Hotel Convento de Sao Paulo * * * *

SPORT FACILITIES AND LEISURE ACTIVITIES AT THE PROPERTY OR NEARBY

Outdoor swimming pool

SIGHTSEEING

Évora (37 Kms)

The capital of Alto Alentejo, Évora, a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a historical curio. Considering its size and location, it's also something of an architectural phenomenon. Its builders freely adapted whatever styles they desired, from Mudejar to Manueline to Roman to rococo. Évora, once enclosed behind medieval walls, lives up to its reputation as a living museum. Sixteenth and seventeenth-century houses, many with tile patios, fill nearly every street. Cobblestones, labyrinthine streets, arcades, squares with bubbling fountains, whitewashed houses, and a profuse display of Moorish-inspired arches characterize the town. Many conquerors passed through Évora, and several left behind architectural remains. The Romans at the time of Julius Caesar knew the town as Liberalitas Julia. Its heyday was during the 16th-century reign of João III, when it became the Montmartre of Portugal; avant-garde artists, including the playwright Gil Vicente, congregated under the aegis of royalty.

Vila Viçosa (24 Kms)

Vila Viçosa has always been rightly considered a jewel in the treasure chest of Alentejo, so it is hardly surprising to find that it has often been included in royal dowries and endowments. Dona Brites, the wife of King Afonso IV, was the first to receive it as a wedding present, followed by Leonor Teles, King Fernando's lover who was hated by the people of Lisbon, and was later presented to Nuno Álvares Pereira, the heroic general of King João I. There is much natural and man made beauty in town, which covers an area of less than 200 square km. It is easy to reach the conclusion that the natural beauty inspired men to continue to be creative, as the town's rich cultural heritage would not have been enlarged and improved as it has been over the centuries.