Mérida, Spain

With a stop in Monsanto on the way...

We drove east, 2 hours, from Castanheira de Pera. Perched on a hilltop, and with a population of fewer than 900 residents living in homes built amongst boulders, Monsanto was awarded the moniker "the most Portuguese village of Portugal".

First we stopped in Monsanto.

Monsanto

But you might know Monsanto as one of the filming locations for the prequel to Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon. Having parked 3/4 of the way up the hill, and then being forced to walk up the steep cobbled path from there, it was difficult to imagine how a filming crew moved their heavy equipment into position. I learned they used helicopters.

We spent approximately 5 hours in Monsanto¹, strolling winding paths and visiting a castle, which became the refuge for “the dragon”. The castle dates back to 1239 and belonged to the Order of the Knights Templar at the time. There is also a 15th-century church, Church of St. Salvador, which we did not visit. Instead, we found a restaurant that allowed dogs and enjoyed a lovely late lunch before descending to our car.

Denise is shaded by the “M”.

Mérida Spain

Spanish friends had told us we had to visit Mérida. French friends told us to skip it and instead head to Cáceres. We drove past Cáceres on our 2-hour drive from Monsanto. We had booked 2 nights in an apartment in the center of Mérida.² It was already 18:00, and we were pooped.

Mérida’s 60,000 residents are very proud of their city’s storied history and have preserved more ancient Roman monuments than any other city in Spain. Augusta Emerita, as it was originally called, was founded by Emperor Augustus as a retirement community for veteran soldiers in 25 BC. It had all the comforts of a large Roman city and served for 400 years as the capital of Lusitania, a Roman province. Later it was a Gothic kingdom, and at other times came under Muslim rule. In 1230 it was seized by Alfonso IX of León and remained under Spanish rule.

The weekend we were there, a dancing exhibition was held each evening in front of the Temple of Diana.

Our first night we enjoyed wine and tapas among the locals who had spilled into the town square after work. That night people gathered to watch the performance at the Temple of Diana. In Spain, dinner, performances and just walking about extend well into the night. However, the mornings are quiet allowing photos …

I snapped this photo at 9:00 on Saturday morning.

We purchased a one-day pass, which enabled us to visit all the attractions. Most are open from 09:00 to 21:00. Typically €17, we were eligible for the reduced fee of €8 as we are over 65 and EU residents. Included in the pass is access to the Temple of Diana (above), the Roman Theatre:

The Roman Theatre.

The Moorish Alcazaba (Arab Citadel):

If you go to the Alcazaba, be sure to descend to the basement of the tower where a crystal blue pool awaits you.

The Morería Archaeological Site, a home dating back to the 3rd Century:

Beautiful tiles and the first underfloor heating system.

The Roman Art and Visgoth Collection Museums:

We didn’t have the time to visit the Crypt of the Basilica of Santa Eulalia, but did take time to walk across the Roman Bridge and visit the Aqueduct.

How did they do this?

So are we glad we went? Yes. Is it the prettiest Spanish city we have visited? No. I think we will be making a trip to Cáceres in the not-to-distant future.

Continua a viajar, fica bem,

Nanc

1. You may recall from last week’s post I mentioned Denise having made hotel reservations in Monsanto. We canceled that reservation because we needed to shorten the trip to meet the Presidente da Câmara. However, if you are just going to see Monsanto … a day is all you need.

2. The location of the apartment was great, though the apartment itself was nothing to get excited about. It was clean and most notably came with a reserved parking space in a nearby garage. I am not sure where we would have parked had this not been available.