Feeling full, we then headed across the nearly 3km long 25 April bridge to the incredible Christo Rei statue that stands high in the south bank of the river. The bridge was named 25 April to celebrate the 1974 Portuguese revolution and has been compared in design to San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge.
Christo Rei is very similar to the famous statue of Christ in Rio. The110m high statue stands on top of a huge platform, that can only be ascended by elevator. To get a sense of the size, at the base of the platform, is a church and then at the top of the elevator is a small chapel and gift shop. At this point, you need to climb up the equivalent of a couple of stories and then you will be at the feet of Christo Rei.
The views from the top are spectacular - up and down the harbour. Easily seen across the harbour to the left is the Monument to the Discoveries and the Tower of Belem. Even though several kilometres up the harbour, to the right is the unmistakeable Praca do Comercio. This view really puts the size of the square into perspective. Even further up the harbour we were able to see the staggering 18km long Ponte Vasco de Gama, which is a bridge that connects the north and south side of the harbour.
From this view it's easy to see why Lisbon is commonly called the city of seven hills!
After leaving Christo Rei, we headed on to Sintra, about 30 mins west of Lisbon. Sintra is known as the fairy tale town and as we drive in we immediately understand why. It really is like something out of a fairy tale. From the stunning Town Hall (where wedding preparations were underway), complete with tower and turrets, the homes and buildings of Sintra are beautiful, incredible, picturesque........... all these words come to mind when trying to describe Sintra.
We spent a couple of hours wandering around the streets of Sintra enjoying everything the town offers, going crazy with our cameras. There really is just too much to take in. We came across a small bakery which is renowned for one of its pastry creations - a cheesie/sugary/cinnamony thing that was amazing! I seem to be saying that a lot, but there really are no other words to describe some of our experiences - culinary and otherwise.
And then it was back on the road again and time to head north to Praia de Quiaios, a beach up the coast popular with the locals for summer breaks. We decided to do a spot of free-camping tonight, a popular pastime for people travelling in campervans. We found a great spot near a restaurant and, most importantly, a clean bathroom to set ourselves up for the night.
Once we were organised we headed off for a walk along the beach boardwalk. It's such a strange situation. Most people that come and stay here will spend time sunbathing on the beach, but if they want a swim will head for the hotel pool or the public pool. Whilst the beach was full of people, we only saw a handful of them playing in the shallows. This is because the water at the beach is freezing - it's the Atlantic after all!
The beach itself is pretty wild. Big and inconsistent surf with a massive drag. If you weren't a competent swimmer or didn't understand rips, it would be bloody easy to get yourself into trouble.
For dinner we had our first taste of Portuguese burgers at a small burger joint, washed down with some ice cold Cerveza and wine. Great way to end our day.
From there it was back to our free camping spot - along with five other Campervans by the time we got back!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment