Vale dos Lagos Sintra

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Duck house on Valley of the Lakes at Pena Park - Sintra/ Portugal
Medieval tower

Pateira no Vale dos Lagos - Parque do Palácio da Pena



Aproveitando as linhas de água de todo o Parque que confluem para este vale, criaram-se aqui cinco lagos, rodeados por fetos arbóreos e árvores de grande porte. Destacam-se o Lago de São Martinho, com uma pateira em forma de torre medieval, e o Lago do Pesqueiro, onde se conta que o rei D. Carlos pescava carpas.


Pena Palace

The Palácio da Pena and its surrounding park are billed as "a consummate specimen of Portuguese romantic architecture." The palace, which was built from 1842 to 1854, is a riot of building styles that range from Moorish to pseudo-medieval.

"When the earthquake of 1755 devastated Lisbon and the surrounding region, the convent of the Pena fell in ruins. But the Chapel, with magnificent retable in marble and alabaster attributed to Nicolau Chanterene, remained unbroken. These ruins, on top of the steep mountains of Sintra, had astonished the young prince D. Fernando. In 1838, he decided to acquire the old convent, all of the surrounding fences, the nearby Castelo dos Mouros (Castle of Moors) and some other quintas (villas)."
"The Palace, itself, has a profusion of styles and the volume movement has an unusual architecture. The mixture of eclectic styles that exhibits (neo-Gothic, neo-Manueline, neo-Islamic, neo-Renaissance, among other styles) and the references to prominent Portuguese buildings (such as the Belém Tower) are all intentional (in the 19th century people used to like the exotic and romantic). The set of the diverse sentry boxes, of the most varied forms and shapes, the uneven terraces covered with tiles in neo-Hispanic-Arabic style, are remarkable elements. The notable figure of the Triton symbolizes, according to some authors, the Creation of the World."

The palace is surrounded by the delightful Parque da Pena, which offers walking paths, fountains, lakes, follies, and belvederes within its 85 hectares or 210 acres of romantic landscape. [link]