Bert Snijder

Countless traces such as those at Melides and Lousal bear witness to the occupation of the land that includes Grandola during prehistoric times.

The Roman era has left us the Grandola spas or baths, a dam two kilometres from the town and, above all, the ruins of what was one of the most important industrial complexes of the Western Mediterranean; the Troia fish preserving and salting centre.

The region known as Alentejo Interior has very particular climatic conditions, that create an ideal and privileged environment for the olive tree growth. There is a wide variety of soil types, but all of them are rich in calcium and potassium, which have a strong influence on the trees size and production.

The Azeites do Alentejo Interior are obtained by mechanical processes from fruits of the varieties Galega Vulgar, at a minimum of 60 %, Cordovil de Serpa and/or Cobrancosa, at a most of 40%.

It is in Alentejo, on the southwest of Portugal, where Odemira, the biggest county of the country, is located, crisscrossed by Mira waters, one of the less polluted rivers of all European continent.

"Alentejo in a single County" is an excellent manner to introduce it because in Odemira it is possible to find, simultaneously, everything which characterizes this peculiar region of Portugal: the valleys, the hills and mountain ranges, the river, the dam, the sea, the beaches.

The landscape is strong, endless and impressive.

The plain defines the territory, a wavy plain that changes its colours each season: in Winter green is dominating, in Springtime a blanket of flowers of different shades transforms the region into a festival of colour, in Summer we are struck by the sense of dryness and heat conveyed by the golden that conquers everything; finally, in Autumn the fields are ploughed and sown, and the colour brown rules in countless shades of land.

Excavations at Castelo Velho (Old Castle) on a hill to the east of the present city, date human occupation of the region to pre-historic times. The settlement, dating from the late Neolithic, was fortified by the Celts (3rd and 2nd centuries BC) and subsequently Romanised.

Under Roman occupation, Mirobriga grew up as an agricultural and livestock centre, complete with its spas, and its importance can be seen, for example, in its large hippodrome used for training and horse racing.

The little country town of Alvito, 10 km. south of Viana do Alentejo, boasts a parish church with magnificent 17th C. azulejo decoration and a fine fortified castle (15th C.) built by the Marques of Alvito. The castle has recently been converted into a pousada.

There are local festas (festivals) in the town of Alvito on the last Sunday of August and again on 1 and 2 of November.

Man has continuously occupied the land that now forms the municipality of Alcacer do Sal for more than 5,000 years.

During the Iron Age, its people were in contact with those who sailed the Mediterranean, and it was know at the time as Eviom: Roman occupation confirmed its economic and political importance, and it was granted permission to mint its own coin, rights equal to those of the cities of Ancient Latium, known as Salatia Urbs Imperatoria.

Almodovar is a region that is full of contrasts, located where the plains end at the foot of a mountain range, and where wide horizons are blocked by the hills.

This is a part of the Alentejo with and is full of surprises. There are areas of fields and pasture land, with occasional dense, practically wild vegetation, in copses of cork-oaks and small white villages where the churches bring back memories of the times when the area was natural habitat of eagles and wild cats, reconquered from the Moors, under the sword of Santiago.

Evora is one of Portugal's finest and most delightful towns. It is a true open-air museum with a large number of wonderfully preserved monuments and buildings of public interest that led UNESCO to protect it as a World Heritage Site.

Each age has left its trace on Evora. It was the Celts who named it Ebora and the Romans gave it its most famous landmark, the Temple of Diana.

Castro Verde, in the core of Campo Branco, has as one of its greatest attractions, its landscape. Experiencing the climb to such places as S. Pedro das Cabe or to Nossa Sra. de Aracelis, gives you an impression of the plain's grandness. The wide cereal steppes shelter a natural patrimony rich in avifauna, where one can spot species like the Great Bustard, thanks to recent preservation efforts.