Évora, Portugal: Wanderings in an Old Town

We knew it would be a long day to get from Elvas to Évora. The persistent low spinning off the coast of Ireland that has been pumping wind and rain at us for the last week was due to send its next wave at 1pm (according to this app which we can't help ourselves from obsessively checking). The morning was fine, and after our quarry-gazing we even found a picnic table for lunch, which always puts a cherry on top of the best meal of the day. But as if an alarm went off high in a cloud, a brief downpour happened as we packed up our gear. It was a warning shot, and we continued until about 10 kilometers short of our destination when the clouds united and a big dark wall of water descended on us. We found a tree and huddled under it and watched cars pass by for a good 45 minutes. One woman actually stopped and offered us a ride, but we would have to leave the bikes behind. Not really an option, so we cycled in the rain to town, arriving dripping wet and cold at the grocery store. After stocking up we peddled into the old town and found ourselves a nice guesthouse.

Évora is a medieval hill town still still surrounded by 14th century walls. The streets are impossibly twisted and narrow, and the town is not too big to walk around and explore in a day. And that is just what we did, umbrella in hand. By afternoon the sun came out and we had good light for photographs.

Here are a few of our favorite images from our day of exploring.

The roof line of the most famous church in the town, Igreja Real de São Francisco

The church has lovely turrets, not unlike a soft-serve cone.

The architectural style is describe as Manueline-Gothic.

Many of the alcoves in the church were covered with Portuguese tiles, known as azulejo,

Marble!

Bright and welcoming buildings.

More marble!

An alley in any other place, but in Evora it is a street.

There are also some Roman ruins.  Here are some of the columns of the Temple of Diana.

A couple of guys just hanging out on top of the Church of Nossa Senhora da Graça.

Remnants of the aqueduct have been adapted to housing and shops within the the city walls.

We followed the aqueduct as it grew taller and taller...

...until we were outside the city walls where the aqueduct arches were just about the right width a lane of traffic.