Lazy Day in Alcobaća

So our host offered to take our laundry to the lavenderia yesterday. We were looking for a laundromat so we could do our wash ourselves but they either didn't have one in town (which I find hard to believe) or our host didn't understand what we wanted, they just heard laundry. In any case, we went to pick up our laundry this morning and found that a pair of Ernie's walking shorts were missing. The ticket said six items and we got six items so somewhere between Antonio's car and us picking up the clothes, they went missing. Antonio was going to research the mystery and we were hoping the missing item would turn up when we got home. It seems that the weather here is here is warmer than the average weather listing was for the region and Ernie has figured out that he probably should have packed one more pair of shorts.

We've not spent time sightseeing in town. According to the guide book, the only thing of value in Alcobaća is the Monastery of Santa Maria. This Abbey church represents the best Gothis building in Portugal. It's also the country's largest church. The first Cistercian monks arrived in 1228 and proceeded to make this one of the most powerful abbeys of the Cistercian order and a cultural center of 13th century Portugal. The Abbey was designed to be filled with hard work, prayer and total silence!

A long narrow nave leads to a pair of finely carved Gothic tombs (from 1360). These are the tombs of Portugal's most tragic romantic couple, Dom Pedro and Done Ines de Castro. They rest feet to feet in each transept, so that on Judgement Day, they'll rise and immediately see each other again.

It seems that twenty year old Prince Pedro met 17-year old Ines, a Galician noble woman, at his wedding to Ines' cousin Constance. The politically motivated marriage was arranged by Pedro's father, the king. Pedro dutifully fathered his son,the future king Fernando, with Constance in Lisbon while seeing Ines on the side in Coimbra. When Constance died, Pedro settled in with Ines. Concerned about Spanish influence, Pedro's father, Afonso IV, forbade their marriage. You guessed it, they were married secretly, and the couple had four children.when King Afonso, fearing rivals to his "legitimate" grandson's kingship, had Ines murdered, Prince Pedro went ballistic. He staged an uprising (1355) against his father, only settled after much bloodshed.

Once he was crowned King Pedro I the Just (1357), the. much-embellished legend begins. Pedro summoned his enemies, exhumed Ines' body, dressed it in a bridal gown, and put it on the throne, making the murderers kneel and kiss it's putrid rotting hand. (The legend continues...) Pedro then executed Ines' two murderers-personally-by ripping out their hearts, eating the. And washing the. Down, it is said, with a find vino verde.

How true the legend is, I don't know but it makes a great story that everyone tells your about. They are very proud of this tragic couple.

Cistercian monks built the Abbey in 40 years, starting in 1178. They inhabited it until 1834 when the Portugese king disbanded all monasteries. The monks spent most of their lives in silence and were allowed to speak only when given permission by the abbot.

The 18th century kitchen's giant three-part oven could roast seven oxen simultaneously. The monks rerouted part of the River Alcoa to bring in running water. Ts kitchen fed huge numbers.mthe population of monks here maxed out at 999, and peasants who worked the church-owned land were rewarded with meals here.

 

King Pedro's tomb

 

 

There happened to be a wedding today

 

Ines' tomb

 

 

Hall of Kings. In the early days of the monastery, the local rptowns people would worship in this side chapel since they were not allowed in the main church

 

This is one of the ovens in the kitchen

 

Water from the river diverted to the Abbey

 

You've got to love this water faucet. There were at least six in the kitchen and each was a different face

Another set of two ovens

 

 

The dormitory

 

 

 

The gargoyles all were different animals. What is unique about this one is it is a rhinoceros and that animal had not been seen in this part of the world before

 

 

We caught the group wedding photo on our way out. We momentarily thought about standing I. The back of the group but didn't want to mess up their photo

 

Ernie found an admirer the previous evening when we were eating dinner. Davide thought Ernie had the greatest moustache and asked if he could have a picture with Ernie.

 

 

 

 

Posted with Blogsy