PORTUGAL - exploring Portugal's pousadas - Statistical Data Included - Column

Pousadas: lodgings with a special flair

My wife of 39 wonderful years, with never a cross word, had recently completed chemotherapy and radiation treatment; now it was time for a treat instead of a treatment!

Planning: some cost cutters

I suggested to her that we spend a couple of weeks in Portugal staying in pousadas in various parts of the country. She was feeling fine and readily agreed to my proposal. Pousadas are government-sponsored hotels, some in historic places like castles, palaces, convents and monasteries. Others are in more modern settings.

I love history, so I chose five historic places and one regional, the Pousada do Infante in Sagres, because it is situated in the most southwestern part of Europe where Portuguese sailors like Magellan and Vasco da Gama had their last view of their homeland before venturing out into the great unknown.

Sitting down at my computer I contacted ENATUR, whose internet address is www.pousadas.pt, and obtained a wealth of information, sent to me by Celeste Pereira. She kindly mailed me many book lets, maps, etc., and also confirmed my reservations at the six pousadas I had chosen. You can also reach them by e-mail at [email protected].

Portugal is about the same size as the state of Indiana; therefore, it was easy to cover the country in the time I had allotted for our trip.

Since I am a senior citizen, I took advantage of their Golden Age program. It is available to those over the age of 60 and offers a 40% discount from the regular rates, which include a sumptuous breakfast buffet at every pousada. The program applies to Sunday through Thursday nights from Nov. 2 to March 31, except for a couple of blackout days. The program currently applies to 40 of the 44 pousadas. Rates ranged from 7,320 to 12,180 escudos (US$34 to $56).

Next, I contacted Continental Airlines and, using their new Freedom Flight Club program for seniors, obtained a round-trip ticket at 20% off for myself. Using frequent-flyer miles, I got a free ticket for Fran on which I only had to pay Uncle Sam his taxes!

Car rental

Back into my computer, I quizzed a number of auto rental firms and settled on National. The cost of the 13-day rental was about $250, but the additional charge for the collision damage insurance waiver was another $150. I have rented cars in many countries and in the past never purchased the damage insurance because my credit card covered it, but this time I made an exception. I had heard that Portugal has the worst accident rate in all of western Europe and I wanted to have peace of mind for the duration of our holiday... just in case!

One morning at breakfast I was talking to another American tourist and the conversation turned to auto rental and insurance. They also had taken out the additional insurance and were glad they had. A few days earlier they had been hit by a young man on a motorcycle who came around a blind curve in the road on the wrong side, hitting them head on and demolishing the front of their car. They wasted almost a whole day filling out police forms and waiting for a replacement auto to be delivered to them.

Don't be afraid to drive in Portugal, just drive very defensively!

Pousada vistas

On exiting Lisbon's international airport we headed southeast across the long Vasco da Gama bridge which spans the Tagus River. We arrived, in the town of Alc[acute{a}]cer do Sal in about an hour.

A friendly local, seeing we were lost, flagged us down and kindly directed us in Portuguese up to the Pousada Dom Alfonso II, which sits on the highest part of the town. The castle's history goes back thousands of years to Phoenician, Arab and Roman times. From our room, we looked down on the River Sado that runs through a vast green valley. Just to the left were a number of stork nests on high poles, complete with their occupants.

After breakfast the next day we headed south on both rural roads and highways, arriving in Sagres in about three hours. We spent the night in the Pousada do Infante. From our balcony overlooking the Atlantic we could see the whitecaps and rough surf. Over to our left was the Fortaleza de Sagres high above the cliffs where huge waves were breaking.

Later in the day we drove over to Cabo S[tilde{a}]o Vincente and wandered around the lighthouse where Prince Henry the Navigator is said to have established his navigational school. This is also where, a few miles off the coast, Lord Horatio Nelson and his fleet of British men-of-war fought one of the most famous naval battles, defeating a much larger Spanish fleet.

Side trip to Spain

We have good friends who live in the outskirts of Seville, Spain, who had invited us to visit them. We headed east along the Algarve passing Albufeira, Faro and other tourist towns.

Then, at the Guadiana River, we drove over the new bridge which connects Portugal with Spain. In the past you had to take a ferry. Now, with the common market in Western Europe, you don't have to stop for Customs or Immigration; just drive past the empty border stations at 100 kph! To me, it was a new and strange experience not to have my passport checked and stamped by some unsmiling official. But keep your passport handy; we had to hand them over to the room clerk at each pousada when we checked in.

