072 Portugal: Evora

Portugal: Evora
and some bits of Spain: Santa Olalla, Merida

Before we head back to Portugal and return the car, we decide we need a holiday and as it is just days from the end of the season we get an amazing deal in Barcelo. We book into a 4* hotel and our room overlooks the pool, the golf course and views of the ocean.
We have 4 days just swimming, walking the beach and generally doing nothing. There is champagne for breakfast and buffet dinners = bliss

There is a great deal of pork eaten in Europe (and very little lamb). We've seen some awful battery farms but this one is noticeable because it is free range.

The Roman ruins in Merida. 2nd largest Roman settlement outside Rome. The place is huge. So many parts of the town have been preserved/restored.

Kill the bastard!
Travelling has hardened me.

FYI - a legionnaire earned 350 cisterces per year and a gladiator got 1000 per contest and it was rare that they were killed, many could purchase their freedom after 5 years and many chose to remain as gladiators or as gladiator trainers.

I love the way they have preserved some areas just as they found them - in this case a mosaic floor, while in other places they have restored it to look how it would have looked. Amazing.

We had 3 lovely nights in Evora - I enjoyed it mostly because I had a washing machine and  when we left ALL our clothes were clean - bliss.
The place is hardly known and it is truly amazing. Here is part of the aqueduct.

This is Dianna's temple, just as they found it.
They have so many ruins that this doesn't even have a plaque to say what it is.

We've seen cork products before but this was a street with about 10 shops selling amazing cork products, including a dress, a coat and ....

umbrellas - YES, umbrellas made of cork.

This church has rooms where the walls are decorated with human bones. I thought  it quite fantastic and didn't really understand why people would be squeamish. It was so clever and well done

there is a team of three  people dedicated to the restoration and preservation of the room.

look closely - you can see the skulls lining the arches.

My washing machine. :)
Heaven

Frank cleaning the car. There was an E80 fee if you returned it dirty so he worked hard to ensure every little bug was gone.
After all the journey we have had it is testament to Frank's driving skills that there isn't a single scratch and it is testament to luck that there isn't a single stone chip.



Next stop Lisbon - to return the car and leave Europe.