Blogs from Alentejo, Portugal, Europe - page 3

Now on to Evora, the drive took two and a half hours. We read that driving in Portugal was dangerous and there are a lot of accidents but once we got out of Porto the roads have been almost empty. Maybe that is because we drive on the toll roads. We also rented a car with GPS and this is a must, there are lots of roundabouts and without GPS it would be easy to take a wrong turn. Our hotel has no address and the directions say take exit 6 and follow the signs to the hotel. There were no signs to the hotel but the hotel is called Convento Do Espinheiro, and we followed the signs that said Espinheiro and yea we found the hotel. This is the most beautiful hotel we have ever ... read more

Portugal produces most of the world’s cork, from cork oak trees -- evergreens with leaves, numbers painted on them, and a strange “naked” appearance -- which dot the Alentejo landscape. When trees are over twenty-five years of age and every nine or ten summers thereafter, the bark is stripped off, leaving only a thin inner layer for protection. Each tree produces several hundred pounds of valuable bark per harvest. When it is stripped away the date is painted onto the tree to ensure that the required time passes before they are stripped again. The trees are at least forty years old before their inner layer is sufficiently airtight to be made into wine corks. Tourists usually think of the plains as a yawn-inspiring buffer between the sunny Algarve and the historic North. It does have many ... read more

Nazaj v Evropi in takoj pogledat kaj je novega na Portugalskem. NIČ!! V regiji Alenteja, kjer je vse bolj na počas se nič ne zgodi hitro, menda. So najbolj leni, najbolj počasni, najbolj neumni, najbolj pasivni...nekdo mora biti kriv vsega. Iz Lizbone z avtom v notranjost Portugalske, na žgoče sonce, nič sence, na ravnino, pogledat par gradov, zapuščenih ulic, na počasen ritem (ja, še bolj počasen kot v Španiji), na dobro hrano, fado in na ta čudoviti nič. Monsaraz in Marvao, obe vasi sta bili trdnjavi v času Arabcev, zdaj pa se tam še mačkom ne ljubi veliko hodit. V Monsarazu je vsega skupaj 60 prebivalcev, ki praktično ne delajo veliko, so v penziji. Par restavracij, nekaj turistov in sonce, to imajo zagotovljeno in fantastičen razgled. Dobiš občutek pozabljenosti in policaj, ki je sedel zraven nas ... read more

After running full time for 24 hours in Lisbon, my next stop was to be a lot more relax. The mission was double, to visit the little town of Evora, and to enjoy an exquisite stay in what look like a gorgeous place...well...at least this is the way I saw it from my research on the internet. I first rent a car into Lisbon for the 130km to Evora. Highways in Portugal are pretty modern, and once you leave the capital, you have the place for yourself. I didn't really realize how low density in population the countryside was once you have driven few miles out of Lisbon. Sadly, not many pictures while riding the 25th April bridge....driving and taking pictures at the same is obviously not a great idea....even if I was ready! My dig ... read more

Today we started our morning with a quick breakfast and then piled onto the bus for the day. Our first stop of the day was in the tiny town of Evora. Evora is a walled city. We had a wonderful local tour guide named Maria. Maria walked us thru the town and gave us an overview of the history. This town has existed in some form since the second century. This town has roman columns that are still standing. We really enjoyed how enthusiastic and proud Maria was of her hometown. Maria took us into the Santa Maria Cathedral. This was one of the most unique and interesting churches we have seen to date. This church is home to a statue of Mary while she is expecting Jesus, which we have never seen before. After the ... read more