I had read about an outdoor museum about an hour south of us called Aldeia Típica de José Franco in Mafra (just north of Lisbon). We weren’t sure what to expect, but ended up really liking it. It’s small and meanders a bit, but it was neat to explore.

It is an ethnographic village created in the 1960s as a testimony to the way of life of the local people. It has two components: one full of miniature houses and people that portrayed the activities carried out at the time (field work, carpentry, windmills, chapels, grocery stores, schools, etc) and one with human-scale replicas of castle walls, windmills, a children’s playground, a small cellar and a bakery. All of the food places were closed, but we could still explore and learn.

On our way out of town I spotted this palace (National Palace of Mafra) from afar so convinced Steffen to drive by to check it out. No one was interested in getting out of the car, so I just snapped a few pictures.

Afterwards we drove north (towards home) but along the coast. We stopped in Peniche and found this gorgeous rock/cliff place for the sunset. We didn’t see much in the town of Peniche that was appealing but the nature was spectacular.

It was a really nice day!