Last hurrah…

Sintra 30C … Lisbon 37C easy decision and what a good one. An early start on a 35 minute train to Sintra … we crammed in as much as we could. We are in a microclimate with abundant trees, surrounded by castles and palaces too many to discover in 1 day. We take a hop on hop off tourist bus and the advise of a guide. Pena Palace, Sintra National Palace and Regaleira Palace in that order. All very different and amazing. Another fiest for the amateur photographer … nothing could go wrong. A must see for any Lisbon visit. I could have spent much more time here.

Hit the town running …

A summer day, beautiful blue skies you get that feeling it’s going to be hot. The Metro was busy as we headed to the centre of town. The aim was go to the Elevator de Santa Justa we were 5th in the queue for the day. The lift goes up 7 floors … 47m; today it is a tourist attraction, however in it’s day was a main thoroughfare for locals to get up the steepest Lisbon.The views were great on the clear day we have, the construction and architecture is another visiting attraction built by an apprentice of Gustav Eiffel (Eiffel’s name has been remembered all throughout Portugal in terms of bridge constructions). On the top level is the ruins of the old Church of the convent of Santa Maria do Carmo and the Archaeological Museum. Lisbon was almost flattened in 1755 by an earthquake which followed by large fires. The remains of the church is now a tourist attraction, the church and museum were well worth the visit. Back down on the street, a walking tour group is just starting … I can hear the guide speaking English … giving the opening blurb … we ask to join … we were going to have breakfast … oh well …

We join the group and visit local monuments and learn more history. What is a walking tour without a visit from the Mayor of Lisbon? He just happened to be outside his office and upstaged our tour guide with more history. The tour wound up at 2pm. What a way to fill a day. It’s gotten quite hot … 38C as we grab any shade in the streets as we head back for a swim the hotel pool.

A nice little town, rich in corn, rice, farming and cork.

It’s 9am and it seems hot already it’s going to hit 40C today … we are on our way to the bus station, riding along the river, a couple of fishers look like they are set up for the day. The excited screams of kids as they play under water fountains, it looks like a school holiday program. Kids also at the beach under the shelters they are in for a treat today as the temperature climbs.

We are on the milk run on the bus which is good; seeing the little country towns. I’m amazed at the expanse of the rice growing areas.

Back in Lisbon, we chose a hotel with a pool, glad we did, we hit the town running and got our bike boxes within hours of checking in, a 6km return walk at 36C …the pool came in handy.

From the hotel window I look out to the Águas Livres Aqueduct what a sight … I’m hoping to see more of it tomorrow.

‘Oops … I don’t think I mapped from hotel to hotel’, she says as they struggle up a hill towards the castle in the heat and following garmin … she has stuffed up …

A soupy morning, it’s quite foggy and low cloud cover, such a shame as we are riding along a river/lake system on our left and cork on the right.  We are going through the kilometres quite quickly, a brief stop at a fruit stall, fresh local fruit cherries, melons of several varieties … we settle for peaches and plums and a local cheese.  The lady gives us a slice of melon … yum so juicy.

We divert off the road to avoid the trucks onto a EuroVelo, I’ve done some research and it’s a fast hard packed surface with some areas of sand. A great diversion, all shades of green. A canal from the dammed lake/river provides irrigation for the crops in the plain.  We are riding through rice and corn fields.  A lovely quiet ride then onto a red bike path into Coruche.

It’s become very hot, the tourist office lady suggested a few sights in this little town, the castle was one … no … too hot.  The river is a lovely alternative, a simple ride on the path on both banks, a lone swimmer, a Canadian canoe, a little further is a pseudo beach with permanent umbrellas and a beach patrol, a few people around.  Tomorrow is expected to be 41C I’m sure there will be activity in the river.

I write today from the balcony of the  Casa where we are staying, 9pm it’s cooled down and I can see the river, people enjoying the drop in temperature as they take an evening stroll .., it’s not dark yet. I join them for some pics of the river. A lovely way to end a country stay before we hit Lisbon tomorrow.

