Borba>Vila Vicosa>Elvas>Portalegre> Marvão Route

July 11, 2014
BORBA to MARVAO 149km
Varanda do Alenjento €37.80 ($51) double without breakfast


O Viajante

For breakfast, we were served several pastries, one with tuna type filling which didn't tempt me beyond the first bite. But I couldn't resist my favorite typical Portuguese specialty "pastéis de nata", a scrumptious egg based custard tart topped with burned a dusting of cinnamon. We also were served a ham and cheese sandwich and great coffee.


Metamorphic Rock - 1,250 Feet Deep

Our first stop was at the marble village Vila de Viçosa, with its marble palace.
   
This modern looking Ducal Palace became the residence of the Dukes of Braganza from 1501 when one of them decided he did like the old castle on the nearby knoll. 

Our timing was off. The palace was closed till 2:30. We were not willing to wait. We checked out the old castle and view from there over Praça de Republica, an attractive plaza lined with orange trees and in the countryside beyond. We also could see a scattering of the marble quarries. 
 
The lovely white-washed houses in town sported marble window sills and door frames. We saw lots of marble even inside humble looking homes we peeked in. Some sidewalks and plazas were made of marble as well. The whitewash, that makes the buildings glow, is made from marble dust.The marble comes from a 25-mile strip between Vila Viçosa and Estremoz. A core sample made revealed that the marble rock is 1,250 feet deep! 


 
Elvas (not Elvis) An Impressive Garrison, Population 18,106
 
We left the lovely town of Vila Vicosa and followed the small roads along vineyards and ranches to the Unesco World Heritage town of Elvas. 

At the entrance of town stands an impressive aqueduct. The 40 meter high aqueduct, made of four arched tiers, supplies the city with pure water from six kilometers away. it was begun early in the 15th century and completed in 1622. 

We wound our way through narrow gates in town walls to a lovely spot in the shade of the citadel where we had our picnic lunch of veggie wrap and cherries. 

Afterwards, we walked a top the city walls and decided that the view to castle and cathedral was enough. Luckily, Dave and I usually agree about what places of interest we visit and how long. We don't need to see every noteworthy sight either. Occasionally Dave may want to climb just one more turret or steeple while I've "seen it" and find it "enough already". Then, Dave goes on and I wait in the shade;) 
 
We made one more stop at lovely small church "Igreja das Dominicas" with its beautiful tile work inside and painted pillars. We strolled through pretty lanes to the smaller Moorish castle at the town overlook. 
 

Tap Time
 
It was getting to be 3 pm and we wanted to make it to Portalegre before the tapestry museum there closed at 6 pm.  
 
The drive to Portalegre took us along increasingly winding roads. At last, the beautiful town came into view. The cathedral and castle standing tall on the hill top overlooking the red roofs and whitewashed homes within the city walls. We managed to make it up into the center of the labyrinth of ever so narrow streets and gates. At first glance, it seems impossible to get through some of these narrow streets without scraping at least the side mirrors, then having to make a turn is enough to make one scream, which I did, of course. Even Dave, who usually stays calm and focused, bit his nails on this ride. Then one wrong turn made us have to go down and around the mountain on all the one way streets and try again. Miraculously, we scored an impossible to find vacant parking spot in the historic center. We were ready to take any spot. When we put the museum address in the smartphone, we were thrilled to discover we were very near. We made it to the tapestry museum in time.

 
Museu da Tapeçaria de Portalegre Guy Fino
 
There is one "must visit" in Portalegre. Its museum houses Portalegre's unique contemporary tapestry. It’s named after the factory founder who created an innovatory 'stitch’. We were the only visitors and it was interesting and worth the trouble to get there.

Accommodations in Portalegre seemed very expensive besides, the small castle village of Marvão a bit further sounded more interesting to us. We booked "Varanda do Alenjento" for the night in Marvão, 25 kilometers north east of Portalegre that had outstanding ratings. 

On the way out of town, we picked up a few salad and sandwich fixings, yogurt and some local wine for Dave and margarita mix for me. The white port with tonic is nice and fresh too. Choices, choices. 
 

Serpentine Forest Road

We wound on an increasingly serpentine road, once in a while through tunnel of trees. Finally, we spotted Marvão. The minute we reached its lovely quaint narrow streets, we fell on love with the place. Our hotel turned out to be a winner too. Jorge, the grandson of the owner, was attentive and eager to make sure we had everything we needed.

We had had a long hot day and decided to lay low, enjoy light dinner in our comfortable room, play a hand of cards and turn in early.

  

July 12, 2014
MARVÃO - Our favorite castle village in Alentejo 

We just HAD to stay another day in this magical village perched so quaintly above the countryside. The booking.com website indicated our hotel Varanda do Alenjento was full but we asked Jorge anyway. Luckily, he had a cancellation that he hadn't processed yet and we could stay! We were thrilled.

Like many hill top towns and villages in and around the Alentejo province, it sports an imposing citadel. This one has an eagles nest view over the valley. Others may be larger and have many more sights to visit but in this case, for us, "less was more". Later we found out Marvão was included in the book, '1000 Places to see Before you Die' ..... Check!

The sparkling whitewashed houses here look like they we spruced up for important company, not a drop spilled on the narrow age-old stone roads. No shops peddling cheap tourist knickknacks and it's not overbuilt with terraces catering to tour buses. We encountered few tourists in this off the beaten track little jewel. 
 
Flower pots brimming with color lined the houses. Several painters found shady spots to paint the picture-postcard scenes of the village. 
 
We visited the citadel in the early afternoon and just before sundown, we got a good workout walking up and down the quaint lanes and city walls. 

We enjoyed a fabulous traditional meal of lamb and pork and migas, a tasty mixture of potatoes, bread, bell peppers and herbs. A lot more meat than we would ordinarily choose, but very tasty.