From Manteigas we climbed higher and deeper into the Serra da Estrela until we passed through nondescript Sabugueiro, reputedly Portugal’s highest village, on through the very pleasant town of Gouveia, and finally to another gem of a historical village, Linhares.
Another castle, another medieval square, a church, a chapel, solid stone houses, all cast over with a reverential quiet on the partly cloudy morning we stopped by. Although the villages sound similar, and do have lots in common, they remain quite distinct. We finished our visit with a quick cup of tea/coffee at a tiny café at the foot of the main square, and forged on north to Trancoso. It’s a deceptively modern town, actually more of a patchwork of old and new. There are vestiges of covered medieval walkways that now house mobile phone shops and Romanesque architecture housing modern minimalist cafes. We found our salad lunch at a busy restaurant, the only one we could find that was open, returned through the remaining medieval portal to the town, and backtracked south to Viseu.
A light drizzle fell as we found our way to the compact old center of Viseu, a town of close to fifty thousand, making it seem huge after the small villages and towns we’ve been visiting. Parked, located a place to stay—heavy on dark colors, old world draperies and amber lighting—and then wandered the narrow alleys of the old town. Viseu’s center is decked with all manner of pleasant squares, and a remarkable amount of green. Cafes are plentiful and well-frequented. Many of the oldest structures now house hotels or eating establishments, which were still spilling with people on a Saturday afternoon. We watched a huge wedding party waited for the bride’s arrival at one of the central churches, and we then ducked into a small pastelaria for our afternoon tea/coffee. A lovely series of blue and white tiles showcase local rural life, in a sweeping arc around one corner of a large central square. In the evening we were fortunate to stumble upon the extremely simpatico O Hilario, a small family run establishment with great food, and where half portions made for an ample dinner. Strangely, the inner “historical” city, subsides into a dark quiet on Saturday night. On the Sunday morning we had breakfast in the Old Europe style dining room, and then headed out to visit the Se Cathedral(drab outside, most worthwhile inside) and the adjacent Museu Grao Vasco, in the adjacent former bishop’s palace, featuring sacred art removed from the various churches in the area. It also has some remaining work by Portugal’s most notable Renaissance painter, Vasco Fernandes, better known as Grao Vasco.
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