Top Medieval Journey in Portugal - to the castle

Several towns in Portugal organise medieval fairs, mainly between March and December. These fairs usually portray historical events, daily life, and arts and crafts of people in the Middle Ages. I am going to tell you about the last afternoon of the Medieval Journey organised by the town of Santa da Maria da Feira, in the district of Aveiro. Please note that the locals don't call it a medieval fair. I was immediately corrected when I was discussing it as such with friends. (Oops!) Remember, this one is a Medieval Journey, and what a journey it is!

There are many activities for visitors in 20 different areas: at the castle, along the way to the castle, at the bottom of the hill, by the stream and along some of the city streets. The ticket that covered all the days of the Journey cost 3€ or you could spend 2€ for a day ticket but you would miss much of the fun. I was only in the area on the last day so I missed most of the programme!

At the end of the procession (on the last day), the crowds were getting to me (I'm not a fan of crowds). I hadn't been to the castle, so I thought I'd go there hoping the crowds wouldn't be so "bad" later. (How wrong I was!)

View from the church steps

Santa Maria da Feira's church

I took the photo below from the church steps. The procession had just ended.

It had come from that narrow street on the right. Then it had taken the winding cobbled road up to the castle.

Up and up along the winding road... Along the way there is a garden where wedding parties like to have photos taken by this large pond called "Lago dos Feitiços" (Pond of Spells).

On my way up to the castle, I came across many of the participants in the procession, as they came back down from the castle and dispersed.

 My first view of the castle:

Here is a close-up of someone trying to scale the castle walls.

Added to the castle in the 17th century, this white building is the Baroque chapel and its annex.

According to Wikipedia, the castle's "plan is irregular oval, with protected entranceway, guarded by a barbican with moat and four addorsed rectangular watchtowers. On its southeastern corner are portions of a minor bastion, while opposite it, in the northwest is the hexagonal Baroque chapel. The walls, with small battlements, are circled by a parapet of large stone, with cruciform battlements and embrasures."

You can see what makes it different from other castles in Portugal - the 4 watchtowers. 

The sun was going down by this time and I had to find my way back to where I had parked the car. The crowds had not diminished - they were getting ready for the evening's entertainment!

Next, you may like to read about the actual Medieval Procession. That will be in next week's post, if my internet connection doesn't let me down.

For a different view of the castle, have a look at "From a Distance"