Our Hotel provided breakfast which was a first class buffet which got us charged up for the day. Here is another view of our hotel. We have the room with the terrace on the upper left.
The inner city of Evora is a UNESCO World Heritage Site with a number of interesting structures. Surprise, a lot of them are churches and cathedrals!
We are staying next door to the University and we walked over there to have a look around but decided we were not going to pay an entrance fee to look at a University.
Next we did a tour of the Church of St Francis, founded in the 13th century. Three years ago, a major structural restoration of the facility was initiated and recently completed.
The most intriguing part of this church was the Chapel of Bones, a Gothic Cloister used for meditation. It is totally lined with 5000 human skulls and bones removed from graveyards! What were the monks thinking???
The inscription above the door says "We Await Your Bones"
There is a new museum with a collection of religious relics.
Also, an interesting collection of 2200 Nativity Scenes from around the world.
And of course, the church proper with nice blue marble.
We checked out the public park with its ruins and the peacocks.
The Church of Graca with its Renaissance facade.
The fountain at Giraldo Square
It was time for lunch so we found a little outdoor bistro.
Next, I wanted to see this fabulous aqueduct built in the 16th century. It is 9 km long and brings fresh water to the city centre from a nearby river.
Our last stop of the day was a tour of the heavily fortified Se Cathedral (circa 1280) which included climb up 135 spiral steps to the rooftop for a panoramic view of the town.
We headed back to the hotel to relax and joined in the "happy hour" before venturing down the street to a small restaurant for tapas.
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