Pampilhosa Junction (Good Hotel).—Within 10m. to the N.-E. of this station is the first of the special sights which can be seen in connection with the Oporto-Lisbon railway. Take the train from Pampilhosa to Luzo (6m.), omnibus thence (½ hour) to Busaco (Good Hotel), and see the battlefield, the site of one of Wellington’s least successful victories. The panoramic views in all directions are superb. The famous convent is now a Government School of Forestry. After seeing Busaco progress may be made to Figueira da Foz (38m. from Luzo—Good Hotel), where the tourist may pass the night, unless he prefers to stay at Pampilhosa. Figueira is a seaside bathing-place of repute on a branch line.
Leiria (pop. 3000, Novo Hotel).—Stay here two nights in order to have the whole of the intervening day available for a circular tour by road to the Dominican Monastery at Batalha (7m.), and to the Cistercian Monastery at Alcobaça (13m. from Batalha, and also 13m. from Leiria). The Batalha Monastery (built 1388-1515) is by common consent the finest piece of architecture in Portugal. The Alcobaça Monastery, the largest in the world, is of earlier date (1148-1222). The ch., 360 ft. long, is the most interesting example of early Christian art in Portugal, whilst the cloisters are reputed to be amongst the finest in Europe. Refreshments must be taken by the traveller, for none can be procured during the drive. Vallado is really the nearest station to Alcobaça (3m.), but there is no sleeping accommodation there.
Lisbon (pop. 250,000; hotels—Braganza, Avenida, and some adjoining the railway station) owing to its great length from E. to W., and narrow breadth from N. to S., is a less easy city to find one’s way in than many other cities. This difficulty is aggravated by the want of leading thoroughfares and an efficient system of street naming and numbering. The sights are the usual ones of every large Continental city, such as churches, museums, and picture galleries; e.g. the Church of San Roque, the Church of San Vincente with its remarkable Royal Mortuary Chapel, the church and convent at Belem, and the gardens of the Escola Polytechnica. But a day should certainly be set apart for a trip to Cintra (17m. by rail, trains about every hour). The town (pop. 5000, hotel—Lawrence’s) is 1800 ft. above the sea. See the Royal or Moorish Palace in the town, the beautiful Pena Palace and grounds, and the gardens of Sir F. Cook at Villa Montserrate (3m). These last are open daily to visitors who write their names at the entrance lodge. About 15 miles from Cintra is Mafra, with a palace, convent, and church of wonderful magnificence. An Eclipse excursionist planning a time-table for sight-seeing between Oporto and Lisbon inclusive, and with the intention of returning to England from Lisbon, must remember that the Royal Mail Company’s boats only sail fortnightly (on Tuesdays or Wednesdays) from Lisbon. The boats anchor in the river, and are reached by a steam tender.
OPORTO to PARIS.
This route for getting from or to possible eclipse stations in Northern Spain or Portugal is set out on the supposition that a certain number of Eclipse excursionists may wish to combine the Paris Exhibition with the eclipse. There is an International Express from Oporto (and Lisbon) every Tuesday and Friday, which does the journey to Paris in 40 hours, but no one travelling for pleasure would use this train, especially as much of the best scenery is traversed by night.
The journey should therefore be performed in sections, which may be made up as follows:—
| Miles. | |
|---|---|
| Oporto to Salamanca viâ Pampilhosa | 269 |
| Salamanca to Burgos | 150 |
| Burgos to Biarritz | 186 |
| Biarritz to Paris | 493 |
Use should be made as far as possible of the International Express. Where this is not done, and ordinary trains have to be taken, the delays are interminable and the combinations most exasperating to an Englishman. The hotel accommodation in all the smaller towns of Spain is so universally bad that it is not easy to suggest what otherwise would seem obvious, namely, how best to subdivide, at any rate, the first three of the above sections.
The International Express has a connection with Lisbon, the main train being made up or divided as the case may be at Pampilhosa Junction.