Visite Troia y descubra comigo sus alrededores llenos de história

 

Pronto van a abrir las fronteras y nuestros hermanos nos podrán visitar en Portugal

Estimados amigos bloggeros,

Falta poco para que abran nuestra frontera y para que podamos recibir nuestros amigos españoles. Para los viajeros es importante saber que como en todos los países de la UE estan tardando con las vacunas. La gente que trabaja en la salud, mayores de 80 y profesores ya están protegidos y se cree que en Septiembre ya llegaremos a los 70% de la población con vacuna y con ello regresará el sueño de tener una vida normal.

La situación está controlada después de meses en casa debido al periodo de caos en Enero que sucedió a navidad. Los monumentos, centros comerciales, cines ya están abiertos y ayer 19-4 murieron 5 personas. El clima está mejorando y los hoteles empiezan a poco y poco a abrir las puertas.

Los guias profesionales ya pueden hacer visitas a 5 personas pero seguramente el número va a aumentar si la situación pandémica se mantiene. Es una cuestión de tiempo. Para los amigos del sector del turismo, uno de los más afectados vamos a mantenernos unidos pues nuestra situación va a mejorar. Amamos lo que hacemos y volveremos a hacerlo pronto. Y para ello contamos con los viajeros y turistas que están deseando de viajar y de vivir y no sobrevivir.

Aquí os esperaré: en Évora, Troia, Lisboa, Sintra o todo el Portugal

Tour to Évora and Monsaraz

 Évora and Monsaraz—There are some places in the world where simplicity means beauty. Welcome to Alentejo's fascinating 6000 year-old-city, to the most beautiful small village in Portugal, and enjoy the works of local artisans.

This tour will take us first to the City-Museum and a World Heritage Site of Évora, where you will merge into the past of this marvelous city and its world-class monuments, such as: The Chapel of the Bones, St. Francis Church, Cathedral and the Diana Temple. Next stop: a small city called Reguengos de Monsaraz. Although a modern city, it is a good example of a small city in Portugal’s largest region. Our stop here has a purpose: to observe artisans producing the famous, colorful Alentejo blankets which exist in almost every alentejana house because of the low winter temperatures.

Next, we will continue to the small town of Monsaraz which will leave you speechless. Indeed, this stop is the highlight of this tour; nothing has changed there in the last few centuries due to its excellent preservation. This town is built of schist and its tiny little houses with white-washed facades maintain the charm of a town which has been developing without losing its primitive characteristics. Here, the castle is a must-see with its panoramic view over the Alqueva Lake and Central Alentejo. The streets of Monsaraz contain many monuments and churches that hide the terrible past of a place marked by the Inquisition.

After lunch (meal not included in tour price) we will continue our tour with a visit to São Pedro do Corval, the clay pottery capital of Portugal. Here, it is possible to see many artisans creating impressive works using clay and painting their masterpieces with scenes from daily life in Alentejo. After, you will return to the Hotel.

Alcácer do Sal Walking Tour

 ALCÁCER DO SAL WALKING TOUR | The Princess of the Sado was the wealthieast Town of the Alentejo Coast and a defensive bastion during the Reconquest

Since its foundation, the 3000 year-old-town of Alcácer do Sal has been the richest and most important historic Town on Western Alentejo's, and since then has been filled with treasures inside: statues, manor houses, churches, jewish and moorish quarters, the imposing castle that still today remind us of the presence of the royalty in the 16th century when King Manuel I. married in the Parish Church located inside the Castle walls.

To start our Tour we will visit use our energy to climb up to the top of the castle and admire the impressive views over the salt and patchworks of rice paddies of Alcácer do Sal that so much fame and fortune brought to the town. Next to it, we will visit the former Convent of Aracoelli and the highlight of our tour: the visit to the Pantheon of the Great Masters of St. James Order. After all, Alcácer has been for centuries the headquarters of this religious millitary Order, who played an important role during the reconquest from the hands of the Moors.*

After, we will walk down the hill watching the traditional houses with white-washed fassades and blue or yellow stripes to bring fortune to its owners until we get to the Downtown, facing the River Sado. To finish our Tour you will heard about the life history of the local hero Pedro Nunes, and its important contribution for the success of Portugal in the see during the 16th century. 

