Evora was one of my favourite towns on our trip to Portugal. The old town centre, a consistent flow of white yellow-trimmed buildings, is beautifully preserved and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Driving away from Lisbon and the coast, it also suddenly felt like the number of tourists dropped substantially.
Though just a nice city to stroll through, Evora exudes historical richness. Monuments from various time periods can be found throughout, even a seemingly unexpected Roman Temple which dates back to the 1st century:
One of the nicest places to visit and enjoy a view of the town is from the Evora Cathedral. This gothic cathedral offers a unique experience by allowing visitors to walk the entirety of its roof:
A slightly bizarre place to visit is the Chapel of Bones, which is literally that – a chapel whose walls and columns are lined with the bones and skulls of over 5000 monks. The entrance states: “We, the bones that are here, await yours”. The monk who created the chapel wanted to remind visitors of the inevitability of death.
Evora is also a university town, and this was the first time on our trip that we appreciated students walking in their black capes. It caught our eyes at first: groups of young people walking amassed in all-black with cloaks draped over their shoulders. It already being October, we wondered if these were costumes.
Our naivety soon dissipated when we learned this is part of a traditional academic uniform dating back to 1290. Though evolved with time, the black cloaked formalwear is worn with pride, as freshman earn the privilege to wear the cloaks after passing “praxe” (ie. initiation). Interestingly, these uniforms were apparently the inspiration for the black robes worn by students at Hogwarts in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series.
Aside from strolling the town and visiting monuments, Evora was a great place to find a table in a nice square and enjoy a meal. It seemed we never had a bad glass of white wine (Alentejo region is known for its wine among the locals) and the kids were always happy to run around a plaza.
