To Evora, Thurs, 10/14/21

Leaving Coimbra and heading southeast through the countryside, I was surprised to see forests of eucalyptus ... imported in the late 18th Century by Sir Joseph Banks the botanist, these trees colonized everywhere, as eucalyptus do, and these days they're used for paper pulp.  Also surprisingly:  Huge wood stork nests high atop poles, empty now as the birds have already flown south.  Miles of olive trees, vineyards and the occasional kiwi orchard, tied up as you would grapes.  Seasonal rivers are dry, awaiting the rains which will come later in the fall/winter.  Much like our California.  We donned long-sleeved shirts or light sweaters against the morning's coolness.

Our first stop today was to be the Monastery of Batalha, and our first glimpse of it from the road had all of us on the bus gasping, "WOW!"

The immensity of this place is impossible to describe.  Our guide threw out names of kings and battles and victories and years and burials, and Gothic and Manueline till my head did cartwheels.  I know you don't care or want to know all this stuff, so, in a nutshell, Wiki tells me that the monastery was built to thank the Virgin Mary for the Portuguese victory over the Castilians in the battle of Aljubarrota in 1385, fulfilling a promise of King John I of Portugal.

It took over a century to build, starting in 1386 and ending in 1517, spanning the reign of seven kings and the efforts of fifteen architects.

Tomb of John I and his English wife, Philippa.

The ceiling:  so dramatic!

Our guide points out tombs of sons and bachelors and princes and wives encircling the Founders Chapel -- all from the 15th Century.

Arches and pillars.  No two pillars are the same.

You see Moorish influence.

In the Chapterhouse, a military honor guard of two sentinels stands watch over the tombs of two unknown soldiers killed in World War I.  They stand motionless for one hour and then are replaced by two more, and so on.  (Portugal was neutral during WWII.)

The Unfinished Chapels are a reminder that the monastery was never actually finished.  The octagonal rotunda has seven radiating hexagonal chapels, and no roof.  In the corners of the chapels stand the massive unfinished buttresses that were intended to support the vault (roof).

Our group standing before one of the monumental portals.  

Also from Wiki:  The Lisbon earthquake of 1755 did some damage, but much greater damage was inflicted by Napoleon's troops, who sacked and burned the complex in 1810 and 1811. When the Dominicans were expelled from the complex in 1834, the church and convent were abandoned and left to fall into ruin.

In 1840, king Ferdinand II of Portugal started a restoration program of the abandoned and ruined convent, saving this jewel of Gothic architecture. The restoration would last till the early years of the 20th century. One of the last architects was master stonemason Jose Patrocinio de Sousa, responsible for rebuilding the monastery. It was declared a National Monument in 1907. In 1980 the monastery was turned into a museum. In 1983 the Batalha convent was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site.  Trust me:  It is a gem.

We continued on from the monastery, on a sort of outdoor lark, a field trip to Companhia das Leziras in the Alentejo region, the country's largest farmstead for agriculture, cattle and forests.  Our outer garb had long since been shed.  The afternoon turned HOT.

We enjoyed a delicious buffet lunch before setting out on the grounds.

Our guide here was Antonio ("I'm a logger"), who was willing to talk horses and cattle, but who specialized in trees.  Above is one of the Lusitano horses peeking out from its stall.  Originally bred for war and bullfighting, they're now good "workers."

These bad boys were BIG.

Different kinds, too, but I can't tell you what.

From horses and cows, we moved to Cork Oak trees.  Fascinating if you've never heard of or seen any.  On the left, Antonio talks about how the cork is harvested from each cork oak.  The dark section has been recently harvested -- where the bark is whitish higher up, the cork (bark) is not taken or the tree would be damaged.  At right is a close-up.  The trees must be at least 35 years old before the bark can be taken, and then only every nine years.  It was cool to learn about this.

And then, we moved to the onsite winery.  Free wine tasting!

Finally we were on the bus to our hotel.  Above are more Cork Oak trees seen along the way that had been harvested recently (hence the reddish color, like blood).  The harvesters paint a number (1 or 5 or 8, whatever) for the year the cork had been taken.  (1 for 2021, 5 for 2015, 8 for 2018)  That way they can determine when to harvest again (every nine years).

At last, we reached our hotel by Evora! Our hotel? Oh my! It's a former convent and is most dazzling, spacious halls with arched doorways, elegant furniture and fine fixtures, plus well-tended grounds that offer beauty and relaxation. Convento do Espinheiro. Three swimming pools, one outdoor and two indoor. We hope to use at least one of them during our stay!

Our room overlooks the Pepper tree and gardens.  

You see our neighbor on his patio.

Dinner will be at 7:30 at the hotel restaurant.

Our room is beautiful.

And now, I'll say goodnight.

See you tomorrow!