At around 9:30, I ordered UberX from Torel Palace Hotel to Cais do Sodre Train station, which regularly departs for Cascais. We arrived at about 9:57, missing the 10:00 train for Cascais. However, we boarded the next 10:20 train and arrived 40 minutes later.
According to Wikipedia (see more about Cascais):
Cascais is a town and municipality in the Lisbon District of Portugal on the Portuguese Riviera. The city has 214,158 inhabitants[1] and an area of 97.40 km2.[2] Cascais is an important tourist destination. Its marina hosts events such as the America's Cup, and the town of Estoril, part of the Cascais municipality, hosts conferences such as the Horasis Global Meeting.
Cascais's history as a popular seaside resort began in the 1870s when King LuÃs I of Portugal and the Portuguese royal family made the seaside town their residence every September. This also attracted members of the Portuguese nobility, who established a summer community there.
Cascais is known for the many members of royalty who have lived there, including King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom when he was the Duke of Windsor, King Juan Carlos I of Spain, and King Umberto II of Italy.
Exiled Cuban president Fulgencio Batista was also once a resident of the municipality. The Casino Estoril inspired Ian Fleming's first James Bond novel, Casino Royale.[3]
The municipality is one of the wealthiest in Portugal and the Iberian Peninsula. It has one of the most expensive real estate markets and one of the highest costs of living in the country, and is consistently ranked highly for its quality of life.
On arrival, we started exploring downtown Cascais. The weather was initially foggy and cloudy. However, the fog cleared by noon, and the sun came out, with clouds disappearing. It also got quite hot outside (especially when walking in the sun).
We saw many interesting shops and restaurants and stopped at Palácio Seixas to take photos. We saw a few people swimming and paddle-boarding on the beach.
We decided to continue exploring and stopped at Museu Condes de Castro Guimarães. At first, we toured the beautiful gardens with a large tower built up. Then, at around 12:30, we purchased tickets to see the inside. We toured the three-story building and saw some notable paintings and furniture.
According to Wikipedia (see also Palácio dos Condes de Castro Guimarães):
The Palácio dos Condes de Castro Guimarães, originally known as the Torre de São Sebastião (St Sebastian's Tower), was built in 1900 as an aristocrat’s summer residence in Cascais, Lisbon District, Portugal.
It became a museum in 1931. The building follows an eclectic architectural style, while the museum includes paintings of national and international significance, furniture, porcelain, jewelry, and a neo-Gothic organ.
Our next stop was the Cascais Lighthouse (Farol Museu de Santa Marta), which was closed. We continued our long walk, stopping at the famous Boca do Inferno, described as:
These scenic oceanfront cliffs feature a natural archway & open cave created by pounding waves.
We saw a few people sailing in the bay. The wind was light, and just barely enough to fill out the sails.
We enjoyed our time in Cascais. It reminded us of other seaside towns (like Carmel-by-the-Sea). In the late afternoon, we ordered UberX to return back to Lisbon.
- Sitting around Cascais Beach (near Paul bakery), people watching
- Enjoying the beautiful gardens of Museu Condes de Castro Guimarães
- Munching on pastries at the Paul bakery
- Hot, muggy weather
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