Tomar, Portugal

One day in July, we decided to head away from the Portuguese coast and visit Tomar, a small town located on the banks of the river "Rio Nabão". The old of Tomar is very attractive, the Rio Nabão cascades down a waterfall, abundant fish joyfully playing in the clear water. 

The old town has a grid of cobbled streets, along them some shopfronts nicely decorated  with tiles. On this particular Saturday, a medieval festival was taking place around the Parque Do Mouchao, located on a small river island connected by 2 foot bridges.
​We crossed the Ponte Welha across the Rio Nabao and took the Rua Serpa towards the Praca Da Republica.

Tomar's main attraction is the Convento do Cristo, which overlooks the town from it's strategic location on top of a hill. It was founded in 1160 and served as the headquarters of the order of the Knights Templar, but this building deserves it's own blog at a later stage.
Once we reached the Prca da Republica, we couldn't but notice the amazing 17th Century buildings around the square.

The highest building here is the Igreja de Sao Joao Baptista,a church with a destinctive octagonal belltower and a sculpted doorway in Manueline style.Inside the church, multiple paintings by Gregorio Lopes, one of Portugal's most significant 16th Century artists, are on display.

With the sun making an appearance, a refreshing drink in the small square was in order. Afterwards, we had a look at the statue of Tomar's founding father, Gualdim Pais before we travelled to our next desitination.