Castles Galore in Sintra

I left on a 10:41 train with 2 other people from my hostel to venture to a nearby city called Sintra. I met Leon the previous night in the common area and Finia at the table after breakfast. When we were talking about what we were doing for the day, Leon said he was also going to Sintra with a group of people. He invited me to come along, so I said yes, but I was a bit nervous. I wasn't sure how big the group would be, and I wasn't mentally prepared to be with people all day, but I figured this would be a really nice bonding experience! Finia came down to meet Leon and the rest of their group, but the others didn't show up, so we decided to still go on our own.

We were worried about whether our Navigante cards would work because some tickets were bus and metro passes vs. a train pass, but we all got through the gate successfully and ran to the front car. There was a huuuuge line for the ticket booth since none of the kiosks were in service, so we got really lucky that all of our passes worked. We took the train successfully to Sintra and they even walked with me to the hostel to drop off my stuff. It was only a 9-min walk, according to Apple Maps, so it wasn't too much of a bother. They also got to use the bathroom and fill up their water bottles, so that was a plus.

From the outside, the hostel looked pretty sketchy, but it was nice on the inside. This hostel was the cheapest of the three I booked for this trip, and it was definitely the most stereotypical hostel. That's not to say it was bad by any means, but that it felt the most like budget-friendly accommodation. There were 2 private rooms and one dorm with 3 bunk beds. I got the top bunk once again, which I usually prefer, but the only outlets were by the floor, so I had some struggles with my phone charger cable lol. The person in the bunk below me was a really good sport about me trying to toss it up a couple of times.

We decided to go to Quinta de Reglerias first, which had the really cool "reverse well." I had seen lots of pictures and videos when doing my research on Sintra. It was soooo hot when we first got down to the station, so I left my teddy bear jacket and cardigan at the hostel. I really wish I had brought my cardigan though, because the higher elevation made it much windier. Thankfully it was still sunny enough for me to not be super uncomfortable, but by the end of our visit, I was covered in goosebumps.

We took a bus and tried to use our cards to get on, but two of ours didn't work. My day pass had expired and Leon's was out of money. Thankfully, I had enough coins for both of us. It was a pretty steep and windy ride up to the palace. There were no seats left, so we stood in the back together.

From the outside, the palace was gorgeous. When we got there, we saw a pretty long line. We saw a QR code to buy tickets, but there was a fee, so we didn't want to use it. I was looking for a combo deal with other castles to see if that would be cheaper, but the combos turned out to be even more expensive.

After standing around for around 5 minutes trying to figure out the best way to proceed, a guy came up to us and let us know that there was a ticket kiosk! We hadn't seen it at all because it was totally empty. It worked like a charm and we got our tickets instantly. I can't believe all those people were waiting in that line when they could have just used the machine.

We walked around and saw everything in just under an hour and a half. There were several towers that had nice views, but many were obstructed by trees. One tower in particular was the most crowded, and we had to wait a while to get down because the staircase was so slim and people kept coming up.

Once we finished seeing everything, we got lunch at the cafe. Right outside, there was an adorable kitty! Beside the cafe was a stunning view, so we took our best pictures there. By the time we sat down, we were starving. There were mostly overpriced sandwiches and hot drinks.

The last part was through a house with a gorgeous exterior. It's the first thing you notice when you arrive at the site. After we finished, Leon and Finia went to the closer castle together and I parted ways with them to make my reservation. I refused to pay for an overpriced bus, so I decided to walk. Apple Maps said it was only 37 minutes away, which sounded totally doable. Unbeknownst to me, most of that was full-on hiking. At first, I was walking along a nice, paved path, then suddenly, it turned into an actual dirt trail. At one point, I had to climb up big rocks in my white Reeboks and sundress.

At one point, I thought I had made it, but I still had a long way to go. I thought the shuttle would pick me up here, but I still had farther to trek. Thankfully, this part was paved, but it was very curvy. When I got to the real entrance, I was so grateful I had purchased the transportation to the castle. I couldn't have taken another step on my own at that point. The shuttle had no roof and very few seats. Half of the people were standing. I started chatting with some nice folks from the US who were standing right behind me.

