São Lourenço do Barrocal

Luís, our architect, told us yesterday we had to go see an old estate that has been transformed into a luxury hotel, so today we did, and it is indeed stunning, but not at all ostentatious, just utterly comfy, with every detail perfect, from the leather settees to the pots of geraniums either side of the blue doors. This is the bar, which used to be the olive press. We had a (delicious) coffee, see extra, and then walked around, saw the markings for a trail... seven kms later, we got back to the hotel. Thankfully, it was a cloudy day, not nearly so hot as it's been lately. 

Gratefuls:
- some actual rain this evening, what a fantastic gift!
- the all round views on the walk, even Mourão, on its hill in the distance, as well as Monsaraz, Telheiro, Outeiro, and the Lake, plus gorgeous countryside, birdsong, flowers
- the creativity and dedication of the eighth generation of this family, who have restored their ancestral home so beautifully