Often referred to as the Portuguese Versailles, the National Palace of Queluz in Queluz, Portugal was one of the last great Rococo buildings to be designed in Europe.  The palace was conceived as a summer retreat for Dom Pedro of Braganza and his wife Queen Maria I.  On our recent visit to the palace, my husband and I had the place almost to ourselves and could take it all in at a leisurely pace.

I had visited the palace years ago with my family (I’m the one in yellow)…

MirandaFamily at Queluz for blog

(Credit for the beautifully restored photo goes to my good friend, Pamela Frame)

 But my memories, like some of the palace’s exterior paint, had faded over time.

Palacio Queluz

Palacio Queluz3

Palacio Queluz 2

Once inside, I was amazed by the grandeur of the ballroom…

Ballroom at Palacio de Queluz

And wondered if any of the people in the portraits could be my distance relatives.

Portuguese relatives at Palacio Queluz

Each room was a feast for the eyes, from the ornate chandeliers…

hallway and chandelier at Palacio Queluz

 To the charming paintings on the ceilings.

cherubs at Palacio Queluz

Who sat in these throne chairs?

throne room at Palacio Queluz

And did the heavens really smile down upon them?

throne room ceiling at Palacio QueluzIn the “Sala das Mangas” I ogled the gorgeous tiles…

blue and yellow tiles in hallways at Palacio Queluz

(Although capturing their beauty adequately in a photo was almost impossible.)

Blue and yellow tiles detail

In the grounds outside, we were in the company of frolicking statues…

angel statues in QueluzAnd surrounded by hedges and flowers.

red geraniums at Queluz

 

It was an afternoon very well spent! 

Comments

  1. tracyfredericks1 says:

    Such a beautiful family picture. I have to put it on my places to visit. Thanks for the view.

    • Joana says:

      Hi Tracy,

      The Palace of Queluz is really worth a visit, and since it’s so close to the town of Sintra (I’ll be doing a post on our visit there, too) you can make a day out of visiting both places.

      I hope things are going well for you! I always enjoy seeing your posts on Google+.
      🙂 Joana

    • Joana says:

      Thanks, Helen! More pix coming today…

      🙂 Joana

      On Sun, Sep 7, 2014 at 3:52 PM, JOANA MIRANDA STUDIO wrote:

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  2. Pamela Frame says:

    I love to travel with your photos. It’s so much easier than taking those long flights. Your photos are really wonderful (whether in NYC or Portugal). Thanks Joana.

    • Joana says:

      And I get to relive the vacation again by sharing the photos and writing about them. 🙂

      One good thing about living in NY city is that Lisbon is pretty much the closest city you can fly to in Europe. Six and 1/2 hours isn’t short, but as overseas flights goes, it’s a breeze.

      Ciao – Joana

      On Wed, Sep 10, 2014 at 10:47 AM, JOANA MIRANDA STUDIO wrote:

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