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Portugal Part 3: Porto, Tomar & Evora

written by Amanda March 3, 2023

September 13-23
This is the third and final post about our trip to Portugal in September 2022. Read about the first part of the journey:
Portugal Part 1: Lisbon & Sintra
Portugal Part 2: Obidos, Nazaré, and Coimbra

Porto

Looking out over the Duro River with Porto on the left and Vila Nova de Gaia on the right

We arrived in Porto in the early evening after a roughly two-hour drive from Nazaré. With only two nights in this large and vibrant city, we chose to stay in the heart of the historic district. The downside to this location was no parking on site so we had to find a place to put the rental car. There were several paid parking lots nearby but the prices were high and it would have meant driving into and around the city (it was around 5 pm and the traffic was heavy). Instead, we found a free park-and-ride type lot near the Metro station on the other side of the river from Porto. With a little hesitation about leaving the rental car in this free lot, we gathered all our luggage, boarded the metro, and after a short ride emerged from the station to a bustling city only a few blocks from our lodging.

The view from the train station

I came across B28 Apartments on a list of the best small places to stay in the center of Porto. It was a great choice and if we returned I would absolutely stay there again. Everything from the location to the comfy bed, tall ceilings, minimalist decor, scrumptious breakfast ingredients, and even communication with the owner were spot on. The photos I took of our apartment really don’t accurately portray how nice it was.

Our mini apartment had a full kitchen with a fridge, microwave, and induction cooktop – Fresh breakfast ingredients were delivered daily, it was more than enough for one meal and provided us with snacks as well – The windows from our apartment looked out on a set of stairs that went to the most amazing view – The front entry to the apartments
Early evening view from the Miradouro da Vitória – just up the stairs from our apartment

With so little time in Porto, we planned virtually nothing and instead chose to spend our time simply walking and exploring. I was also still not feeling great and this lack of itinerary allowed for lots of downtime and napping. With our schedule now firmly adjusted to late nights and late mornings, we spent most of our time in Portugal walking around in the evening. Not only was it cooler (daytime temps were 90-ish with high humidity) and far less crowded, but it was also very beautiful at night.

The same Miradouro da Vitória at night
The Clérigos Tower
Churches, buildings with interesting tiles, the empty train station, and quiet streets at night
Night scenes

The one scheduled activity that we did do while in Porto was a walking tour. It was a last-minute idea that I booked in the car while on the way to Porto. I found a free English tour using civitatis.com for the next day that would meet at 11 am. The deal is that the tour is free but a tip of 10-20 euros per person is customary. It turned out to be a great way to spend two and a half hours. Our group of English-speaking tourists (we were the only Americans) was led around by a guy from Ireland who moved to Porto after coming for a study-abroad program and falling in love with the city. It was hot that day (it was hot every day – I can’t imagine visiting in the summer months) so the walking was kept to a minimum and we stopped to chat in a lot of shady spots.

Porto was full of cute cafes in parks – the train station during the day was far busier

Turns out that a walking tour is a great thing to do on the first day in a new city. Even though we didn’t walk far, we were given a fairly comprehensive oral overview of the city. Everything from the popular local dishes to the Carnation Revolution in the ’70s that ushered in a democratic regime was discussed. At the end of the tour, we were all sent a helpful PDF with numerous recommendations.

Shady streets and a stop on the tour right outside our apartment – those windows at the top with the green metal are where we stayed
Little houses for the many, many stray cats – More views of the city

There hasn’t been much mention of the local cuisine during this trip because, for the most part, the popular dishes in Portugal are not our favorite foods. Because of this, I pretty much stuck to a diet of cheese or sometimes ham & cheese toasties with a salad for most meals. The salads in Portugal are no joke! Every time I ordered one it was large enough to share and included extra goodies like olives, corn, and sometimes cheese. Tim is a bit more of an adventurous eater than me, so he tried some of the local specialties, including a meat monstrosity called a Francesinha. This heart-attack-in-waiting dish is made of thick bread wrapped around cured ham, a Portuguese sausage called linguica, and steak or roast beef. The sandwich is then covered in melted cheese and tomato beer sauce. Tim said it was good. I’ll have to take his word for it.

Cheese toasty + salad became my go-to order – Tim got more adventurous with the Francesinha

One of the places mentioned during the tour as a great place to see the sunset was the Jardins do Palácio de Cristal (Crystal Palace Gardens). It was not too far of a walk from our apartment so after a late lunch and subsequent nap, we headed over to take in some views.

The sun setting over the Duro River
Gardens, a cool-looking arena, peacocks, and more gardens
The tropical nature of Portugal was a complete surprise to us. Palm trees were everywhere!

I hesitate to pick favorites, but overall I think Porto was my favorite of all the places we visited in Portugal. It may have been because we stayed in such a central location, but I loved the vibrant energy and amazing architecture. If we ever return to Portugal, spending at least a week in Porto would be a must.

Tomar

After a far too short visit, we left Porto and drove south to our last destination before we had to make our way back to Lisbon for the flight home. At nearly four hours, this was by far our longest drive so we decided to split it up with a stop to see a castle in Tomar.

Looking out on Tomar from the castle walls

Tomar is a small town in a country setting that oozes charm mixed with an old history. The main attraction is the Tomar Castle and Convent of Christ which sit high on a hill overlooking the town. The convent was closed for renovations during our visit which was fine as we didn’t have a lot of time to spend here.

Entering the castle walls – Always going up!

The 12th-century castle is no longer in use, but the castle walls are still standing and open for exploring. Unlike all the other castle walls we walked around in Portugal, these actually had metal railings to prevent falls. No information on what we were walking on or seeing though, as seems to be the norm. Maybe if you tour the convent they provide more info, but on this day we were content to simply explore on our own while trying to imagine what it was like here when the castle was occupied so long ago.

