Sintra's Quinta Da Regaleira
So yesterday I went back for a return trip to Sintra. I had heard through some subsequent conversations with people here that I had missed Sintra's star attraction the first time I was there--- Quinta Da Regaleira.
The Lonely Planet has described Sintra as sleeping beauty meets lord of the rings and after my first trip I got the sleeping beauty part but the lord of the rings part had me a bit curious. Not any more.
Quinta Da Regaleira is a house and grounds that was designed by italian opera set designer Luigi Manini. It's a very bizzare and fantastical place with carved out caves and bizzare statues and areas with names like "threshold of the gods" "the guardians entrance" and "grotto of the virgin".
The highlight though is a series of carved out underground caverns and tunnels that lead you below the ground to various points within the park. It was immensely cool. We entered the caverns kind of by mistake by following a series of stones in a pool of water to an opening in the cliff. we thought we were just going behind the pool when we discovered a series of tunnels. Feeling our way along in the dark we finally found some daylight and we had emerged at the bottom of a 30 meter deep well called "the initiation well" with a spiraling staircase around the perimeter. halfway up the well was another tunnel leading the "guardians entrance" and from the first tunnel there were several branching tunnels leading to other points in the park. It was so cool to feel your way along in the dark wondering what fantastical place you would surface at next.
I would have to say this place was one of the highlights of my trip. I've just never seen anything like it. I can't believe I missed it the first time I was here but I am glad that I was able to catch it the second time. I guess that's one of the beauties of coming back to a place.
The Lonely Planet has described Sintra as sleeping beauty meets lord of the rings and after my first trip I got the sleeping beauty part but the lord of the rings part had me a bit curious. Not any more.
Quinta Da Regaleira is a house and grounds that was designed by italian opera set designer Luigi Manini. It's a very bizzare and fantastical place with carved out caves and bizzare statues and areas with names like "threshold of the gods" "the guardians entrance" and "grotto of the virgin".
The highlight though is a series of carved out underground caverns and tunnels that lead you below the ground to various points within the park. It was immensely cool. We entered the caverns kind of by mistake by following a series of stones in a pool of water to an opening in the cliff. we thought we were just going behind the pool when we discovered a series of tunnels. Feeling our way along in the dark we finally found some daylight and we had emerged at the bottom of a 30 meter deep well called "the initiation well" with a spiraling staircase around the perimeter. halfway up the well was another tunnel leading the "guardians entrance" and from the first tunnel there were several branching tunnels leading to other points in the park. It was so cool to feel your way along in the dark wondering what fantastical place you would surface at next.
I would have to say this place was one of the highlights of my trip. I've just never seen anything like it. I can't believe I missed it the first time I was here but I am glad that I was able to catch it the second time. I guess that's one of the beauties of coming back to a place.
posted by mnlrs at 3:22 AM
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