Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
harvested trunks), oak (native to the country, once used to build explorers' caravels),
olive (dusty green-silver leaves, major export crop), and eucalyptus (tall, cough drop-
smelling trees imported from Australia, grown for pulp). Today, the Alentejo region
is known for being extraordinarily traditional, and is even considered backward by
snooty Lisboans.
The people of Alentejo don't mind being the butt of jokes; in fact, they consider it
classy to be able to laugh at themselves. It's said you'll see them riding motorcycles
in pajamas...so they can better lay into the corners. Many Portuguese call porno flicks
“Alentejo karate.” A sad old guy from Alentejo told me he had been on the verge of
teaching his burro how to live without food...but it died. In traditional Alentejo homes,
there's always a chair next to the bed, so people can sit down to rest after they get up.
And you can tell when an Alentejo man is finished with work...he takes his hands out
of his pockets.
While in other lands “time is money,” here “time is time.” Alentejanos enjoy living
well.
• Walk straight, sniffing the wonderful scent of pastries coming from the kitchen of Café
Arcada (we'll visit the café at the end of this walk), and cross the intersection to find the...
Aqueduct:
This blunt granite-columned end of the town's aqueduct is a relic from the
16th century. The Portuguese have such a fondness for their aqueduct reservoirs that they
give them a special name—
Mãe d'Agua
(Mother of Water). As you walk, notice the ab-
normally high sidewalk to your left. It's the aqueduct channel, supported by stone pillars
on the outskirts of town. (Here, it's at street level.)
• Turn around and take a left onto Rua Nova, walking up the street until you reach the
corner. Take a right on Rua dos Burgos to enter #5, the...
CasadoRuadosBurgos
: This 17th-century house with a Roman foundation contains
a small museum, with temporary exhibits on the main floor and a section of Roman wall
below (free, Mon-Fri 9:00-18:00, closed Sat-Sun). Walk through the courtyard and bey-
ond the glass door to view a small collection of Roman artifacts and a large section of the
original town wall.
• Exit the museum and retrace your steps, making a right at the aqueduct onto Travessa
de Sertório. For a fun distraction, pop into the
Oficina de Terra
(clay workshop) where
Tiago sculpts and his partner Magda paints fanciful clay creations—religious scenes,
children's fairy tales, and caricature portraits (Travessa do Sertório 6). Within a block,
you'll reach a square that was once congested with parked cars and is now a good ex-
ample of how the town has become very pedestrian-friendly.