Oh my god it was freezing. I had to gaslight myself into believing I wasn't shivering but I truly was miserable. I refused to show any sign of discomfort even though the goosebumps told a different story. I ended up going inside the cafe for a coffee just to warm myself up. There were some nice views too. It ended up closing, so I had to find another spot. I walked around and tried my best to look like I wasn't absolutely dying until I could line up for my tour. The wait was the worst part because we were mostly standing still. I could hear the people behind me talking about how I must be suffering because of how cold and windy it was.

The tour inside the castle was a bit lackluster. For some reason, the audio guide was through an app on your phone, and it didn't have all of the rooms on it. The rooms also weren't even in order, so that was extra confusing. For me, it was just such a relief to be protected from the harsh winds for as long as possible.

After the tour, I walked around one last time and took lots of pictures of myself with my self-timer. I started to take videos and screenshot the best frames from them later, but the quality isn't nearly as good. There was a really nice younger couple who took photos for me. I think that's the hardest part of solo traveling. I don't mind going solo, but I don't really want to have just selfies to show for my adventures.

On my way back down, I decided to bite the bullet and pay for the bus. I couldn't take any more walking and I just wanted to be warm. The guy in the seat across from me chatted with me for a good portion of the way down. It's crazy how Americans find each other so easily.

For dinner, I walked around the indoor market but didn't see anything that caught my eye. I then went into the grocery store just down the street to cook dinner instead. There was an adorable cat sitting outside who ended up coming in and sitting atop the conveyor belt. Aside from the cat, I didn't see anything particularly interesting in there either. In the end, I settled for a Doner kebab with fries and a drink.

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The next day, I set out for Monserrate Palace. In the morning, I checked out the cute farmers market right outside of my hostel. There was a really cute pair of shoes, but they didn't have my size. It turns out that most places in Portugal don't carry sizes that are as small as my feet. I felt bad because the nice couple running the stand checked their whole truck for me. I guess it's a loss for them too.

I took the same bus as yesterday and got off after around 35-40 minutes. Thankfully, I had a seat this time. Immediately, I was impressed by the pretty jungle-like entrance. This place was huge and I already felt like I was going to be pooped by the end of the day. I got the audio guide for this castle as well and tried to follow it the best I could, but there wasn't a lot of helpful signage. I really had to rely on the map. The audio guide was fun, and there was a quiz at every location too.

My favourite spot, aside from the castle, was this really cool overgrown chapel. I could have stayed there for a whole hour.

The castle's interior and exterior were much more stunning than Sintra, despite being many times smaller. It was just unfathomable how someone could carve all of that. The moment you step inside, you're just in awe. I found another English-speaking family, who turned out to be Canadian this time, to take a picture for me. I took a family picture for them in return and then ended up seeing them all over the rest of the castle. There was a second floor where you could get a better look at the ceiling and also learn about the castle's construction. The rooms upstairs were all pretty bare though. They were mostly just plywood floors and white walls.

Once again, I was there until closing. The last remaining people were ushered out slowly. I still had more to finish seeing outside, so I stopped following the guide. There was a really cool desert garden behind the castle that I had to skip out on walking through, but seeing it from above was good enough for me. I walked down the hill beside the castle and into the Japanese garden. There was another family nearby, which reassured me that I was doing okay on time. After seeing every last bit of the estate, I needed to use the bathroom and couldn't find one nearby at all. There was a really cute cat that helped distract me from my urgency. I had to go all the way to the entrance to use the bathroom, which oddly had a window built into the door, and petted the cats one last time before I was told that they had to close the gates.

I was so sure I was at the right place because I was standing exactly where I got off, but I must have been too distracted by the cat and tired to think properly. I accidentally got on the wrong bus and had to go all the way around. Someone else ended up doing the same thing as me. It was actually pretty cool though, because we drove out allll the way to the coast.

I really needed to eat dinner, and there weren't many places open. I was in the mood for seafood, but many places I came across looked a bit odd. I ended up at a nicer place to guarantee I would have a satisfying meal. The only tables were outside, but I had embraced this fate all day. I ended up next to a lovely British couple who recommended me the entree I ended up ordering.

Getting home from dinner and into bed was a blur. I knew I had an early start to get back to Lisbon for my train to Porto and knocked out as soon as I made the climb up to my bunk.