 * If the Tour takes place during the afternoon, the visit to the Pantheon will be replaced by the visit of the Saint James Church, a mandatory stop in the Portuguese Camino de Santiago. 

Comporta Walking Tour

 COMPORTA WALKING TOUR WITH WINE TASTING | Troia's neighbour is known as the Hamptons of Europe

Sometimes compared to the Hamptons of Europe or the Saint-Tropez of Brigitte Bardot in the 1950s, Comporta, with its relaxed pace and artistic community has become the newfound favorite of personalities such as Farida Khelfa, Jacques Grange, the Espírito Santo family, François Dumas, and Madonna

Nevertheless, just a few years ago Comporta was a traditional small fisherman village surrounded by a white-sandy deserted beach and patchworks of rice paddies, who attested the hard-work of its inhabitants.

During our Tour we will learn about the local rice industry in the Town's museum, and visit the wine cellar of Herdade da Comporta, experiencing a wine tasting at the end. 

You will still have some time to stroll in the main streets, to enter in its artistic vintage shops and watch its white-washed houses with blue cobalt stripes and the iconic striking homes: rustic cabanas and thatched-roof huts. 

Full-day Tour to Porto Covo, Sines, and Alentejo Coast

 Sines and Porto Covo—Time to enjoy the unspoiled beauty of the Alentejo coast, visit picturesque fishing villages, and discover the birthplace of Vasco da Gama.

Alentejo’s little-known but stunningly beautiful tour will take us to Porto Covo, a small fishing village, characterized by its white houses with blue stripes, located in the Natural Park of Sudoeste Alentejano. It is hard to imagine that in 1780 there were only four houses in this little paradise where time passes so slowly.

After a short walk in the village along the Marquês de Pombal Square and along Vasco da Gama Street with its traditional souvenir shops and cafés, we will discover breathtaking views of the Alentejo Coast and Pessegueiro Island. We will take you to Sines, the birthplace of Vasco da Gama, Portugal’s greatest explorer, where there will be free time for lunch (not included in tour price).

Today one of the biggest ports for goods in Europe, Sines was formerly a fishing harbor located in a quiet bay with a mild climate, protected by a medieval castle from pirates and enemies who tried to attack the village from the sea. Although small in size, Sines hides an enchanting historical center with its parallel streets that surround the statue of its local hero, churches with unexpected pieces of art, beautiful belvederes, and an inscription on the house where Vasco da Gama was born. After this visit, we will enjoy a leisurely, scenic drive north along the coastline. 

Full-day Tour to Marvão, Portagem and Castelo de Vide

Marvão and Castelo de Vide—Enchanting medieval towns and Jewish heritage in the heart of the Natural Park of São Mamede in Northeastern Alentejo

This tour invites you to explore one of the most well-kept medieval villages of Portugal. Surrounded by walls and 865 meters above sea level, Marvão surprises every visitor with its marvelous views over neighboring country Spain and the surrounding areas of Northeast Alentejo and São Mamede Natural Park. There we will be enough time to immerse yourself in the town’s rich history, visit its imposing castle, walk in its well-preserved historical center characterized by centuries-old houses with white-washed facades, and soak up the atmosphere of this little jewel of Alentejo.

After lunch facing the River Sever in the village of Portagem (meal not included in tour price), we will enjoy a beautiful sightseeing tour as we drive by car to Sintra do Alentejo on the country roads of northern Alentejo. Once at Castelo de Vide, we will walk to the top of the village and dive deep into Jewish history, visiting the former synagogue and the Jewish quarter, where you’ll see enigmatic symbols which mark the places where Jews and Marranos  (Jews forced to convert to Christianity) lived. Since the foundation of the nation, Jewish communities were essential to life in Castelo de Vide and across the entire country. Jews were advisors to kings and queens, tax collectors, doctors, physicians, herbalists, naturalists (such as the Castelo-Vidense Sephardi Jewish physician Garcia da Orta) and, on the west coast, great explorers, geographers, and mathematicians. Together, they helped to transform Portugal into one of the wealthiest nations in the world during the XV and XVI centuries.