Aldeia de Piódão, Coimbra, Portugal

Good afternoon, friends!

As some of you who have read my previous posts know, at the end of November last year, on the occasion of my 45th birthday, I decided to set off to discover a Portugal that I hadn't visited for a long time... Today I want to share with you my discovery of a small village called Piódão. Located in the municipality of Arganil, in the county of Coimbra, and already in the central region of the country, it rises on the slopes of the Serra da Açor.

Used since ancient times to sustain itself through agriculture, the houses are very characteristic. Using natural resources, they were built using schist as a roofing stone, giving the whole village an impressive mystique... It's no coincidence that it's called Aldeia Presépio, because at night, and in the light of the street lamps, which give it its yellowish color, the village takes on a special magic.

It was declared a Property of Public Interest by the Portuguese State in 1978 - exactly the year I was born.

So let's start with the discovery... Having never been "lost" in these parts, I found myself arriving relatively early in that rather rainy morning of November 30th near the entrance to the quiet, picturesque town.

^{Panorama of the arrival in Piódão}

^{The famous entry photo at the edge of the town... this time I didn't even get out of the car because of the rain}

^{The impressive blanket of green that covers the hillside terraces at this time of year, which only in these humid places with frequent rainfall manifests itself in all its splendor}

^{After driving for another 300 meters, I arrived at a parking lot, which not surprisingly was not very busy...}

^{The street-yard, if you can call it that, at the entrance to the Historical Village of Piódão}

^{Look at the construction of this building. The use of schist as the building stone has made all the difference to the qualification and uniqueness of this place. What do you think of its unusualness?}

^{There was something magical about this morning... The leaden color of the heavy sky and the fog, the rain and the dark buildings, contrasting with the sparse golden foliage of the acacias that embellish this square, made this moment something special for me}

^{The Christmas lights decorating this eaves should have made an excellent frame, but even though they were switched off, their presence alone embellished the photo}

^{The candor of the Piódão Church stands out in the midst of so much black schist}

^{The church with the hill above and to the right in the photo, which separates Piódão from Arganil}

^{In addition to the use of schist, the wood used in the shutters and windows is religiously painted a deep blue, making for a very happy and cheerful combination}

^{Another detail of the tourist office window. Notice the moss that shines through the rows of stone...}

^{Without the need for a pot or soil, these small plants and mosses make the most of any substrate they find and never fail to shine with their vivacity}

^{I think you can understand my fascination with this simple beauty. Nature always finding its own way}

^{The entrance to the Piódão Museum, which I'll talk about in another post. All I have to say is that it surprised me with its richness and the memories it brought back...}

^{Detail of the left side of the central square, overlooking the "Solar dos Pachecos" Restaurant}

^{Centrally located was this bar, called "The Grotto", which had a small store with regional products for sale}

^{What do you think of these fridge magnets with typical village houses?}

^{In addition to the magnets, they also had honey for sale on the outside display}

^{I decided to go into the store to see if there was anything I could buy for my mother}

^{As well as regional products, honey, liqueurs, lambskin slippers, there was also chestnut bread and some typical regional sweets}

^{Slippers for all shapes and sizes, don't you think?}

^{Another part of what I'd already seen outside the store. The miniatures of traditional houses on fridge magnets}

^{A few more liqueurs, some of them claiming healing properties... is that so?}

^{On my way out, a black kitten called "Pantera" was concentrating hard on the floor at the entrance to the store and meowing at Mr. Carlos - the owner of the establishment}

^{I approached the "Panther" to give her a little pet, when I noticed, right in front of her, the reason for her incessant meowing... an orange-breasted creature, apparently "dead" at her feet paws}

^{As soon as I gently picked him up, I realized that he wasn't dying or dead, but rather playing his best movie role to see if the feline would leave him alone. This is an Iberian newt}

^{As soon as he realized that he was no longer under the Pantera's radar, he began to take his first steps... But one thing's for sure, showing off her orange belly with spots certainly left the cat wondering whether it would be a good idea for her to ingest it, or just try to eliminate it. Good strategy. I ended up putting it in some greenery nearby}

