ITINERARY 1 B - SINTRA


09.00 am -
Departure to Sintra Way out from the top of Parque Eduardo VII, Lisbon

10.00 am -
Sintra arrival. Pena National Palace visit The Pena National Palace is one of the greatest expressions of the Romanticism applied to the constructed heritage, built in the 19th century in Portugal. King Fernando de Saxe Coburgo-Gotha, who married Queen Mary II in 1836, took the initiative to have this extraordinary National Monument built. Endowed with a complete education, the future King Fernando II was immediately enchanted by Sintra, particularly by the ruins of the old Convent of Hieronymite friars. This Convent was originally built during King John II's reign and heavily restored by King Manuel I who, to keep a promise, ordered its reconstruction in stone in praise of Nossa Senhora da Pena (Our Lady of Pena), granting it once again to the Ordem dos monges the São Jerónimo (Order of the Monks of St. Jerome).

The Earthquake of 1755, which destroyed Lisbon and all the surrounding area, damaged the Convent of Pena severely. Only the Chapel, in the main altar area, with the magnificent Renaissance carved alabaster and marble retable, ascribed to Nicolas de Chanterenne, remained intact. It was these particular ruins, on the sloped top of the Sintra hill, that enchanted King Fernando; then, in 1838, he decided to acquire the old Convent, the Convent enclosure, the Moorish Castle and other neighbouring farms and woods. Thus he started his romantic dream: to rebuild the old Convent and add to it a new part as a complement of this King Fernando II also thought to have a magnificent English-looking park planted with the most varied, exotic and rich arboreal species. Thus, the Park and the Pena Palace make up a remarkable ensemble. The Palace is itself an eclectic building where the profusion of styles and the volume movements are an unusual and exceptional lesson of architecture. Nearly all the Palace lays on huge rocks, and the mixture of styles on display (neo-Gothic, neo-Manueline, neo-Islamic, neo-Renaissance and others) is truly intentional, since the Romantic mentality of the 19th century was unusually most fond of exotic. The ensemble of the several sentry boxes, in any shape and form, the successive terraces built on different levels, the 18th century neo-Hispanic-Arabian glazed tiles on the walls, are significant elements. The adaptation of the window of the Convento de Cristo (Convent of Christ) in Tomar, from the side of the Pátio dos Arcos (Arches Yard) and the remarkable figure of the Titan, symbolising, according to some authors, the allegory of the Creation of the World, are fundamental details in the interpretation of this Palace. The conception of the interiors of this Palace in order to become the summer residence of the Royal family highlighted the excellent plaster works, the trompe-l'oeil mural paintings and several coatings in glazed tiles of the 19th century, integrating the numberless royal collections in environments in which the taste for bric-a-brac and collections of art items are quite clear.

12.00 am -
Sintra departure

01.30 pm -
Lunch at "O Cangalho" restaurant.

03.00 pm -
Departure to visit Ericeira, Azenhas do Mar, Praia das maçãs and Cabo da Roca

Azenhas do Mar is situated in a picturesque valley, its white houses perched on the North Slope, is one of the most appreciated and interesting beaches, with swimming pools dug out of the rock. The Miradouro das Azenhas do Mar is built on cliffs that drop fearlessly to the ocean. It is a popular place both in Summer and Winter, due to the grandeur of the view it offers. There, you can admire the Atlantic Ocean in all its splendor and, with a little luck, watch fishing trawlers sail far away. But also Praia da Adraga reached via the village of Almoçageme, deserves a mention owing to its caves on the northern side.

Cabo da Roca: The westermost point on the continent of Europe, which the poet Camões defined as "where the land ends and the sea begins". Its geographical coordinates are: Latitude - 38' 47' North
Longitude - 9' 30' West
Altitude - 140 m above sea level Apart from the lighthouse, there is a tourist desk, where visitors can buy an attractive certificate showing they have been there.

05.00 pm -
HEP 2005 Conference and dinner at Mafra Convent

Mafra Convent: Built by command of Dom John V, the Mafra Convent is the most important monument of the Portuguese Baroque. The architectural ensemble develops symmetrically from a central axis, the Basilica, acting as the central point of a lengthy façade flanked by two turrets; at the rear of the Basilica, the monastery of the Ordem de São Francisco da Província da Arrábida (the Franciscan monks of Arrábida Order) stands. A German goldsmith, João Frederico Ludovice, who studied architecture in Italy, was commissioned to lead the works. He adopted a classical Baroque model, inspired by the papal Rome, showing the influence of Bernini and Borromini elements, namely in the towers, and also some German flavour. The works started in 1717, when the first stone was laid and, on October 22nd, 1730, the king's 41st birthday, the Basilica was solemnly consecrated. The Palace-Convent possesses one of the most important Portuguese libraries, with some 40,000 volumes, and numerous artistic works ordered by the monarch from Portugal, France, Flanders (the two carillons with 92 bells) and in Italy. Inácio de Oliveira Bernardes, Masucci Giaquinto, Lironi or Ludovisi are some of the masters that took part in this "joanine" workshop. During the reign of Dom José (18th century) the Mafra School of Sculpture was even founded, led by the Italian master Alessandro Giuti, which produced such important sculptors as Machado de Castro. In King John VI's reign the Palace was inhabited for a complete year in 1807 before the Court's departure to Brazil. A decorative refurbishing in some of the most important rooms, took place then, after the projects made by well-known artists such as Ciryllo Wolkmar Machado, Domingos Sequeira or Vieira Lusitano. Most of the time, however, the Palace-Convent was only sporadically visited by the royal family and the same occurred after the Court's return to Portugal. It was from this Palace that the last king of Portugal, Dom Manuel II, left for exile on October 5th, 1910, following the proclamation of the Republic.

11.00
pm - Return to Lisbon to the departure place. Arrival at 12.00 pm

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Webmasters: João Martins, José Aparício

Last modified: Mon Mar 6 11:39:04 UTC 2006