Climbing to the Moorish castle

A cooling start to the day, not eating breakfast on the terrace but we enjoyed our scrambled eggs and fruit breakfast inside instead.
Victor collected us at 9.30 am for our walk up to the Moorish Castle built in the 10th C when the Moors controlled the Iberian Peninsula. The castle is easily seen from our hotel high above the town. At night it took on a mysterious quality because of the foggy helmet covering the mountain.
We walked up the little lanes of cobbled streets opposite the Royal Palace, t is a rabbit warren of little alleyways once you get off the main street and we had not ventured very far previously. There are lots of little shops,cafes and souvenir places which we plan to explore more on Wednesday when we are left to our own devices while Victor does his guiding and then transports us to Lisbon.
We were a little apprehensive about today's walk as it seems such a long way when you look up from the town but it is on the agenda so upwards we will go.
We went up 500 metres through Pena Park, through lovely gardens and up through the forest until we reached large outcrops of huge rocks,some of which form the basis of the walls of the castle and the Gannaries which stored the grain centuries ago.
We paid six euros to enter the Moorish castle grounds with its distinctive turrented walks,towers and the three different Portugese flags flying aloft the towers and to  climb along  the walls built by the Moors. There are also the remains of the castle rooms and the castle keep,the stables and the living quarters of the governors.
It was quite a grunt upwards to the castle, etc but Victor kept up a running commentary on the history of the Moors so we were well entertained and time passed quickly.
We had great views looking out over the countryside and across to the large urban areas springing up around Lisbon. It also gave us views of Pena Palace and some other Palaces which we will not visit this trip.
It is such a good defensive position for the Moors as you command views over the whole area but it is also known to have been a  earlier settlement dating back to the stone ages.
We spent an enjoyable few hours here and the day had become much warmer as we started downhill, l was feeling much better so I was looking forward to my lunch at Pendoa,  another local restaurant known to Victor where I had some delicious soup with cod croquettes, rice and salad. Victor and I shared a bottle of wine and some nibbles of olives and bread so it was quite a feast.
Later we headed off to see the Quinta da Regaleria, another exotic residence built as a summer house for a noble family. It was built in the Romantic tradition where the owners saw them as places to relax and enjoy, a place, of pleasure. Carvalho Montero transformed the place into a exotic place, notable for the plants and structures to excite curiosity and wonderment.
The gardens are most noteworthy with walkways lined with statues,follies,a chapel, a underground towers with hidden caves. The pathways lead you around into places of curiosity with names like Portal of the Guardians, Grotto of the East, Labyrinthic Grotto. It was planned as a garden of the Cosmos which is revealed through a series  of magic and mysterious places. It is very symbolic too,according to Victor of Freemasonry.

This walk was known as the 'esoteric walk' and ranged across the garden and the hillside.

We went inside the Palace of Regaleria,  an example of neo-manueline architecture of the Romantism Era with influences of the Italian  Renaissance period and Baroque architecture . The stairway is carved from the timber of chestnut trees and the porch is of local limestone and carvings of hunting scenes decorate the main hall. Famous artists were called I  to paint masterpieces and no expense was spared to create beauty and add magic to the property.

A lot of the Palace was closed off for restoration but it was an example of the period and the wooden ceilings were a feature of the house interior.
By this time my attention was flagging! We finished our visit with a walk along the Statue Avenue known as the Promenade of the God's.  The classical  goddesses  were lined up to bring good luck to all who walked here.

On our way back we had a look at the house that Madonna was reputed to have recently purchased. She will have to spend some money to bring it up to specifications a different provide her some privacy. Good luck with that.

When we got back to the hotel we got the news that NZ had won the Americas Cup.Yeah!!!

Later we climbed up to the newly discovered part of the town and found a tapas cafe which was lovely. Great vibe and popular with the locals and a new idea, you fill in a checklist with the food you want to order and the bread comes in a drawstring bag.