Lazy day in Cascais, Portugal
There is nothing that screams vacation more than hanging out in a beach town. Even the process of getting there is fun for me because I get to decompress on the journey. On this day, our transportation of choice is a short 40-minute train from Lisbon to Cascais and arrives in the town center, so we have no need to rent a car. We don’t ever rent a car while traveling overseas, but if we did, parking is tricky here, and our train ticket cost us less than €3 apiece each way. Our initial intention is to explore the city, not hang out on the beach, because it’s October and the weather isn’t suited for it. But the sun is shining and I realize sandals and a beach blanket should have been necessities, even though I brought neither.
We sit on the seawall for a bit and bask in the relaxing views of the bay and allow the sun to warm us. There is a scattering of people braver than us in bathing suits and swimming, but in general the typical beach activities are closed for the season. One activity that still is ongoing is creating sand castles—er, reptiles—and we enjoyed watching this creation come together before our eyes. That bucket you see actually is for tips, not sand!
Escotilha Beach Bar, Cascais, Portugal
We are hungry for lunch, but most of these beachside restaurants offer only average tasting food. Escotilha Beach Bar is one of the better places, but I played it safe with a Caesar salad. Kevin took advantage of the location and chose fish. I don’t enjoy a face looking back at me, so I’m glad it was his meal and not mine.
Bolstered by full stomachs and the sunshine, we take a long walk along the coastline and enjoy people watching and admiring all the docked boats. We meander our way to Marechal Carmona Park with its manicured gardens, cooling shade, and calming lake. Our peace is disturbed by the crow of roosters and eventually we see that they are accompanied by ducks, chickens, and peacocks. There also are men kicking bocce balls and a heartwarming statue of children playing. We could spend hours here, and because we’re in no rush to be anywhere, our pace is a stroll so we can soak up everything. There’s a children’s library on the grounds, and the book lover inside me is overjoyed.
We retrace our steps back to the path along the beach, but this time we explore a little bit of the town and its charming buildings. Like Lisbon there are shiny, colorful mosaics on many of the exteriors. We’re grateful that Cascais is flat so we don’t have to work up any additional sweat climbing hills. The relaxed vibe is exactly what we need today.
Our final stop is a packed gelateria, even though there is a chill in the air now. The confection is the perfect topper for the day before we hop back on the train back to Lisbon. We tend to prefer cities to beaches, but we both agree that in a few short hours, Cascais has won our hearts.
