Back To My Roots | Vila Longa (Viseu)

Your childhood defines your personality and creates a foundation for your adult life!

I visit my childhood valley to rarely. The urge to experience new things has lead me out in the world.

My grandparents are made of the hard working kind. During my entire childhood, I witnessed how much they worked on the farm. My gramma had 11 children, but unfortunately due to a miscarriage only 3 of them made it through which is my mom and the two of my ants. They all worked together on the land in order to provide food home and also selling what they planted to buy cattle. When I was born they already had some animals (cows, sheep, goats, chickens, turkeys and rabbits) and a lots of planted land enough to feed and earn money, but at that time my mom was already living in Lisbon because she got married with my dad that was from Lisbon and my mom decided to go live with him and start a new life in the city and I'm glad that she was strong enough to adapt to a whole different routine in the city with a little one (me). 

Nowadays I only have my parents and one of my moms sister (recently we live all together in Lisbon) so we don't go very often to my grandparents homeland situated in Vila Longa (Viseu district), but this year we decided to visit and remember the old times.

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VILA LONGA means enchantment, away, distance and saudade(missing). Who gave it this name of Vila Longa were not its inhabitants, but those that sighted the town from far away. Belonging to the ancient parish of the village Santa Maria de Gulfar until the sixteenth century, when village Alto da Paradaia, do Soito or Senhora do Barrocal, or even Silvã de Baixo, they looked at its sides and called it Vila Longa, the land that they saw in the distance, beyond the deep valley, the land of their missing.

At the end of the sixteenth century, it became an independent parish, but continued to belong to the municipality of the village Gulfar, passing with it to the town of Sátão in 1836. However, administratively it continued to be served by the parish council of the little town Romãs until about Seventy years ago.

Currently, Vila Longa has access to the three surrounding villages: Sátão, Aguiar da Beira and Penalva do Castelo, which allow to transform the old and distant village into a parish without frontiers, where it is pleasant to live.

Vila Longa is surrounded by trees and rocks, that's why I call it the land of stone 
The Flintstones movie could totally be made here  

Vila Longa the little town from far away

The rocks forming interesting shapes 

Respect for the Earth, fresh air and good health

If you live close to nature, you get good health! Research shows that children growing up on a farm (with livestock, though) have a lower chance of getting asthma and allergies. I did not have this advantage, since I only stayed there on the school breaking for vacations! However, I did a lot of running around in the woods, bicycling and helping my grandparents taking care of the animals as well planting and take the potatoes of the ground witch today I give a lot of appreciation to the food that I eat . Our closest grocery store (only essentials where available), very little indeed,  was two miles away, so I had to use my legs all the time, both during the summer and winter.

When looking back on the country life, I feel both positive and negative feelings. In sum, the positive side wins. I strike a blow for the rural side of Portugal, any time! As time goes on, I realize more and more that those of you who have grown up on farms are lucky! I am proud of my roots in my grandparents land. It gave me a start in life that have created a strong mentality, good work ethic and a love of nature and animals.

Moms terrain

Even my dog Diego loved the country life

Vila Longa's lake, great for a swim

Man made lake due to mining exploration (not good for swimming)

Mine engineers house (actually nobody is living there since 2015 when the exploration was over)

Pure Spring Water supply - I had 4 liters everyday, the taste is sweet and very satisfying (better than bottled water)

Romanic cattle house in ruins (1860's) - people used for the animals to stay protected overnight 

Resin extraction from pines to make glue, cleaning products, soaps, elastics, polish, perfume, cream, etc. (another of my grandpa's work) 

São Tiago church - Baroque style(1844)

São Tiago Chapel (1765)

Chafariz da Lameira - fountain (1910)

Vila Longa's Primary School - My mom's first School (currently inactive)  

CAVACA

Vila Longa's next door village 

Houses built on top of the rocks

The chapel

Peculiar houses made out of stone, that is plenteous in this region - Of course that I had to smell the amazing perfumed flowers

Sequeiros (Drying house) it was used to dry corn  after it's picked of the ground in the summer time so would be ready on the summer of the next year

Future Hotel (in construction)

The view from the hotel's roof top

Romãs

Santuário Nosso Senhor dos Caminhos (Sanctuary)

The sanctuary of the Lord of the Paths is located in the village of Rãs, freguesia de Romãs, near the N229 (highway) that connects Viseu to Aguiar da Beira.

In times it was a place of passage of almocreves (muleteers) that came to the next parishes and pilgrims that went towards the sanctuary of Our Lady of the Lapa. Due to the increase of the movement of people in the place a small niche was built where alms could be deposited, later was built a small chapel in honor of the Lord of the Paths. Only in 1909 was the current chapel and the rest of the sanctuary built.

On Sunday of the Holy Trinity (8th Sunday after Easter) the annual pilgrimage of the Lord of the Paths takes place, the sanctuary welcomes thousands of people and vehicles that move from all over Portugal and beyond.

The sanctuary offers excellent conditions of leisure, besides the imposing Church, there are tables scattered throughout the enclosure and to the right of the church there is a fountain with drinking water.

At the side of the church, occupying the whole churchyard, is a set of impressive columns, made of granite, about 7 meters high, imposing and beautiful.
Throughout the whole enclosure we also find capitals worked with the representation of the life of Christ.

Nossa Senhora dos Verdes Chapel 

Praia Fluvial do Trabulo (Beach Lake)
It's situated near to the Sanctuary by the Vouga River, it was inaugurated in July 2017, very recent in did! I got lucky! I was in the Sanctuary and I saw a sign board saying Beach and I was like "heck yeah...", so I went there and I love it, to bad I did not have a bikini, but I took some pictures.

Moimenta da Beira 

Praia Fluvial de Segões (Beach lake)

 The waters of this beach, belonging to the Paiva River, the least polluted river of Portugal or not polluted at all, have a slightly dark color, the result of the presence of mineral salts and are therefore highly attended by people who have skin diseases, the water helps a lot for the cure. It is also the ideal place for sunbathing, a walk, or a picnic.

From now on these wonderful days memories will be the perfect excuse for a few days in the countryside in the Future. It seemed like the perfect place for a bit of nostalgia and perhaps a trip down memory lane…

Of corse I wouldn't have energy to walk to show you all these wonderful places without a great breakfast...

and surely a great sunset, witch was my favorite part of all the days that I stayed in the beautiful and so inspiring Vila Longa Village, my childhood Valley.