Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Praça de Sertório and the Town Hall: The tallest white building on the square is
the town hall. Any up-and-coming project for Évora is displayed inside here, including
aerial views and scale models that visualize what the future city will look like (Mon-Fri
8:00-17:30, closed Sat-Sun, six computers with free Internet access).
Inside the town hall, in the corner on the right, is a view of a Roman bath that was
uncovered during some building repair. Step through the glass door to the right of this
overlook for a peek at the ongoing excavation.
• Exit the town hall to the right. Look up to see a church and convent built into a Roman
tower (once part of the Roman wall you saw earlier). The grilled windows on the top of
the tower enabled the cloistered sisters to enjoy looking at the busy town without being
seen. Take a right turn and walk under the arcades past the post office (correios) and take
the first left, on Rua de Dona Isabel. You'll immediately see a...
RomanArch: This arch, the Porta de Dona Isabel, was once a main gate in the Roman
wall. Below are some of the original Roman pavement stones, which are large and irreg-
ular in size and placement.
When you pass under the Roman wall, you're entering a neighborhood called Mourar-
ia (for the Moors). After Giraldo the Fearless retook Évora, the Moors were still allowed
to live in the area, but on the other side of this gate, beyond the city walls. They were safe
here for centuries...until the Inquisition expelled them in about 1500.
• Passing under the old arch, turn right, and walk along the road past sod-capped water
reservoirs to a patch of grass showing Évora's coat of arms: Giraldo on horseback again.
Turn right at the tower, called the Five Corners (Cinco Esquinas) for its five sides, and
walk a block up Rua A. F. Simões to...
Évora's Sight-Packed Square: Here, at the town's high point (1,000 feet above sea
level), you'll see the Roman Temple, a public garden, and the dressy Jardim do Paço res-
taurant, known for its beautiful garden setting (and €13 buffet lunches and dinners). Also
on the square is the recommended Pousada dos Loios, once a 15th-century monastery but
now a luxurious hotel with small rooms (blame the monks).
• To the left of the pousada, stairs lead down to a church.
IgrejadosLoiosdosDuquesdeCadaval: Stop in to see the church's impressive gold
altarpiece. This is the lavish mausoleum chapel of the noble Cadavals (still a big-time
family, which is why they charge a fee to enter). You'll walk upon Cadaval tombstones
throughout your visit; taped chants and liturgical music add to the ambience. Look for the
two small trapdoors in the floor that flank the aisle, midway up the church. One opens up
to a well (the palace and its church sit upon the remains of a Moorish castle—this was
its cistern); the other reveals an ossuary stacked with bones. Above the pews, the noble
box is a reminder that the aristocratic family didn't worship with commoners below. The
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