Falling For Portugal: A Mai Tai Tom “Trip” Report

Chapter Eight: Quinta da Regaleira and Palácio da Pena

Day Eight: Early Birds, All’s Well, Dante’s Inferno, More Manini, Crowd Control, Blown Away (Literally), The Best €20 We Have Ever Spent and A Neighborhood Gem

Since I had booked and rebooked this trip three times since 2019, I had forgotten one minor detail involving our stay at Chalet Saudade Vintage Guest House. I had originally booked the two smaller rooms in 2019, because they were all that were left. About a month before leaving I remembered this error and attempted to upgrade. Unfortunately, they had no more larger rooms, but as it turned out the rooms were perfectly fine with a scenic garden view. Plus, it’s not like we spend a lot of time in our room.

Breakfast is included at Chalet Saudade, but it’s not located on the property. It’s less than a 5-minute walk up some nearby stairs to the Café Saudade, owned by the same people. We had a tasty breakfast and hiked to the Quinta da Regaleira, a UNESCO World Heritage site. We got there a little before they opened at 10 a.m.

It was about a 20-minute walk from Chalet Saudade to our first destination of the day.

Our friend from yesterday, Italian architect Luigi Manini, and owner António Augusto Carvalho Monteiro designed the Quinta da Regaleira estate, which was completed in the early 20th-century. The approximately 2 1/2 acre estate contains grottos, lakes, statues, caves, a chapel, a palace, a famous well and monuments that supposedly hide symbols related to alchemy, Masonry, the Knights Templar and other spiritual orders. It is sometimes called “The Palace of Monteiro the Millionaire” (Monteiro was a wealthy Brazilian/Portuguese businessman and well-known Freemason … maybe … who sold coffee and precious stones.)

We had purchased advanced tickets so we could avoid waiting in the ticket line. (The tickets were good on any day through the end of 2022.) Quinta da Regaleira is named after one of its previous owners, Baroness da Regaleira.

We entered near the old horse stables (if you have not pre-purchased a ticket, the ticket office is located here). This area is where the woman fell and died the previous day. Immediately we wound our way through the gorgeous grounds toward the Poço Iniciático (Initiatic or Initiation Well).

First, we’d see a few things along the way such as a couple of its Garden Follies. I had never heard that expression so had to look it up. “A garden folly is usually considered a building or structure that is designed for decoration with no other purpose than to add a touch of whimsy or extravagance.”

While Kim utilized one of the follies atop the Portal of Guardians, Mary looked like she was auditioning to be in the Follies. Sondheim would be proud.

There were no shortage of these stone follies on the Quinta property.

On the Terrace of the Celestial Worlds is the Ziggurat Tower. You can climb it, but at the moment we were looking for a place to walk down.

We arrived at the inverted folly, the Initiation Well. Isabel’s sage advice worked to perfection, only four people had arrived ahead of us.

We looked down the 88-foot well that was never intended to be a well. The winding staircase was ready to be conquered by the four of us. Isabel had told us that the well represented the nine circles of Dante’s Inferno (nine circles of Hell, Paradise and Purgatory). There are a number of other theories, as well. This would not have been a place Jimmy Stewart would have enjoyed in Vertigo. We started down.

…  taking a few photos along the way.

When we reached the bottom, things started looking up. Way up!

At the bottom, we walked through a system of tunnels for 15 minutes.

Kim and I navigated so perfectly that we said, “It’s so easy, cavemen can do it.” We did not, however, get 15 percent off of our car insurance at Geico.

Meanwhile, Tracy found Lago da Cascata (Waterfall Lake).

Very serene to be sure.

We wandered aimlessly through the gardens. This stone urn carved with a Satyr, a Ram and grapes caught our attention. Wine is a symbol of abundance and immortality. If that’s the case, I will live forever.

As did the Fonte da Abundância (Fountain of Abundance). I could not find an abundance of information, however, although I was told the Dolphins above the fountain represent fire and light, but barring a miracle, never the AFC playoffs.

We passed an ornate bench.

Lots of people were climbing the towers. Walking around you could see why so many people call Quinta da Regaleira a “magical place to visit.”

In the garden is the Capela da Santíssima Trindade (the Chapel of the Holy Trinity).

Similar to the palace, the chapel is constructed in a mixture of Gothic, Renaissance and Manueline styles, while other structures on the property are in a more simple medieval style.