Attractions and Places To See around Alagoa - Top 20

Far in the northeast of Alentejo lies Castelo de Vide, just a few kilometers from the border with Spain. The town is often called Cidade branca (white city), which is primarily due to the pretty whitewashed houses of the town. The highlight of the town (besides its great location in the Parque Natural da Serra de São Mamede) is the 14th-century Castelo de São Roque. From the castle, you have a fantastic view of the old town. Other sights in Castelo de Vide include the old Jewish quarter with the oldest synagogue in Portugal and the numerous churches and chapels of the town.

Imposing building in which the Centro de Dia senior center is located

Fabulous view over the village of Castelo de Vide. Several trails, paths and roads for access.

Built before 1570, at the height of the Portuguese Renaissance, the chapel of Nossa Senhora da Penha stands tall at the top of the Serra de São Paulo, at an altitude of 710 metres. To get there, you have to climb a steep staircase, an effort rewarded by the serenity of the place and the breathtaking views. Although the original image of Senhora da Penha was stolen, a replica now occupies its place on the altar. From the top, the view is breathtaking: the town stretches out below, with its watchful castle, white houses and rolling fields; to the east, the imposing quartzite ridge of Marvão stands out; in the background, the River Sever marks the border, and to the north the horizon is bordered by the Açor, Gardunha and Estrela mountains.

The City of Ammaia is the most important Roman ruin in the Northern Alentejo region. Set in the Natural Park of Serra de São Mamede, in São Salvador de Aramenha, near the town of Marvão, the ruins cover almost 25 metric acres. The Roman City of Ammaia was only rediscovered in the last century. It has since been excavated and investigated by scientists from around the world. It is now a museum site. For years the Roman remains were thought to be a villa, but only at the beginning of the last century did one begin to realize that what was buried in the Valley of Aramanha was an actual lost Roman city. Built from scratch in the first century AD, it was a city with a forum, baths and temples over the next three hundred years. The city suffered after the collapse of Rome on the Peninsula in the 3rd century. By the time of the Moorish invasion the 9th century, the remaining residents fled to high hills of Marvão - easy to defend in a time of chaos. Ammaia's stones served to build other places, walls and monuments. The bridge would stand until the 1980s. Pillaged, looted for stone, and buried until at the beginning of the twentieth century the existence of a large city in that area was forgotten. In the 1950s the first excavations were carried out and in recent decades the scope was also intensified, which also was helped by new technologies.

Located very close to the pretty town of Marvão, in the heart of the Alentejo, in the heart of the Serra de S. Mamede Natural Park, the ruins of the Roman city of Ammaia are located in an area of great beauty, attesting to its great heritage. In 1995, archaeological excavations began on the site, uncovering around 3,000 m2, although it is believed that the original area of the city was around twenty hectares. The curious thing about these ruins is that in the 5th and 9th centuries they suffered the effects of a cataclysm that buried the lower part of the urban area, thus belonging to one of the few cities of the empire that, probably due to natural effects, remained preserved and on which no other urban developments were developed throughout history. It is thus possible to study the entire urban fabric of a Roman city, highlighting important structures such as the “podium” of a temple probably from the 1st century, and the existence of public baths, as well as other domestic structures. There is a “site museum” on site, the Ammaia City Monographic Museum, which shows the daily life of the population that lived here, as well as the various objects found and inventoried here, including one of the most important collections of Roman glass in the Iberian Peninsula. A large part of the area occupied by the ruins is located on land owned by the Ammaia City Foundation, whose primary objective is to study, restore and preserve this important National Monument.

Main square of Castelo de Vide. http://www.monumentos.gov.pt/Site/APP_PagesUser/SIPA.aspx?id=10463

Main square of Castelo de Vide. "Urban centre and municipal headquarters. Town situated on a hill on the border of Alentejo. Medieval town under the jurisdiction of a religious-military order (Order of Christ) with castle and urban enclosure. 17th-century war square integrated into the defence line of the Alentejo border." in http://www.monumentos.gov.pt/Site/APP_PagesUser/SIPA.aspx?id=10463