It was nice to have breakfast out the front of the bar, espressos were giving the locals a heart starter for the morning before work or just to meet up for some gossip. I hope we weren’t at somebody’s table.

Out of town on back roads, cattle and sheep farming, cork, pines and gums. Our focus is on cork trees; some freshly harvested with No 22 painted on them.

Lots of little villages close together … we are centre of attention as we ride through the town, almost as if there are motion cameras in the street, little old ladies just pop out of their doors. We stop for a coffee, it’s hard to find someone to serve us at this very old cafe. The water fountain in the square, seems to be a popular daily chore as the old folk fill up their water bottles, I join in to fill my water bottle, lovely fresh cool water.

To finish our ride we pass a cork company Amorim Florestal, looking like a timber mill, but instead cork in piles. This company has been trading in the cork business since 1870.

A late check-in so we relax and have a tradional lunch; we learn later that it is one of the best restaurants in town … and we arrive in our cycling gear … eek. Lovely food and service. You just have to love the Portugese … ‘2 starters and 1 main should be plenty for you both’ … so it was, mushrooms and croquettes followed by orange duck, vegetables and fries and lovely white wine.

A must see … the culture centre … a mural of 400,000 cork stoppers. A Guiness Book of Records certificate.

‘It’s 12.10′ she says; ‘it can’t be … we haven’t been riding for 3 hours!” … we are so close to the Spanish border the time on my mobile has changed.

After 15km of busy roads the landscape changes to quiet roads of forests of pines and Tasmanian Blue gums.

What a wonderful day filled with an easier ride than expected. Before crossing the Tejo River we stop for a coffee.  We are far away from the tourist destination, coffee is €0.65. 

The fun begins… the climbing … John says my mental maths is wrong … it was only 4.2km … We get car honks of encouragement … I get in my zone … John goes ahead. A great descent and another climb this is not so bad … a water fountain on the way, how lovely the taste of fresh cool water.

We are in Nisa at 1.30pm gorgeous tidy town we are staying at pension at the back of a bar. Lunch is off the blackboard … something pork. 2 large beers John orders … no! I’ll have white wine … jug please. John’s beer arrives and a large jug of red wine appears … okay that will do. I’ve now become a wine connoisseur … it tastes of cherries. The pork stew was amazingly tasty. Next to us is a young man who acts as interpreter … he’s from Lisbon and visiting his grandmother, first time in 2 years due to Covid. Grandmother is at the table she is 97 next week and looks fantastic.

We check in, shower then nap for 2 hours … whew maybe that wine was a little stronger than I thought.

What an unexpected gem … a visit to the library … they are celebrating 100 years today and fireworks later tonight. We are on a roll … the old town is lovely to stroll around and picturesque .. back to the bar … we are the new kids in town, the local elderly gentleman are here, beers and red wine is flowing. The bar is starting to close so we find a restaurant to eat … haha some of the gentlemen are in the bar … umm a pub crawl.

The town is in suspence waiting for 10pm … not sure who got the biggest thrills we see about 15 high schools kids in a square and chat about their age and where we are from, their English is good and we all have a laugh. The fireworks begin and the town are all gathered to watch … lovely community event.

No more castles … Okay!

A quick 10 minutes and we were down the mountain and coasting along the flat plain. It was nice to move the legs without grinding up hills.

Gum tree plantations and cork trees, the cork trees have the number 22 painted on them meaning they have been harvested this year, they are rich red in colour where the bark has been stripped.

The landscape is very Australian wheatbelt – rocky outcrops, it’s very dry and a lot of cattle farming. Little streets with cobblestones, a couple of men sitting on a steps in the shade solving the problems of the world.

We roll away the kms and stop just 15km from Castelo Branco at a little village for lunch, they are using a rotisserie for chickens and potatoes over hot coals. A hot chicken roll and potatoes with amazing sauce for lunch.

On of those moments today when you walk into an event, at the castle there is a weekend festival. We have caught it on the last day … yes a climb on foot up to yet another castle; atop the festival is in full swing … local products, people dressed in medieval clothing, jugglers, dancers, food stalls … entertainment to while away a few hours.