. The wild and rambling gardens
surrounding the building were created in the 18th century by wealthy English merchant
Gerard de Visme, then enlarged by landscape painter William Stockdale (with help from
London's Kew Gardens).
PALACE, GARDENS
