Castles Belmonte and Branco

Hi,

Before you say it, I know it has been a long time since I last posted. I don’t really have an excuse. I have several mundane reasons that can explain why, but they are all dull and not what you want to hear about, so I will skip along and not bore you.

Sunday, we broke our famine and got out to see two castles. That’s us, trying to make up for lost time.

We started by driving east towards Castelo de Belmonte (9M52+MP Belmonte), located in (you guessed it) Belmonte Portugal, near the Spanish border. The castle has seen a lot of history but has retained its outer walls and towers. Additionally, the city is still in good condition. We took a back-way to get up to the castle (I’m not sure why the directions we were given by the navigation app took us through the old town instead of up the wide-open newer roads) but I will not complain because the little streets were very interesting. It’s a shame we weren’t videoing the drive, because that would have shown you a great view through the lovely town. But we have recently learned of privacy laws that forbid taking pictures/videos of other people or their property, so until we can figure out exactly what that entails, we are erring on the side of caution.

The castle is on top of a hill, with a wall and entrance area that are still intact. Any barracks or living quarters inside the castle are no longer there. The interior of the castle has been transformed into a stage area for performances. The town comes right up to the castle, so little shops and cafés are just steps away from the castle, making exploring the old town very convenient. At this moment, the castle is under renovations and the ramparts were barred in sections, but Chris and the dogs were able to get up to the ramparts at one spot and I made sure to get a picture of them being all brave and stuff.

On the drive back to the house we stopped by the city of Castelo Branco to see the castle in that town (RGG3+57 Castelo Branco). It was on the way, and even though it was getting a little late, there was no point not stopping, right?

The castle in this town is not as complete as the castle in Belmonte, but I think it was worth the visit. It is also on top of the hill, and there is a wall with towers to walk upon. I did not go up the stairs because there was no handrail, but that didn’t stop you know who. After they came down from the wall, Chris and the dogs also took a long flight of stairs down to a garden and Miradouro de São Gens (RGG3+G8 Castelo Branco) below the wall. They were pleased with the garden, taking a moment to enjoy the reflecting pools and benches found there before climbing back up the looooonnnnggg flight of stairs.

So, a good venture back out into the wilderness. Two castles and a lovely drive through the mountains on the eastern side of Portugal. There was no cost for parking or entrance at either castle, and the dogs were welcome to come in. Here’s hoping we can get back into the habit of making outings like this the norm!

Nola