Portugal: The Road Trip

After Madeira we flew back to Portugal, picked up a car and headed off for a few weeks of exploring. Porto, Lindoso and Monsanto were some of the places we visited, but in our travels we saw quite a lot of the country.

We skipped the beaches of the Algarve on Portugal’s south coast (popular with condo-owning Brits and Germans), and instead looped up through the north and east. It was easy driving – much easier than in Italy. Thanks largely to EU infrastructure funding, Portugal has an excellent network of highways and local roads.

But what really surprised us was the country’s diversity. In things like geography and food for example, there were real differences between the regions of Portugal’s north and south, and east and west.

We went from basking by the sea enjoying grilled sardines and fish stew (caldeirada), to the rugged mountains of the north eating steak, eggs and chips (bife a cavalo), and down to the rolling plains of the south with meals of beans, rice and pork (porco preto, the sweet Iberian black pig).

Occasionally we’d come up for air and double-check that we hadn’t somehow been transported to another country. But it was definitely all Portugal, and the next visual and culinary feast was waiting around the corner. So the only thing for it was to buckle-up, get back on the road and enjoy the ride – and that we did.

Our first stop was Óbidos, a small walled town not far from Lisbon; Obidos has it all - traditional houses, narrow cobbled streets and a Medieval castle

In this part of Portugal, the wild cherry liqueur known as Ginjinha is a popular drink (apparently even until the 1960s it was given to children as a remedy for a cold!); today for one euro you can get a shot of Ginjinha served in a little chocolate cup

From Óbidos we headed northwest to the coast and found the amazing fishing town of Nazaré

When the fishermen return each morning part of their catch is set out on racks to dry; it's a tradition that has continued for generations

The women of the town - the Nazarenas - then work the stalls selling the dried seafood

The variety of product available for purchase seemed amazing to us

We were assured it was excellent with an apertif

And that proved to be true

A couple of euro bought us three or four fish and a photo of the seller 🙂

The Nazarenas are known for their traditional clothing

Head scarves, big gold jewellery and many petticoats under their skirts

In another part of town this beautiful woman was selling nuts and biscuits; even after we'd completed our purchase she was still pressing new things onto us to try

Nazaré also claims to have the world's largest waves; it's a board rider's paradise

On this day we were told the surf was flat, but it didn't look that way; certainly there was enough of a wave to give these few surfers (in the foreground) a reasonable ride

The Virgin Mary is said to have appeared to three shepherd children in a field near the town of Fatima in 1917

Today the field is long gone under acres of concrete and in its place you find the Shrine of Fatima - a basilica, church, museum - and concrete chapel built on the very spot where Mary appeared

Tomar is a small (and slightly sleepy) town, but it once was one of the most important places in Portugal

And here's why - founded in 1160, the Convento de Cristo on the hill above Tomar was the religious headquarters of the Knights Templar

It's one of Portugal's most important national monuments

The Convent itself is surrounded by the Castle of Tomar; the whole complex was built over five centuries

Evidence of Tomar's glory days remains

During the trip we found the best places to eat were the roadside restaurants (usually nondescript brick buildings identified by the large number of cars parked outside); surrounded only by locals and with no one who spoke English, we always ordered with a smile and a questioning shrug - and were never once disappointed with the meal we received

The major centre of Coimbra - as the old saying goes 'Coimbra is where we study'

The city is home to Portugal's oldest university, founded in 1290 (that's it on the hill)

The beautiful Church of Santa Cruz in Coimbra contains the tombs of Portugal's first two kings, Afonso Henrique and his son, John

Still heading north, these are the beach houses of Costa Nova

Originally fishermen's cottages, the houses are now prized real estate

And quite the tourist attraction

Not far away is Aveiro, often dubbed the 'Venice of Portugal'; Aveiro does have a canal, but Venice? Maybe not. 🙂

If 'Coimbra is where we study, Braga is where we pray'; the Bom Jesus do Monte not far from Braga with its wonderful Baroque staircase representing the ascent to heaven

Braga is Portugal's oldest city; it was founded by the Romans in 16 BC

Just half an hour away, the city of Guimarães became Portugal's first capital in the 12th century

The ancient castle of Guimarães is one of the city's landmarks

In the shadow of the castle, the 15th century Palace of the Dukes of Braganza is another

After Sunday mass in the town of Vila Real

The streets were almost deserted (though we later found everyone in the local coffee shop); it was lucky we didn't want to buy any Kodak or Agfa film because the shop on the left was closed 🙂

The Bishop's Palace Garden in Castelo Branco

One of the prettiest places we found was the village of Marvão

The town is set high on a granite escapement and, of course, here you'll also find the local castle

Marvão is very close to the border; looking out to the east towards Spain

We were the only visitors in this lovely town of white-washed houses and cobbled lanes (finding accommodation wasn't a problem) 🙂

Elvas - we 'heart' Elvas (and Elvis too)

The amazing eight kilometre-long Aqueduct of Amoreira built to bring water to Elvas

Designed by the Portuguese, the aqueduct was completed in 1622

And this is Évora, the last stop on our tour

There's an aqueduct here too; the residents of Évora made good use of the space between the aqueduct's arches (though the washing still is done in the concrete tub on the street)

Évora's Church of the Cadaval Palace was founded in 1485 (the stunning azulejo were added a few hundred years later); the church is privately owned but open to the public

And this is the very strange Chapel of Bones, constructed by Franciscan monks in the late 16th century using bones exhumed from the city's cemeteries (apparently the ground space was needed for Évora's expansion)

In the centre of the city, a Roman Temple from the 1st century

Before this trip we wondered whether Portugal might be a lot like Spain - it's not; Portugal does seem like many countries within the borders of one, but it's unlike anywhere else we've visited and we enjoyed it very much indeed