Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Until the 16th century, the area behind the TI was the Jewish Quarter. At the time,
Christians believed that the Bible prohibited them from charging interest for loans. Jews
did the moneylending instead, and the streets in the Jewish Quarter still bear names re-
lated to finance, such as Rua da Moeda (Money Street) and Rua dos Mercadores (Mer-
chants' Street).
The Roman triumphal arch that once stood on Praça do Giraldo was demolished in the
16th century to make way for the Church of Santo Antão (which overlooks the square
today). In front of the church is a 16th-century fountain—once an important water source
for the town (fed by the end of the aqueduct) and now a popular hangout for young and
old.
King John III lived in Évora for 30 years. The TI is inside the palace where the king's
guests used to stay, but others weren't treated as royally. A fervent proponent of the In-
quisition, King John sanctioned the deaths of hundreds of people who were burned as
heretics on this square.
Until recently, the square was a traditional cattle-and-produce market. While ranchers
and farmers no longer gather here to make deals, old-timers still gravitate to this square
out of habit. Notice the C.M.E. board (opposite the TI, near the start of Rua 5 de Outubro),
where people gather to see a list of who has died recently. You'll see the initials “C.M.E.”
all over town, from lampposts to manhole covers. It's an abbreviation for Câmara Muni-
cipal de Évora—Évora's town hall. The characteristic arcades fit the weather—providing
shelter in the winter and shade in the summer.
• Leave the square on Rua 5 de Outubro (opposite the TI office). On the first corner,
Alforge is a good little shop for gifty gourmet goodies from the region. Outside, note how
the back of the shop incorporates the old Roman-Arab wall. From here head left (past
Mr. Pickwick's Restaurante) on Alcárcova de Cima, which means “the place with water”
in Arabic. A few steps farther on, you'll see another portion of a Roman wall built into
the buildings on your right.
Roman Remnants: A series of modern windows shows more of the Roman wall,
which used to surround what is now the inner core of the town. Through the last window,
you can see the red paint of a Roman villa built over by the wall. If you look at your town
map, you'll notice how the Roman wall, which surrounded the ancient city, left its foot-
print in the circle of streets defining the city core. The bulk of the wall that currently en-
circles Évora is from the 14th century, with a more modern stretch from Portugal's 17th-
century fight for independence from Spain.
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