Today we drove down to Evora which is about a three hour drive from Coimbra. First of all, let me say that the main freeways here are top notch. They are smooth and there really isn’t that much traffic. The speed limit in most places is 120 kmp (75 mph) although people routinely exceed that and we have yet to see the equivalent of a highway patrolman on the freeways! Most of these roads are toll roads but when you are just trying to get from point A to point B, they can’t be beat.
Evora is a walled town like Obidos and is really nice. It is in the middle of the country so it is a bit off the normal tourist path, although plenty of tourists still make their way here.
We got to our hotel quite early but the staff were very accommodating and we parked in the garage, got a map of the city, a recommendation for lunch and headed off to kill a couple of hours until our room was ready. The recommended restaurant was just off the main square which was about a 10 minute walk – uphill on cobblestones – what else?
After a very nice lunch we decided to do more exploring and found a great little alleyway that had all kinds of interesting shops. A lot of the shops were selling merchandise made of cork, which is one of the main exports of Portugal, and Barb found a bag that she liked so she snagged it.
We walked a bit further and came across some old Roman ruins and a spectacular castle that looked like it was right out of Game of Thrones. We found a little park and took some pictures overlooking the city.
We decided it was time to head back to the hotel but wanted to stop at the Chapel of Bones which was on the way. The chapel is exactly as it’s name implies. The entire chapel is lined with human bones!! I have never seen anything like this before. It was a bit macabre and yet very solemn at the same time. One of the plaques said that this particular chapel was the first ‘chapel of bones’ in Portugal implying there are others! It’s worth a look if it doesn’t totally creep you out.
We kind of regret spending two nights in Coimbra and only one night here but its all part of the learning process. Although its a bit off the beaten path, Evora is well worth a visit.
We will go find another nice restaurant for dinner tonight and then head to Lagos on the coast tomorrow. It’s another three hour drive which should be pretty easy. We have an Airbnb condo in Lagos for the remainder of our time here and are looking forward to exploring the Algarve from that base of operations. The adventure continues.