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The Casa Renata is a cottage
close to Aljezur, at the westcoast of Algarve,National
Park Costa Vicentina
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New
apartment in traditional Portugues style, far away from the main tourism.
It's
placed in the centre of a national park at the Costa Vicentina.
The size of the cottage is about 70m². It's for 4 persons.
The cottage has one bathroom with shower, hand-basin and toilet, a
kitchenette, a dining table for 3 persons,
one sofa (extensible) and one armchair. We have two bedrooms. One with a
marriage bed and one with a single bed, extendable to a marriage bed. Further one bed for babies is
available.
The
terrace runs around
the house and has a roof on the east side. We have a big and a small
pool, may
be used by the clients of the big and the small house. In front of the house there is
a big
barbeque. |
Surrounding
Monchique
The
two mountains in the north of Portimão are known as the Serra de Monchique.
The higher of the two is called Foia, and the other Picota. They are the
remnants of Jurassic volcanoes.
The Rocha Negra - Black Rock - of Praia da Luz is an
intrusion of the lava from those volcanos. |
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The
village of Monchique lies on the slopes of Foia, and around here there are
several restaurants offering Chicken Piri-piri, a grilled or barbecued
chicken marinated in a hot pepper sauce.
Below the village are the Caldas de Monchique, the mineral water springs
utilised since Roman times. A Bishop built a Hospital here, for the benefit
of those wishing to take the waters. King Jo�o II came here, in 1495, in the
hope that the treatment could alleviate his illness. Nowadays Monchique
water is bottled and sold.
On the top of Foia are the radio and television masts which serve the
Algarve, and from here it is said that you can see Lisbon, if the weather is
fine. Like all mountains, however, these attract clouds, mist and haze and
it would be an exceptional day to see that far. If it is, in anyway, fine,
magnificent views stretch away to the south and the sea.
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Silves
Silves,
to the east of Monchique, lies on the River Arade, which flows down to the
sea at Portimão. In earlier times the river was navigable up to this point
by fairly large vessels. Today there are trips there in the traditional
Portuguese 'canoes' which depart from Portimao.
Crowning the hill overlooking the river is the Castle of Silves, which was
the Alhambra of the Al-Gharb. The knights of the re-conquest, under King
Sancho I, attacked and took the castle in 1189. The Moors shortly regained
possession of their capital and despite numerous assaults the city held out
until 1266, when Dom Paio Peres Correia conquered this last outpost of Arab
rule in the Algarve.
Just inside the city walls is an archaeological museum, set up around the
Moorish Town well.
The Cathedral of Silves is on the road from here, back down to the river. |
Aljezur
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town of Aljezur lies on the road from Lagos to Lisbon. From here a road may
be taken cross-country to Marmelete and the Serra de Monchique. |
Aljezur Castle
The
most striking feature is the castle, set on top of the hill, overlooking the
town. This is, in fact, not a castle with keep and bailey and quarters for
soldiers, but the original fortified town. Recent archaeological excavations
have found that the Moors first constructed it in the late 8th Century. When
the Christians conquered the Algarve, Aljezur nearly held out until the fall
of Silves.
In the 14th Century, new houses were constructed in the castle on
top of the Moorish foundations, keeping to the basic layout, but now butting
directly onto the walls covering the Arabic walkway which had previously
lain around the inner circumference. |
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Aljezur from the castle gate |
A 13th century house wall |
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Gradually the town spread out of its bounding walls and down the hill. The
second part of the town, constructed on the other side of the river, owes
its location to a Bishop, who considered that the West bank was unhealthy.
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The 'new' town |
Aljezur Church |
Waterslide Parks
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A good
day out, especially for the young and active, is a visit to a Waterslide
Park, of which there are three west of Faro in the Algarve. This is the
nearest. |
Beaches
About 4
km from our apartment, there is a wonderful beach, called Vale Figueiras.
Even during the peak season, it's not overcrowded.
During the rest of the year it could even be called lonely.
Many signed walking tours lead through this unexplored countryside, where
the sea and the mountains combine to an unusual natural monument. |
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there are several other beaches nearby, for example the fabulous beaches of
Amoreira and Carapateira. They are situated about 10 km from us. |
Sights
Sport
and entertainment: Lagos, 25 km from us, has the opportunity of sailing,
motorboat driving, surfing, diving and organized
boat trips. You also can do nice trekking tours. |
| You can
reach the south-west coast of Europe in about 20 minutes by car. There are
many things to see, funny rocks in the sea, romantic harbours and historical
points. |
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