^{The entrance to Solar dos Pachecos, and the start of the search for a place to have lunch. After visiting the museum and doing a bit of shopping, it was time for an early lunch to discover a bit more of the place}

^{And what better invitation than a narrow street on a rainy afternoon?}

^{I was looking for the restaurant "O Fontinha" on the advice of the Museum's receptionist. Looking for directions, everywhere I turned everything was so picturesque, don't you think?}

^{Even though it was a bit difficult to take pictures because of the rain, I never stopped trying to capture the magic of this unique place}

^{Can you see the differences between the two houses? Probably one of them has been recently restored. With only 120 registered inhabitants, many of the houses are not occupied for much of the year}

^{Believe me, this schist sidewalk was very slippery... one false step, and there we'd hit our butts on the ground!}

^{Although the house on the right is not so traditional, it seems that the flora also prefers slate to cling to...}

^{The first street with signs at the end. One of them will probably give me directions to the restaurant "O Fontinha"}

^{In a local lodging house, perfectly called Grandpa's corner, you'd find directions to the next destination}

^{Just over 80 meters stood between me and my destination...}

^{So many options... but for now, my stomach was telling me that I should restore my energy}

^{It was impressive how the ditches managed to direct much of the water, making the already slippery streets a little safer to walk on}

^{And where there is water there is life...}

^{"O Fontinha" entrance}

^{The terrace of the restaurant was completely empty... not surprising given the storm that was raging in the village}

^{I loved the majestic pose of this elegant little guardian of the site}

^{It's interesting how he realized that I wasn't a threat. You notice he's not on a leash. A dog with "good energy", don't you think?}

^{An unshakable calm}

^{View from the restaurant porch... At this point I noticed that my cell phone was about to run out of battery... I know I'd taken a lot of photos, but that shouldn't be the only reason...}

^{Time for my last photo, before the phone turns itself off... Was my visit to Piódão reserved for not having a photographic record of it? What bad luck... and on my birthday! Well, I knew one thing for sure, I wouldn't be able to photograph the beautiful lunch I had...}

^{After a nice goat's chanfana and a jug of red wine, I was ready for a walk. My cell phone had come back to life, which ensured that I was able to walk the rest of the way more easily and take pictures of it}

^{The famous Eugénio Correia street}

^{There's something magical about lamps, I confess. Even in Lisbon, it's something I really enjoy photographing...}

^{With my hiking pants and Salmomon boots, I was ready for adventure!}

^{Any alley in this town is so photogenic, don't you think?}

^{A look down the slope... fog... magical day... timeless}

^{Supposedly the blue color of the doors and windows of houses has to do with the availability of
colors in the carpentry store many years ago... out of necessity, a fashion arose!}

^{One of the most beautiful streets in Piódão, in my opinion}

^{Here we can see a tradition from this egg. The crosses that were fixed to the doorposts. After going to mass on the day of Santa Cruz, the inhabitants would nail a small wooden cross with an olive or laurel leaf to the top of the main entrances to their houses, to confer the divine protection of Santa Bárbara from the strong storms that hit these parts}

^{Detail of the small crosses fixed to the doorposts}

^{Street Cónego Manuel Fernandes Nogueira}

^{Rua das Almas}

^{Capela das Almas - Chapel of the Souls}

^{Street of the Chapel of Souls}

^{One of the few exceptions to shale construction. Although here it was already a little outside the main village}

^{The Medical Center}

^{Golden leaves with red flowers on a moss-painted staircase. So photogenic!}

^{Casa da Padaria - Unfortunately closed... I'd love to treat myself to a warm loaf of bread}

^{Can you see the only missing white house? Interestingly it makes a good contrast}

^{Any cat is a true work of art... look at this cat's pose}

^{He seems to have read my mind, don't you think?}

^{Replica of the wind turbine used until 1978 to supply electricity to Aldeia... Impressive that it was only connected to the national grid 46 years ago, don't you think?}

^{View of the central square from the churchyard}

^{Another view of the churchyard, now over the museum and the main entrance to the village}

^{One last view of the church, just before I went home}

^{Detail of the church shutters and bell tower}

^{A goodbye, but a see you someday... I'll want to revisit this magical and unique place in my beautiful country}