“All things human hang by a slender thread; and that which seemed to stand strong suddenly falls and sinks in ruins.” Ovid

Monday, 15^th June

A restless night, due to the feeling of fullness from the fabulous dinner, therefore a skimpier than usual breakfast before setting off on a driving tour around Belmonte.

We drove to Sortelha, about 40 minutes from Belmonte. Just outside the town is an ”installation” of rocks and urns, overlooking the valley. We made a small contribution to all the other stacks of rocks. There was no explanations, but we now feel we have contributed to the art scene in Portugal.

 Sortelha is on the 79 km walking trail that goes from the coast to this region. Sortelha is a medieval town that has a castle, bell tower and walls that can be explored. Several picturesque cottages, that were all closed, as was everything else in the town. Monday is Sortelha’s day off. We were able to wander around without hordes of aging French tourists annoying us.

 We stopped for coffee in the ”new town”. There is one shop that has a huge café/bar/restaurant with a mini-mercado adjoining. A 1.5 litre bottle of water cost 30 cents in the mini-mercado and 1.5 euro in the bar. Same owner, same premises. I felt I had got a real bargain and Michael felt ripped off. Guess who bought the 30 cents bottle?

We drove back to the town of Belmonte. Michael and Karol went back to the hotel for lunch and a rest, and we strolled around the village. There is also a castle, a synagogue, and a Jewish museum here. All closed on Monday. Belmonte has given refuge to Jews since the Inquisition, and families had practised their faith in secret for centuries, all the locals knowing, and protecting their neighbours. We strolled around for a couple of hours, had a cool drink and could not resist the pastel de nata. Oh my, these Portuguese custard tarts are wonderful.

We were collected by our driver and navigator and visited the local Roman Ruins which were discovered about ten years ago. The ruins are not far out of town, and not much to see.

Rain was imminent so we came back to the beautiful hotel for a cuppa and a rest. Later on, Dick, Michael and Karol went for another walk in the forest behind the pousada and Mary worked on the blog.

Dinner tonight in the pousada (hotel) restaurant. We are all eagerly anticipating another fabulous dining experience.