Sintra City
Introduction
Sintra is a city and municipality in Portugal, just 30km from Lisbon. The city itself is a major tourist attraction for many who come to Portugal. It is regarded as the best day trip from Lisbon. Sintra is like a page torn from a fairy tale with its magnificent buildings and many of them are on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It has many 19th century architectural monuments and the setting of its building makes this place very unique. Monte da Lua rises above Sintra and most of the times it is covered in clouds and fog.
The Republic Square
Praca Republica (Republic Square) is a popuar square in Sintra. Here, lots of the people gather and many cafes and restaurants fill the area. At a very hand location, the Sintra Tourist Office is situated at the junction of Rua Gil Vicente and Praca Republica streets. A pillory stands in the centre of the square. In the past, this column was used to tie the criminals. During my visit to Sintra, the Sintra Living Statues Festival (Festival de Estátuas Vivas de Sintra) was held and many people were dressed as living statues.
Coat of Arms
Among the most visited buildings in Sintra are; the Monserrate Estate (Park and Palace), the Pena National Palace, Quinta da Regaleira Park and Palace, National Palace of Sintra and Castle of the Moors to name few. Street names in Sintra are displayed by using the glazed tiles. One thing which caught my eye was the Coat of the Arms of Sintra. On its seal, it shows a soldier (possibly a Muslim) with the castle in the background. It was surprising to see that star and crescent was used in the coat of arms. Maybe, it offered a homage to its past residents (from the Muslim era).
Old Town
The Camara Municipal de Sintra (Sintra Town Council) is situated in the old town. Train station of Sintra has a very colourful facade. Even better, inside the building, colourful glazed tiles are used to enhance the beauty of this building. In the past, Portugal was known for producing one of the best glazed tiles in Europe, the technology they borrowed from the Muslims.
A castle like building was on the main road and it had a guard dog inside which was ferocious looking and barking non-stop. A public water fountain from 1882, on a path leading to the Castle of the Moors. In the past, locals would come here and collect water for their daily use.
