Peniche City - Peninsula | Portugal

Hello everyone :)

I cannot say that there were many times that i had the opportunity or even the curiosity to visit this planted piece of land by the sea that i bring to share with you today.
Seen from above, it looks like an appendix of the country itself and for many years it didn't arouse my curiosity, especially after passing by there a few years ago and for some reason not having a good impression.

Today i know that it was the short time i spent there that did not allow me to immediately perceive the beauty of the place and, due to my ignorance, not knowing the history of that land and the importance it had and still has in various aspects.
An amazing limestone coastline that has more than 20 million years of geological evolution, considered by the international scientific community to be the best example in the world of the Pliensbachian-Toartian time transition, with extensive sandy beaches as far as the eye can see, bathed by a crystalline blue water with a personality of its own.

One of the places i wanted to visit was undoubtedly the Ilha das Berlengas (Berlengas Island) and the Fort of São João Baptista, but regarding this place and since unfortunately it was not possible to visit it, i will leave that tour for a next opportunity in which i can do it in a proper way, because it is definitely something i want and i have to visit, without a doubt.

For those who know the place, they already know what i'm talking about, but for those who don't have the slightest idea, i´m here today to present my brief tour of the city of Peniche.
This municipality has always had its history associated with the sea, with geological and cultural links to prehistoric times, being full of archaeological sites that attest to the presence of these ancient peoples, with traces that prove the passage of Celts and also Romans through this region.

Later, during the middle ages, and due to its strategic position, it became an important commercial port, having been explored by the Moors and even by the famous Templars who, as in many other places, also left their marks there, and of course, also the Kings of Portugal explored the richness of that place, mainly in the Age of Discoveries, having been a starting point of proven importance for several maritime expeditions.

The impact on history has not always been positive, not only was it a place of noteworthy historical landmarks, it also served as a political detention center during the dictatorial regime, where inmates were kept imprisoned in the Peniche Fortress, which was later converted in a museum after the 1974 revolution.
At the time of our visit, the museum was closed, so it was not possible to enter and view that place, which ended up becoming an important landmark that demonstrates resistance to the dictatorship.

After taking a short break between the east part of the fortress on the left side and a small cluster of typical houses on the right side, we start by going down the wide walkway that crosses the entrance to the museum and soon we come across Prainha de São Pedro, a small and secluded place outside the fortress, where the ocean water enters and collides against an enormous wall made up of several blocks of white granite worn down by the successive onslaughts of the tide.
There were some tourists enjoying the scenery while enjoying the rays of sun that was announced from above peeking over the orange roof tiles.

Further down we find the small square where business is done with the small boats that transport people from the coast to the Berlengas island, which by that time had already left with a return scheduled for the end of the day, before the sun disappeared.

Still there, beside the fortress is the long jetty that serves as a breakwater and provides a pleasant and leisurely walk to the Lighthouse of Peniche further ahead and from which it is possible to have a privileged view of the pier where there are several fishing and pleasure boats, as well as in the distance on the opposite bank are the naval workshops with some examples exposed to be intervened, raised on huge easels with the hull visible.

Along the pier we passed and greeted different fishermen who used the position offered by the pier to cast their lines and remain there under small shadows, waiting for their expertise to translate into some fish in the buckets that accompanied them along with the small, worn chairs.

It is when we need to deepen our knowledge about the history of a certain place that we find that it always takes more time than we have available to visit all the places and thus be able to make a tour as complete as possible.
Much remained to be visited and experienced, thus leaving room for novelty on a next visit, as there are many places of interest in these parts.

And that´s all for today's tour around Peniche, hope you like it :)

Photo by @aleister
Camera - Canon EOS 600D
Lens - EFS 18-55mm / 70-300mm
Location - Portugal

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Value your time, because every fraction counts, and the price of anything is the amount of life you trade for it.
May the memories of the travels be eternalized in the photographs, and may the photographs transport us back to the travels ;)