A Change - from the City to the Country

We contrasted our day in Lisbon yesterday by visiting a couple of smaller nearby towns/villages the following day. It included driving to Cabo Espichel with its spectacular of the coastline.

Our first stop was Azeitao, the village where my friends live. It is quite small and not at all touristy. Its main claim to fame are the two or three well known wineries here. So, we wandered around checking out some of the "landmarks" - the entrance to the village, its famous grape fountain, the former communal laundry, the beautiful . It didn't take long!

The covered area is the laundry area

I had considered taking the wine tour of the larger of the wineries the next day but, unfortunately, the venue was booked for a wedding so no tours were available. Guess that provides me with yet another reason to return!

From Azeitao, we headed out to the coast to visit the seaside resort of Sesimbra. It was a lot more touristy with shops selling souvenirs, beach stuff (plastic shovels, pails and such), t-shirts, and, of course, fridge magnets (of course I had to buy one!) and a seafront lined with bars and restaurants. All up the hillside were apartments which would have amazing views of the sea. We were pretty sure lots of them would be AirBnB or VRBO accommodation. We wandered along the broad sidewalk beside the beach, stopped for a drink and then headed moved on to our next stop.

Our final stop was Cabo Espichel. This is a cape situated on the coast, part of the civil parish of Castelo. The cape is associated with the legend and cult of Nossa Senhora do Cabo. The story involves the discovery of an image of the Virgin Mary by two old men from nearby Caparica. Another legend has Mary ascending the cliffs on a donkey leaving behind hoof prints in the rock. These prints are actually the foot prints of dinosaurs but, of course, there was no knowledge of such things back then!

The monastery, Santuário de Nossa Senhora do Cabo Espichel (Nossa Senhora da Pedra Mua), was built to house the image and quickly became a popular pilgrimage site, especially for people in the Lisbon area. Lodgings, hermitages and even an opera house were also constructed for the increasing number of pilgrims along with an aqueduct to supply water and a cistern to store it. The impressive Baroque church there today dates from the early 18^th century. The Chapel of Memory is isolated further away on a cliff.

We wandered around there a bit and the views of the coastline were amazing, including the rock formations. There was some sort fair being set up on the grounds of the monastery but I still managed to get pictures. In the distance was the lighthouse which I also took pictures of.