Europe's 'Town of Queens' is completely car-free with a Medieval market
A historic town that is known as Portugal's most beautiful has also been car-free for its entire history.
The car-loving population of Britain was close to popping a collective hernia earlier this year when London's Ultra Low Emission Zone was expanded, with some risking prison time to smash apart cameras used to enforce the clean-air scheme.
While it may feel like cars are a fact of life when considering the vehemence of their supporters or while wandering down the vehicle clogged streets of the Capital, some parts of the world have always resisted the pull of the motor car. Among them is the stunning hill-top town of Civita di Bagnoreggio in Italy, where donkeys pulling carts dominate the car-free streets. Loutro on Crete is another place free from the tyranny of motors, with the only way in or our by foot or boat.
One of the most notably car-free places in Europe is the town of Obidos on the central west coast of Portugal. The settlement of just 3,000 people today has found itself swept into the hands of a number of different rulers over the years, with the Romans, Visigoths, Moors and eventually the Portuguese taking it at various points.
Today the town is completely car free (Shutterstock / trabantos)As a consequence, Obidos came to be surrounded by a large wall in the Middle Ages, designed to keep invaders out and the population inside its red-topped houses safe. In more recent years, it has not just kept out hoards, but motor vehicles as well.
Portugal to start major crackdown on Airbnb and other holiday rentals
Now visitors and locals alike can wander freely around its streets, without having to breath in a lung-full of fumes or looking over their shoulder when crossing the road. As a consequence the town has become peaceful and pedestrian orientated, a place in which its delights can be admired at a tourist's own pace.
It is easy to admire the jaw-dropping main gate Porta da Vila decorated with traditional blue tiles without having to hop on and off a busy carriageway, and very pleasant to wander along the top of the walls without the smell of exhaust fumes rising up to join you.
In a sign of how well regarded Obidos's beauty is, back in 1210 King Alfonso II decided to gift it to his wife, resulting in the settlement of white-washed homes being nicknamed 'the Town of Queens'.
To truly get a feeling of what life would've been like before the invention of the combustion engine, each July Obidos castle hosts a traditional 'Medieval Market'. For two weeks the castle and the surrounding town recreate the spirit of medieval Europe with flowing banners, stall holders dressed as merchants, jugglers, jesters and wandering minstrels.
Visitors can shop at the traditional handcrafts fair or watch medieval shows, horse displays and a costumed parade that winds its way through the streets. There are also displays of jousting knights and armed combat, while spit roasted hog, hearty soups, rabbit, lamb, cod, quail, sausages and other grilled meats will fill the tummies.
Obidos is also famous for its bookstores. There are 14 shops flogging books in the town, one of which is in a church. There are few better ways to spend a day than pursuing their wares, buying a new novel and then digging into it as you walk around the town, confident in the knowledge you won't be ploughed down by a car.
The town is around 50km from Lisbon and can be reached easily from the Capital's airport, although you'll have to find somewhere to park up outside its walls.
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