Our long weekend in Seville was great. Maria is a wonderful cook and her husband, Kit, is a host without peer. They made us feel right at home as usual. We also had the opportunity to relax and do a few tourist things as well as sample some tapas.

Wining and dining

Tuesday morning we packed up the car and headed back to Portugal. As usual, we would stop in some village for lunch and savor the local wines and dishes -- not fancy cuisine but good and wholesome fare.

Many of our evening meals were taken in the pousadas, where the chefs all tried to outdo themselves in offering an excellent selection of local foods and desserts. We sampled roast kid with herbs and giblet rice, rich fish soups and, my favorite, small clams with fried port chunks. The, evening would end with coffee and a glass of Port by a crackling fireplace in the sitting room.

Antique oil paintings of past tenants -- kings, queens and princes -- looked down on us. Ah, if only those walls could talk what stories they would tell.

[acute{E}]vora, Beja and Obidos

Arriving in the town of [acute{E}]vora we checked into the Pousada dos L[acute{o}]ios. It is in the heart of the historic center of town. UNESCO has designated it as a World Heritage Site. The pousada was once a convent and staying there is like living history. Right outside the entrance is a Roman temple dating from the second or third century; 14 of the original 18 columns; are still standing.

The following day we headed north to the town of Beja and signed into the Pousada de S[tilde{a}]o Francisco, a former Franciscan convent. This impressive building combines the mystic monument of the past with today's standards for comfort.

That evening there were only three couples in the large dining hail. All throughout dinner for an hour and a half a talented pianist played Gershwin and Cole Porter. After another delicious meal, a complimentary after-dinner drink from the region was presented to us by the ma[hat{i}]tre d'.

As you drive toward the walled town of Obidos you notice that it is completely encircled by walls which are intact. The Pousada do Castelo was the first to be adapted and restored from a historical monument. From the ramparts of the castle you look down on the village of typical white houses with blue trim and flowered windows and on narrow streets and steps which are paved with cobblestone.

Batalha and F[acute{a}]tima

A brief stop in Batalha gave us the chance to wander through the impressive monastery of Batalha, a fine example of flamboyant Gothic with Manueline stonework. Its beautiful cloister is something I will never forget.

Nearby is the internationally famous shrine in the village of F[acute{a}]tima where three peasant children witnessed the appearance of the Virgin Mary back in 1917. There is a huge esplanade of 37 acres where the faithful pray. It is dominated by the neo-Baroque basilica with a 215-foot-high central tower. Nearby are the museums of Sacred Art and Ethnology.

A couple of disappointments ... and delights

We then headed north to Porto to visit the Port wine caves along the Douro River but much to my dismay they were closed on the weekend. I should have done my homework!

We spent the night in the seaside town of Vila do Conde in a 500-year-old inn very similar to the pousadas and dined that evening in a local seafood restaurant on fish that probably had been swimming in the Atlantic that morning.

The following day we drove south, stopping at what I thought would be the picturesque fishing village of Nazar[acute{e}]. We all have seen the pictures of the colorful fishing boats pulled up on the beach by oxen and the fisherwomen in their costumes of many petticoats handling the cargo of fresh fish. Well, I was several decades too late. I saw only one elderly lady drying her sardines, and as for the fishing boats, I saw a wreck of an old boat left on the beach as a memento of the past.

That evening we stayed in a modern hotel in the resort town of Peniche, which sits on a peninsula, Cabo Carvoeiro. A delicious dinner of fresh sole washed down with an ice-cold bottle of green wine could not have been better.

Royal finale

Our two weeks were coming to a close. We stopped in the city of Sintra to see the Royal Palace, then had a look at both Cascais and Estoril up the coast from Lisbon before checking into the Pousada de D. Maria I in Queluz, a suburb of Lisbon and 6 1/2 miles from the airport. The pousada is located in the building that was formerly used by the Royal Guard of the Palace of Queluz.

Right across the road from a window in our room I could see the palace, known as the Portuguese Versailles. We enjoyed a tour of the sumptuous, rooms and wandered the formal gardens, complete with fountains and many statues. The topiaries were world-class.

The trip had been a wonderful treat for both of us and I would highly recommend a vacation in Portugal. If you are adventurers, drive around this interesting and friendly country and enjoy the history, good food and wonderful pousadas.

COPYRIGHT 2000 Martin Publications, Inc.
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