I climbed atop the marble tower of Castelo Estremoz, just as the sun was rising over the horizon yesterday morning, to a beautiful view! We visited the parish church of Santa Maria, just steps away from the Pousada Castelo Estremoz after breakfast. Queen Santa Isabel worshipped there in the early 1300's. There was a sweet, elderly woman sitting in the church crocheting as we entered. It seems she is an historian and loves to take people to Queen Santa Isabel's private chapel when asked. We were fortunate to go with this woman. The Queen's private chapel was exquisite! The walls were covered in azulejos on the bottom half, custom made to tell the Queen's story, along with paintings above and a hand painted ceiling, all part of the Queen's life story.
The Queen died in 1336 and the chapel has remained intact.
We drove a few miles north to our next stay, at Pousada Mosteiro Crato. Another day, another castle stay! This hotel is quite special with a beautiful spa. We spent a few hours exploring the area, and driving to the border town of Marvao, where we had visited over 25 years ago. Marvao sits on the crest of a rock ridge and looks into Spain to the east and Portugal to the west. The differences between the countries are quite noticeable. The Portuguese landscape is well tended, with groves of trimmed trees and plowed fields. The Spanish side, not so much.
