Guimaraes, the royal city

The name of the city meant nothing to me until...

When we were in Gouveia, the manager of the campsite advised us to go to his hometown of Guimarães. We actually did that because after a little research we found out that this town with its castle is the birthplace of Portugal.

It is beautiful, relatively unknown to tourists, even though Guimaraes was the European Capital of Culture in 2012! (If I hadn't read about it, I wouldn't know about it!)

We only had the small problem that it was not easy to find a parking space in the shade, because the parking garages were apparently not advertised well enough, or alternatively not high enough.

Aside from that, we had a great time even before our trip to the city, because the area had been inhabited for a long time. It was not just the thermal springs of Geres that magically attracted people like the Romans, but also the Duro Valley and the area around Guimaraes. We first went to Citania de Briteiros, a settlement that was already known before the Romans, then we went on to the city of the first king.

We only had a quick look around because of the shade problem, but it was magical! Everything here is a bit like Mirepoix, except that you can only partially see the half-timbering behind the tiled facades. The town is old, well-developed, winding and beautifully situated.

We had a quick meal, then we visited the church and some monuments, but skipped the Castelo and the part of the city wall that is still accessible.

FACT: If it hadn't been so warm, we would have liked to spend more time here.

The city is historically important, has beautiful buildings and monuments, it is not as touristy as Porto or Lisbon AND you get the impression that the original Portugal is waiting for you here.

DEFINITELY one of my highlights!