On our third day in Portugal, we took the train to Sintra. Sintra is such a wonderful, beautiful little town. Even walking around Sintra felt magical—just look at the city hall building, or the charming little sidewalk! ...
Seen from Porto, Portugal, the Serra do Pilar Monastery crowns a hilltop in Vila Nova de Gaia, Porto's across-the-river neighbor. The convent and its round church date to the 15th century. If it looks a lot like a fort, that should be no...
Porto's Cathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady is not the largest or most beautiful in the world, though its admirers may not agree—but it has striking features that make it memorable. Among them, the large open four-sided skylight...
Forcing myself to take a break in my hike through Bairro Alto, I choose the outdoor cafe at Miradouro de Santa Catarina. Sitting above the riverfront looking down on Cais do Sodre, I am rewarded with a panorama of the Tagus River. To my right...
Belém is a neighborhood of Lisbon along the Tagus River. Belém has many reasons to visit it, both old and new. Belém is the area from which many exploratory ships left Lisbon. It sits near the mouth of Tagus River. For that...
Sintra is a town that's had two "Golden Ages," nearly a thousand years apart. They have left Sintra with so many things to visit that it is not only one of Portugal's biggest tourist attractions but also a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Starting...
Paris: Pont Neuf at night Every place we travel has its landmarks, and for nearly every city on a significant river, at least some of those landmarks turn out to be bridges. Unlike statues and monuments, they’re (almost...
Every now and then, wandering around a city, I've spotted an interesting, even beautiful manhole cover. Yes, the everyday necessity that keeps us from falling into the utilities. In some places it's plain Jane—but as you can see here, it's...
This traditional Portuguese soup made a hearty meal for us at a station cafe in Sintra, after a full day of climbing around Sintra's Moorish Castle and Pena Palace. It's based on bread, garlic, cilantro and eggs and chicken broth. The...
Last summer, in Porto, Portugal we met a formidable sandwich and survived. But it took two of us to eat each of the ones we tried. All were good, and each was a little different. Our favorite recommended by our apartment host, was at Cafe...
If one buys a home or apartment for at least 500,000 Euros and holds it for 5 years, investors will receive a Portuguese residence permit. Rich Chinese business people are doing just that."Only obliged to spend seven days per year in...
Dusk on the Tagus River, looking toward April 25th Bridge Every city’s history is reflected in its neighborhoods and its architecture, but in Lisbon’s case two important factors add to the picture. One is the incredible wealth that came to...
High on the hills above Sintra, Portugal, the Moorish Castle guarded the town from invaders, starting in the 8th century, during the early years of Moorish rule on the Iberian peninsula. Today it is a popular attraction for tourists, with spectacular...
There are two sides to every story, and to every river—including the broad Tagus River that flows past Lisbon and out to the Atlantic. Almost half the population of the metropolitan area lives south of the river, connected to the city by a...
Sunlight and shade highlight the complex carving of this stonework at the Monastery of Jeronimos at Belem, in Lisbon. This late-Gothic style is called Manueline, after King Manuel I. It’s marked by ornate stonework, often including maritime...