Boulder houses
In the lanes.
Rafael Tello — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Perigrinator — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Rafael Tello — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Vitor Oliveira from Torres Vedras, PORTUGAL — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Rafael Tello — CC BY-SA 4.0
Monsanto is a stone village on a mountainside in central Portugal, its houses built between and beneath giant granite boulders, so some have a whole rock for a roof, with narrow lanes climbing among the stones and a red-roofed clock tower. The mountain rises abruptly to 758 m above the plain. Human traces here go back to the Stone Age, and the Romans settled at its foot. In the 12th century the village passed to Portugal's first king, who entrusted it to the Knights Templar. In 1938 it won a government contest as «the most Portuguese village in Portugal». You wander the lanes among the houses and boulders, then climb a stone path to the castle ruins at the top, where the plains stretch to the horizon. On the way you pass a small stone chapel and old towers among the rocks, and the view at sunset is one of the best parts of the visit. It is about 40 km in a straight line northeast of Castelo Branco. Wear comfortable shoes, as the stone lanes are steep.
In the lanes.
At the top.
To the horizon.
Monsanto, Idanha-a-Nova, Castelo Branco District
Yes, a small population.
Two to four hours.