July 9, 2014

SERPA to EVORA - 162km
Best Western Santa Clara €45 ($60) double without breakfast

Serpa -> Moura -> Algueva Lake -> Luz -> Mourão -> Monsaraz -> Evora.



Pulo do Lobo

We were pleased with our choice of accommodation at Hotel Pulo do Lobo in Serpa. We slept well as usual. Breakfast was ample and varied, bread, ham, cheese, homemade preserve, yogurt and fresh fruit, no eggs, which is fine with us.

The historically rich medieval walled castle college town of Evora is #5 on Lonely Planet's "Top 27 Experiences" for Portugal and #1 in the Alentejo Region. We set that as our goal and planned a meandering route along a reservoir by the Spanish border to get there.

 
Moura means Moorish Woman or Girl

We managed to get lost driving out of Serpa. First we turned the wrong way and drove a kilometer before discovering our mistake. Instead of just doubling back, we tried to follow dirt farm roads to get back on route. Eventually they would dissolve into the dust and we’d have to reroute. Finally we found pavement again and a drove past wheat farms, orchards, and microscopic villages before arriving at the large town (population 8500) of Moura.
 
 
Many of it's site are quite common including a medieval castle, old city walls and classic churches. An olive press museum and the Moorish quarter seemed unique and we stopped to find them. We parked in a newer area of town and walked through the cobblestone lane of the Moorish quarter where the well tended white homes are decorated with blue or mustard trim and flower pots in front. We got to the city hall and castle ground just before everything closed for lunch. Most of the castle was destroyed by the Spanish in the 1709 but they do have an archaeological dig unearthing remains from the 13th century. There are some towers, including Torre de Taipa built In the 14th century. We were able to take a gander of the castle grounds, city park and 16th century Mother Church but knew the Mercado and museums closed for lunch, including the olive press, and we made our way north out of town.
 
 
Algueva Lake Submerged Luz

The Guadiana River was dammed in 2002’s near the town of Alqueva creating a sprawling reservoir behind a hydroelectric power plant..

The project covered a village named Luz, who's residents were relocated above the flood water. They spent millions building a new museum on the water’s edge to house artifacts saved from the town. The new Luz seemed ghost-townish with small new homes in neat little rows. We picnicked near the lake by the church and museum.


Mourão Drive-By

We were surprised to see a Citadel on a hill in the town Mourão. We just had to pull off to see it up close too. We made our way through the cobblestone streets and went steeply up, right to the front of the citadel and church. The church was locked and the citadel’s walls were the only thing to see. We decided this would be our last castle/citadel – at least until Evora


Monsaraz (a well preserved castle & town)

We rolled down and around the west side of Mourão’s hill before spotting another castle town glistening above the waters of the Guadiana River and the hilly green and gold plain. We stopped again to take in the view from the distance while Dave used his phone to book the Best Western Hotel in Evora. We’ve had a hard time finding cheap accommodations and have gotten used to paying 40€ or 45€. We do have to say, the standard of hotels in Portugal is pretty good. We chose the BW because it is quite central inside the city walls and also got the senior rate which saved us 5€, a first for us in Europe.

The main highway bypasses Monsaraz and as we got on its southern side, the sunlight was at a better angle for taking photos. We drove off the main highway toward a hill that would give us a better vantage point. Then we went a little closer still. Monsaraz pulled us in like a magnet, soon we found ourselves right outside the city wall. “What the heck. Let’s go in.”

Monsaraz has always been occupied and there are Neolithic megaliths (big rocks) nearby that were erected before the Pyramids. High on a steep hill, the highest hill in sight, and inside massive stone walls, is a tightly packed community of lovely white wash homes and tourist oriented businesses; gift shops, hotels, cafes, and restaurants. They have found prehistoric fortification remains here and the hill had strategic military use for Romans, Moors and Christians over thousands of years, before being taken over by tourists. It now a tourism goldmine and we were glad we didn't miss it. 
 

Evora is Really, Really Big

We drove by many pottery factories, vineyards and wineries as we made our way toward Evora. We expected some could be visited but we were driving and didn't want to stop unless we could do a tasting.
 
We were surprised at the size of the city of Evora, the most of which has sprawled outside the old city walls. The size of the historic core inside the walls surprised us too. Evora is a sharp contrast to the tiny compact Monsaraz. Our first impression was a little disappointing. Evora has a labyrinth of cobblestone lanes and old buildings but where is the charm?

Google Maps did great leading us through the labyrinth to a narrow back-allies to the front of the tall and modern Best Western Santa Clara hotel. It is a more deluxe hotel than we expected and they have parking on the street a hundred meters away on foot. One-way streets made driving back to the parking spots an ordeal.

We decided to save exploring the Evora for tomorrow.