A Weekend in Lisbon | Sintra & LX Factory

There was one place I really wanted to make time for on our trip to Lisbon…

I’d read and seen photos of a town called Sintra that seemed almost mythical with palaces, castles and follies that belonged in the pages on Hans Chistian Anderson rather than real life. Only 30 mins in an Uber from Lisbon, we pencilled in a day trip on our last full day and headed off for a day of make believe. Ridiculously old and ridiculously beautiful, Sintra is home to the summer retreats of ancient families and palaces that look Disney-ready but are in fact 17th century spectaculars. Most people who come to Sintra tend to choose two or three sights to see as there are a lot to get through and each one is vast, spralling and requires at least an hour to explore…

We started with the beautiful Quinta de Regaleira. A UNESCO world heritage site, this palace once served as a playground for the Viscountess of Regaleria and is now open for people to roam and explore. Waterfalls, wells, follies, grottos and greenhouses, the gardens are the best bit with mesmerising views up to the Gothic palace.

From here, we grabbed a TukTuk (rickshaws and open-top mini jeeps serve as run arounds throughout Sintra) up to Pena Palace. This is the big daddy of Sintra and likely the first thing that will pop up if you google the town. Famed for its yellow, crimson and blue turrets and walls, this place is mesmerising. It really reminded me of Seville in a way thanks to the Moorish architecture and tiles and had a real Moroccan feel to it too. Ultimately, I’ll let the pictures do the talking as it really was something special that I just don’t think I’ll do justice to…

Did I mention it was windy….

Cheesy couple photo thanks to some sweet French tourists who clearly felt very sorry for Jamie taking loads pictures of me and not being in any himself. Blogger boyfriend woes…

Black and white dress | Faithfull the Brand via ASOS (on sale now!)

Trainers | Converse 
Denim jacket | IKKS
Bag | Heidi Klein Swim 
Sunglasses | Toms 
Necklaces | Lucy Williams X Missoma 

We had planned to hit the beach after Sintra as there is a great one nearby by it was gone 3 p.m by the time we finished at the palace, so we decided to head back to Lisbon, or more specifically an area called LX Factory. Reem from FiveFiveFabulous told me about this place as well as a few people on my instgram and it sounded right up our street… A little hub of creativity in a once neglected, industrial area, LX Factory is a bubble of independent cafes and shops, most of which are housed inside old ship containers. There’s a really great, laidback vibe throughout and it was a greta place to stop off at on the way back into town. I grabbed an Acai bowl, Jamie headed straight for the magazine shop like a moth to a flame and we spent a hour or so exploring the stores. The amazing book shop is definitely worth a visit too, even if it doesn’t sell any books in English as far as we could see. I also got the best pair of rope sandals from a shop here that you’ll see in the next post… Without doubt one of the best holiday purchases for a while.

From here we headed back into the heart of Lisbon and grabbed a couple of cocktails to go from a suited and booted man wielding a sign boasting G&Ts and mojitos. We sat down and soaked up the crazily hot evening sun with a drink before heading back to our apartment, not before passing a couple of artists making rock sculptures on the bay.

It was the England game that night so after gaining some serious brownie points and watching the game with hundreds of other red-faced brits on the big screen, we headed for a late dinner at Sea Me. This seafood/sushi joint was jam-packed (we booked and still had to wait 20 mins for our table) but the food was delicious. The shrimp risotto was the stuff dreams are made of and if you love fresh fish and seafood, you can’t really go wrong.

Black and white dress | Faithfull the Brand via ASOS (on sale now!)
Trainers | Converse 
Denim jacket | IKKS
Bag | Heidi Klein Swim 
Sunglasses | Toms 
Necklaces | Lucy Williams X Missoma 

Ph. by James Wright and myself using the Olympus OM-D and the Olympus Pen