Walking on the castle walls + a view of the old palace
Great views from up here!
More castle walls – I believe this cross in the stone is where a weapon would be shot through
Stumbled on some late-season gardens not far from the castle walls
The charming streets of Tomar
More toasties and a salad, ice cream not pictured – The lovely view from our lunch cafe

Évora

Our last stop in Portugal took us to the southern town of Évora. When researching for this trip, Tim came across Évora and the Bone Chapel and immediately put it on the list. While the bone chapel is a popular must-visit, Évora is most famous for the Templo Romano de Évora ( Roman Temple of Évora). Built in the early 1st century AD (that is old!) and then modified in later centuries, it is considered one of the best preserved Roman temples in the whole Iberian Peninsula.

Templo Romano de Évora (Roman Temple of Évora)

We found another great place to stay for our two nights in Évora. The Casa Morgado Esporao is located inside the walls of the city just steps from the famed Roman ruins. The boutique apartments here are housed in a beautifully renovated 15th-century mansion. We stayed in the Pedro Nunes apartment on the first floor with decorated vaulted ceilings. It was secluded, quiet, and only steps from the courtyard garden and pool. I am not sure if it was the layout of the building or there were simply not many other guests at the time, but we didn’t see anyone else for most of our stay and it felt like we had this entire dreamy place to ourselves.

The lovey bed area in our apartment at the Casa Morgado Esporao
The sitting area in our apartment – This hallway view gives a peak of the original interior walls before they were coated and whitewashed
The outdoor sitting area outside our room – The bathroom in our apartment was massive!
A small but scenic pool in the courtyard – Tim in the pool
Tim standing outside the mini door to the apartments

Évora is another walled city with little access for cars inside the walls. We parked and walked in which was for the best because most of the narrow streets were one-way and shared by cars and pedestrians. I think you would want to really know your way around before attempting to drive inside the walls. We once again planned no itinerary for this stop and instead spent our two days wandering around, resting, and filling up on pastries.

One of the entrances to the city through the walls – Some of the old Aquaduct that runs through the city and dates back to the 15th century
More of the aqueduct that has been “filled in” with living spaces – Yellow & white were the predominant colors in Évora

Évora is home to the University of Evora which made it feel less like a town strictly for tourists, and more like a place where people actually live. It also meant that Tim was able to find a brewery-type restaurant serving craft beer. It should be no surprise we went there on our first night. The craft beer scene in Portugal is not like it is in the US and after drinking countless lager-style Superbock beers, even I was happy to find a decent brew. (No shade on Superbock as Tim left the country with not one, but two of their t-shirts).

Tim drinking his birthday beer at the Tunnel Bar – Lots of narrow, one-way streets in Évora
Getting our fill of Portuguese pastries before we leave – Also a delicious beer & burger combo at the Craft BBS

The Capela dos Ossos or Bone Chapel is located in the San Francisco Church in the center of town. We couldn’t look inside the church because a mass was going on, but we did tour the chapel and the small upper-story museum that was filled with mostly religious artifacts.

Igreja de São Francisco (San Fransico Church)

Depending on your point of view, the Bone Chapel is either spiritual and meaningful, or creepy. Or maybe a bit of both. Even though I knew that this space was filled with bones from over 5,000 skeletons, it was hard to comprehend that these were real human skulls and bones and not simply an elaborate art installation. Because there’s no denying that the way these bones are arranged in columns and arches makes it obvious that they were meant to be viewed as something more than simply human remains.

There were lots of people crowded in the small chapel so it was hard to get a good overview photo
Bony Details

On the face of it, the story behind the chapel is simple. The cemeteries in the 16th century were hurting for space, so the monks brought the bones inside and turned them into art. But there’s more to it than that. The monks were not only serving the practical issue of overcrowded cemeteries but also giving a visual message to the local residents about the inevitability of death along with the timeless mantra about enjoying life while you still have it. Legend tells us that there was once a plague outside the chapel with the following words:

More than just a chapel full of bones
The Bone Chapel

We ended our trip to Portugal with an early morning drive back to Lisbon followed by seemingly never-ending flights home. The ten days we spent in Portugal were magical and inspiring. We loved so much about the country and look forward to a return visit someday so we can see all the places we missed the first time around.

Driving under the Aqueduct as we left town and headed back to Lisbon for the flight home

Portugal Part 1: Lisbon & Sintra
Portugal Part 2: Obidos, Nazaré & Coimbra

Our route around Portugal: Lisbon – Sintra – Obidos – Nazaré – Coimbra – Porto – Tomar – Évora
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Amanda

previous post
Portugal Part 2: Obidos, Nazaré, & Coimbra

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Portugal Part 1: Lisbon & Sintra

March 3, 2023

Portugal Part 2: Obidos, Nazaré, & Coimbra

March 3, 2023

2 comments

Jeff March 3, 2023 - 5:22 pm

Thanks for taking us along on your visit to Portugal. We have been to Spain and France, but never Portugal, now we have a bit of incentive .. but the Bone Chapel ???? I’ll take that off the Bucket List :)

Reply
Barbara March 6, 2023 - 2:24 pm

So wonderful to hear something from you!!
Are still renting a place in Bend or did you purchase a home?

Reply

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About The Watsons

About The Watsons

This is the story of Tim & Amanda. Since 2012, we have traveled the U.S. while living and working from our renovated 25-foot Airstream. Follow us on our crazy journey in search of beautiful scenery, fun adventures, interesting people, tasty foods, and more…

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