The Magnet Lodge Archives - The Magnet Projects

The Magnet Lodge

November 2 2017

Hungasurf x The Magnet Projects | October Sessions

Zoltán Bakró Blog, Costa da Caparica, Lisbon, Portugal, Surf spots, Surfing, The Magnet Lodge Costa da Caparica, hungasurf, octobersessions, Portugal, surf teaching, surfhouse, themagnetprojects

Last week we had our first edition of the Hungasurf Sessions. The week was blessed with decent swell, clean conditions and great weather. We also had a chance to watch the Surfing World Champs.

Sunny days and good waves

Our guesthouse in Costa da Caparica welcomed the Hungarian surfers. This week was for intermediate surfers. They improved a lot on their wave selection, take-off technique and riding sideways on the wave. Dawn patrol and sunset sessions made our days so after dinner everyone was easily falling in their beds for a good night’s rest.

RipCurl Pro Peniche

We also had the chance to have a look at the World Championship Tour event in Peniche, the RipCurl Pro Portugal.

After watching the opening and closing days live at the beach, we’ve seen all the pros getting barrelled and doing some great surfing. First day was about huge barrels, finals day was more about progressive surfing. Julian Wilson and Gabriel Medina were having a really tight final. Eventually Medina came out as the winner with a buzzer beater. This result keeps the Brazilian’s World Title dreams alive: http://www.worldsurfleague.com/athletes/tour/mct?year=2017

Medina_getting_ready — Medina getting ready for his quarter final heat. He was on fire!

Surfing Safari

Besides the drive to Peniche we also searched around for spots in the area. We found some nice waves in Caparica, Riviera, Carcavelos, Guincho and Praia Grande. Highlight of the trip though was the world famous right hand point-break of Coxos. At the peak of the swell the 3 of us paddled out to be a bit intimidated, watch the pros getting pitted but also to test our braveness in bigger surf. We all had some ‘smaller’ waves so at the end of the session came out happy from the water.

Peiman and Matyi are getting ready to jump in while Zoli is on the first wave of the day.

It was a great week with Hungarian surfers, we will continue with these type of events and intermediate weeks in the future. We’ll keep you updated about the next Hungasurf Sessions. See you next year!

July 8 2017

Discover Beautiful Sintra

Zoltán Bakró Art, Costa da Caparica, Lisbon, Portugal, Sightseeing, The Magnet Lodge culture, Lisbon, Portugal, Sintra

Sintra – a diverse daytrip

The Magnet Projects guesthouse is located in Costa da Caparica on the southern side of the Tagus river. It is just a short ride away from the heart of Lisbon. If you’re staying with us, trips into town will most definitely be on you itinerary. But did you know that Sintra, a Unesco World Heritage village, is also only a short 40 minutes away?

This picturesque little town is situated in the middle of the Sintra Mountains. Throughout these cooling forested green hills you will find many 19th-century Romantic architectural monuments, gardens, royal retreats, estates, castles and other buildings. The bright yellow and red walls of Palácio Nacional de Pena can even been seen all the way from Costa da Caparica.

Palácio Nacional de Pena seen from Costa da Caparica

History

Although remnants of human occupation have been discovered dating back as far as to the Paleolothic era, it wasn’t until the third quarter of the 18^th and all of the 19^th century that Sintra gained significantly in popularity amongst the Portuguese and foreign aristocrats as a summer retreat. The magic of the region with its dramatic vistas, landscapes and climate went hand in hand with the 19^th century Romantic vision of life. Unhappy with society ‘the romantic’ flees from the here and now to other cultures, into the past, fairy tales or nature. It resulted in the construction of many extravagant palaces and grand residences such as Monserrate Palace and Castelo dos Mouros. Build by the Moors in the 9^th century, the castle was destroyed by an earthquake and fires. King Fernando II (1816-1885), who was fascinated by the medieval period, restored the ruined structure as an enchanted fairy tale ruin.

Castelo dos Mouros

Palácio da Pena

The epitome of the Portuguese (and the worlds) Romantic architecture is Palácio Nacional de Pena. Situated on top of the Sintra Mountains, the palace towers high above the surrounding landscape. Offering magnificent views over Lisbon, the river and the Atlantic Ocean. It is built over the remains of the 16^th century monastery of the order of Saint Jerome. Completely inline with the exotic taste of the Romanticism King Fernando II kept many of the original elements as well as adding a mixture of styles with Medieval and Islamic elements.

The attractive town of Sintra is centred around the Palacio National. This Gothic royal residence was used from the 15^th century up until the fall of the monarchy in 1910 and can be recognized by its two identical white cone-shaped chimneys above the kitchens. The cobble stone streets, twisting and turning up the hillside, are lined with charming traditional houses and offer plenty of places to sit down for a bite and drink.

At the Vila Sassettia in the historic centre a hiking trail starts which will take you all the way up to Castelo dos Mouros and the National Palace of Pena. The walk takes about 45 minutes to the entrance of the Parque Nacional de Pena and another 20 minutes through this enchanting forested park.

Parque Nacional de Pena

In all, Sintra is well worth a visit. So put on your hiking boots and start your day early! And, while your at it, drop down to Cabo da Roca to touch toes with the most western point of mainland Europe on your way back to Costa.

Cabo da Roca