Sursum: Life slows down at this historic home in Sintra.

This house was designed for my mother by her dear friend and architect, José Mantero.
It was conceived for a south-facing plot overlooking Monserrate Palace and to house a vast collection of furniture and objets d'art from Hong Kong and Macau that had accompanied the family to Lisbon in the late 1930s.
On the ground floor, the entrance hall leads to the kitchen and living room. A triangular balcony, sheltered by a covered porch, opens the dining room onto the leafy canopy of a maple tree. Beyond, the outline of the Serra mountain range is visible through the branches of the surrounding pines.
The wooden staircase leads directly to the library on the upper floor. An eclectic selection of books adorns the shelves lining the path to the more intimate space: a well-ventilated bedroom with its high ceiling and comfortable queen-size bed, a true haven nestled among the pine branches, and right next to it, a bright, ivory-toned small bathroom.