Exploring central Portugal provides travelers with an authentic Portugal experience. The small town hotels, wineries and restaurants offer an inexpensive window into the lives of the people in this part of the world.
Г‰ com certeza uma casa Portuguesa! Bless your soul if you’re into churches. In central Portugal is the village of Fatima, with its national shrine in honor of Our Lady of the Rosary of Fatima. Roman Catholics have made pilgrimages to Fatima since 1917, when three shepherd children reported seeing the Virgin Mary there six […]
Portugal Evora Ruinas Jardim The city of Evora traces its history to the Romans and the Moors. There are the remains of a Temple of Diana from the 1st or 2nd century B.C., the great cathedral in Gothic style from the 12th century, and many other monuments.
Whether at the Jardim Zoológico, the Jardim Botânico da Universidade de Lisboa , or the Parque das Nações and its nearby Oceanário de Lisboa , a wide variety of plants and animals can be found thriving in Lisbon’s warm Mediterranean climate made mild by the Gulf Stream. Anyone looking for respite from the busier parts […]
Guess what?more green – HDR attempt Estoril is the center of Portugal's fashionable resorts on the Costa do Sol (coast of the sun). There the rich, and some exiled royalty from other European lands, have built lovely homes of red, blue, pink, orange, and yellow stucco and tiles that shimmer in the brilliant sun.
The plane is descending, flying low over a volcano. Steam rises. Cat, my youngest daughter, is excited. “Look, you guys! The earth is boiling.” And it is! Like the other islands of the Azores, Sao Miguel is volcanic. It’s also verdant and utterly beautiful. The Azores Archipelago is in fact the visible part of the Atlantic […]
When one hears the words “European wine,” typically French Cabernet and Italian Lambrusco, or perhaps German Gewürztraminer, come to mind. Though Portuguese wines have become increasingly popular in American restaurants (especially the Vinho Verde varietal, and Port has made a resurgence in popularity), tourists often envision Portuguese wines as subprime to their French and Italian […]
Situated in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, the Azores Islands are the very top of one of the earth’s tallest mountain ranges, the Atlantic ridge. With a temperate climate year-round, this rugged and verdant volcanic archipelago comprises nine islands, ranging in size from 270 square miles (Sao Miguel) to just 7 square miles (Corvo).
The perfect weekend or day-trip destination for backpackers, café romantics, and families alike, Portugal’s Sintra offers its palaces, ruins, gardens, and squares to the explorer’s imagination. This historic UNESCO World Heritage Site is accessible from downtown Lisbon by a quick 10-mi/31-km drive or a more leisurely one- hour train ride.