The coastal city of Peniche is a working port with expansive beaches used for surfing, diving, and kitesurfing. On a brief stop on our way to Sintra, we found a scenic harbor, white windmills, a lighthouse, chapels, rocky cliffs, long sandy beaches, surfers, beach goers, dunes with fences and grasses, and dramatic clouds. We also found expansive areas covered in Hottentot fig, an invasive plant native to South Africa but introduced into coastal areas to hinder dune-shifting and control soil erosion.

Peniche

Peniche

Peniche

lighthouse at Peniche

Peniche

Hottentot fig groundcover

Hottentot fig groundcover

cross at Peniche

strange rock formations

Hottentot fig groundcover

Peniche

Peniche

Peniche
The beaches and dunes of Peniche were particularly beautiful because of the strong breezes and dramatic clouds.

Peniche dunes

Peniche dunes

Peniche dunes

Peniche beaches

Peniche beaches

Peniche dunes

Peniche dunes

Peniche dunes
*Thursday, November 1, 2018*
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“PHOTOGRAPHY” INVITATION: I invite you to create a photography intention and then create a blog post for a place you have visited. Alternately, you can post a thematic post about a place, photos of whatever you discovered that set your heart afire. You can also do a thematic post of something you have found throughout all your travels: churches, doors, people reading, people hiking, mountains, patterns, all black & white, whatever!
You probably have your own ideas about this, but in case you’d like some ideas, you can visit my page: photography inspiration.
I challenge you to post no more than 20-25 photos and to write less than 1,500 words about any travel-related photography intention you set for yourself. Include the link in the comments below by Wednesday, June 19 at 1:00 p.m. EST. When I write my post in response to this challenge on Thursday, June 20, I’ll include your links in that post.
This will be an ongoing invitation, every first, second, and third (& 5th, if there is one) Thursday of each month (I’ve now added the second Thursday). Feel free to jump in at any time. 🙂
I hope you’ll join in our community. I look forward to reading your posts!
the ~ wander.essence ~ community
I invite you all to settle in and read a few posts from our wandering community. I promise, you’ll be inspired!
- Ulli, of Suburban Tracks, wrote a post with black & white photographs from his 1985 trip to Cairo, Egypt.
Thanks to all of you who shared posts on the “photography” invitation. 🙂
Looking really great and stunning, I will keep this in mind for our next trip to Portugal for sure to come sometime again – preferably in autumn or spring.
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I would have liked to rent a place and spend a week here, especially if it were warmer! It was gorgeous. 🙂 I hope you will go there and love it! 🙂
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Beautiful and dramatic. I love the name ‘hottentot’. 😀
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I loved that place, and we just happened to have stunning weather, which was not the case for much of the rest of our trip. I guess that “hottentot” name is actually not a good one, according to Jude (see her comment below mine). It seems it is a racial slur in South Africa. I didn’t know anything about it.
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It is not a term that is used anymore as it has racial / ethnic meanings that is considered to be offensive, even the Hottentots Holland mountains are evidence of a racist history and many South Africans would like the range to be renamed. As for the plant it has proved to be very invasive in places like Portugal and even here in Cornwall where it grows and spreads and kills off the native wild flowers.
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Wow, thanks for educating me on that term, Jude. I had never heard of it before. I’m glad you set us straight on it. I just read about the invasiveness of the plant, which I mentioned in the blog, but I didn’t know the term was a racial slur as well.
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Well the plant still goes by that name, but I am sure it will be changed. Pigface or Ice Plant are other names as well as Sour fig as it can be eaten.
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I have heard the term Ice Plant, but not the others. You are definitely my botanical expert, Jude. 🙂
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Glorious photos, Cathy, and exactly the kind of coastline I love. Very similar to some that I saw in the Azores. And those dune shots with the clouds! Lovely 😍🌊💕
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Thanks so much, Jo. We were so lucky to have wonderful weather on that day, which was not the case for much of our trip. I loved those dramatic clouds. If that coastline is similar to the Azores, I can’t wait to see it! Those dune shots were my favorites for sure. Thanks so much, Jo. 🙂
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This would be a wonderful place to stay for a few days and really explore. Dramatic is a great word for this scenery, Cathy.
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I agree, Carol. I would love to stay in a non-touristy town like this for a week or more and explore from here. I loved this place, and for once, we were lucky with the weather! We often weren’t on this trip! 🙂
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We’ve found the solution for dealing with more popular places is to stay for several days. The tourists don’t usually arrive until mid-morning and they’re gone again by mid-afternoon and then you have the place to yourselves.
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Yes, I agree that is the way to do it!
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A wild coast that reminds me a lot of the north Cornish coastline, especially those dunes or towans as they are called here. What a lovely spot to stop at on your trip.
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I bet it is much like the Cornish coastline. One day, I swear I will get to Cornwall! I’ve never heard the word towan for dune. You’re educating me at every turn! It was a lovely stop. Sometimes the places we didn’t plan on turned out to be the best. Wait till you read about our miserable time in Sintra. 🙂
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I wasn’t too taken with Sintra on our visit, far too busy for my liking and a hot and humid day too which didn’t help.
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I was lucky I had the experience of going there in summer of 2013; apparently summer is the low season. The weather was beautiful, and there weren’t many people at all. This time happened to be a holiday weekend, and the weather was miserable. Sometimes it’s best not to return to the same place twice!
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I can agree with that last sentence!
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Now I know what I missed out on when I took the hop-on hop-off bus to Sintra! Peniche is breathtaking — the landscape chiselled out by the elements, the wild grass, the yellow sands and then the rolling clouds that look as dramatic as they could be (meet the cloud catcher). Glorious photographs! The colours are spectacular. I am adding Peniche for when we find ourselves next in the area.
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Peniche is further north than Sintra. I doubt any kind of bus would take you there, but maybe a local bus. We rented a car so had the utmost freedom. It is not on the tourist track, so it’s just my kind of place. I loved it. 🙂
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So Cathy (I had to figure it out – Arundhati here btw), thanks for dispelling my confusion about Peniche’s location. Now I know I could not have done it without a car. I did end up on a local bus on the way back to Sintra from Cabo Da Roca, so it was not too harrowing.
The freedom you get from renting a car and zooming around any place is just exhilarating. Hurrah for you both to have stumbled upon such a breath-taking location.
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Nice to know your name, Arundhati. Your name immediately brought to mind one of my favorite authors, Arundhati Roy! Oh, we have a crazy story about our car and a flat tire in Cabo da Roca, which will come at some later date. I’m glad you made it there. I love having a car when traveling. It gives so much more freedom! 🙂
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She is one of my favourites too. I adore her writing.
The Cabo da Roca is clearly a cape of adventure then! I will look forward to reading your story.
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I love her writing too. Haha, I was so annoyed with my husband in Cabo da Roca! It was an adventure. 🙂
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Intriguing. Will wait to read then!
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