Beaches

Waiting in Cascais

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Cascais_75F

Some visitors like to stay in Lisbon to have the excitement of the capital city on their doorstep. Others prefer the seclusion of Sintra with its romantic palaces and lush vegetation.

If you’re visiting the Lisbon region, there is a third option: you can stay in Cascais, a picturesque beach resort, 30 km north of the capital. From Cascais you can take the train to Lisbon, following a scenic route along the Tagus river. You can also rent a car and visit Sintra, Colares, and Cabo da Roca.

The great writer Samuel Beckett vacationed in Cascais in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Beckett stayed at the Cidadela de Cascais, an old fort converted into a hotel favored by Portuguese writers. This hotel has recently been beautifully renovated to add modern comforts to its historical location and expansive ocean views.

Once Beckett got to Cidadela, he simply stayed there, enjoying the moments when the sea paints the sky with white mist. It’s not surprising that the author of a play about waiting in vain knew to stay still when beauty arrives.

The Cidadela de Cascais is located on Avenida Dom Carlos I, Cascais, tel. 214814300. This hotel is part of a network of historical hotels called Pousadas. Click here for our post on the Pousadas and here for the Pousadas web site.

Mental vacations

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Mentalvacation

When things are not going our way, we take a mental vacation and recall a day at the beach. It’s late afternoon and the sun is getting ready for an ocean dive. The temperature is perfect; a slight breeze caresses our skin. Sometimes, we daydream about the Algarve, where the air is perfumed by almond flowers. Other times, we imagine the west coast of Portugal, where the wind smells of pine and seaweed. All we hear is the chatter of the waves. All we feel is the serenity of the moment.

Pedro Rebelo is a Portuguese composer, sound artist and performer, working primarily in chamber music, improvisation and installation with new technologies. You can learn more about his wonderfully original work by clicking here.

A place of serenity

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You can have an unforgettable vacation at Casas da Areia, a beautiful retreat on the margins of the Sado river, one hour south of Lisbon. Here, you can rent one of four fisherman huts built from local materials. They have striking African-inspired thatched roofs and impeccable minimalist design.

There are many pristine beaches close by. But, once you settle at Casas da Areia, you’ll probably just want to enjoy the magnificent vistas and bike around the gorgeous Sado estuary. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself talking to Christian Louboutin about the serenity of this place; he has a house nearby.

After staying at Casas de Areia, it’s hard to stop asking your friends “did I tell you about my unforgettable vacation in Portugal?”

You can find more information about Casas na Areia here.

A legendary beach

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Nazaré is a picturesque fishermen village where women once wore seven layers of brightly-colored petticoats. Its claim to fame comes from two legends, separated by more than eight centuries.

The first legend dates back to 1182. D. Fuas Roupinho, a nobleman, was chasing a dear on a foggy day. He was so engrossed in the hunt that, when the deer suddenly jumped off a cliff, he followed in pursuit. He prayed for his life and his prayer was answered for his horse stopped right at the edge of the cliff.

The second legend is very recent. Nazare’s north beach has one of the largest sea canyons in the world. This canyon produces enormous waves. It was here that, in 2011, the Hawaian Garrett McNamara set a record for the largest wave ever surfed.

McNamara says he will keep coming back to Nazaré. So will many other thrill seekers and beach lovers.

The Berlenga island

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The Berlenga is one of the crown jewels of the Atlantic Ocean. It is surrounded by small, diamond-shaped islands, adorned by emerald waters, and decorated with sparkling crystal caves. It is a place loved by birds of all stripes. Not just sparrows, crows, pidgeons, seagulls, woodcocks, and turtledoves, but also rare birds with unpronounceable Latin names, like ruticcilia tithys and puffinus kuhlii.

The island is close enough to be visible from the coast, but far enough to be shrouded in mystery.  Fishermen attribute to it all sorts of mystical powers. “Expect good weather if there’s fog on the island and rain if it’s clear,” they say.  But ask a fisherman whether the Berlenga inspired Alfred Hitchcock’s movie The Birds, and he will shrug his shoulders. The island does not need another legend. It is a place where, throughout the centuries, treasures were buried, pirates conspired, and lives were lost in harrowing shipwrecks.

In the Summer, there is a regular ferry between Peniche and the Berlenga. You can visit the 17th century fort (shown in the photo), bathe on white sand beaches with crystalline water, and chart a boat to go around the island. It is a grand adventure.

You can catch amazing sea bass in Berlenga’s waters, but you have to know where to cast your line. Ask a fisherman for the best place to fish for sea bass, and he will quickly change the subject, perhaps by asking you: “Did you know that the Berlenga inspired Hitchcock’s famous movie, The Birds?”

Click here for the schedule of boats from Peniche to Berlengas. Boats depart from the port of Peniche.

Berrio: a romantic esplanade

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Berrio is the name of a spectacular esplanade in the beach of Parede, 20 km from Lisbon. It is the perfect place to go for coffee on a sunny afternoon. Even though it is located by the “marginal,” the coastal road that connects Lisbon to Cascais, when you are there, you feel like you are on a sea voyage.

If you take a date to Berrio, choose your date very carefully. Swept by the beauty of the sea and sky, you might find yourself speaking words chosen by the waves and whispered by the wind; words like: “You know, Berrio was the first ship from Vasco da Gama’s fleet to come back with news that they had found the seaway to India. It arrived in Cascais, not far from here. I could say that I, too, have been on a journey, and that I found my way in you. But I would never liken a search for cardamom and pepper to my quest for you. How could I compare earthly dust with your ethereal beauty?”

Berrio, Avenida Marginal, Praia da Parede, Tel. 21-457-7356, email: geral@berrio,net. Click here for website.

A Winter day in Portugal

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If you were here today, you could spend the morning on the beach, collecting shells, wondering why no one told the sun that it’s not Summer. You could have a simple lunch of roasted chicken with piri-piri sauce, visit a romantic palace, and sit on a cliff, watching the sun bathe in the ocean. You could dine on grilled fish, drink a great local wine, and go out into the warm night to gaze at the stars. And, when the day is done, you would know the meaning of the word felicidade.

Sea mornings

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Many visitors arrive in Portugal with their body clocks disoriented by jet lag. They lie awake in the early hours of the morning, stranded between dream and reality.

If you’re close to the ocean, this is your chance. Go to the beach and walk on the immaculate sand. Watch the sea put aside its black nightgown and try on different shades of blue. These simple moments can be extraordinary. Here’s how the writer Raul Brandão describes them in his 1923 book, The Fishermen:

“There are mornings when the dust of the sea mixes with the blue dust of the sky. A fresh, moist breeze, vibrant and salty comes from afar, from the deep, from an endless groundswell that makes us feel that life has no limits.”

Learning how to surf

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Neptune rode the seas on a copper chariot. Surfers make do with much less, gliding the waves on their slender boards. Portugal is a great place to learn the art of surfing. There are many beaches with dependable, tubular waves, and schools that provide instruction, equipment, and lodging. Every year, hundreds of visitors arrive in Portugal as ordinary humans and leave transformed into gods of the waves, ready to challenge Neptune to a race.

Rip Curl in Peniche

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Peniche, a sleepy fishing village, used to be an island. But the waves worked tirelessly, carrying mountains of sand to connect Peniche to land. The sand banks they built created beaches that are perfect for surfing: Supertubos, Molho Leste, and Baleal.

Every October, the waves enjoy the fruits of their labor, watching the best surfers in the world compete at the Peniche Rip Curl Pro event. You don’t have to cart any sand to be part of this grand surf celebration. All you have to do is drive to Supertubos on the third week of October.