Jo’s Monday walk : Almodôvar, and the red shoes

It can get very flower laden around here at this time of year, so today I’m going to take you on a stroll around Almodôvar, a little known village in the Alentejo.  Why?  Well, just because I can, and also because I was intrigued by these red shoes.  Seriously, don’t you ever want to go somewhere just to see what’s there?  I do it all the time.

It’s not the easiest place to get to, and after an hour and a half of rocking and rolling along switchback country roads, car sickness was beginning to threaten.  I knew that, once over the border from the Algarve, the land would begin to flatten out.  Still, it was a relief to step out of the car.  An elderly lady was pegging out her washing and regarded me with some curiosity. Visitors from out of town are obviously a rarity.

It’s an ordinary enough place, the likes of which you will find throughout Portugal.  The charm lies in wandering the quiet streets, simply observing life.  It was just before Easter and preparations were underway in Igreja Matriz de Santo Ildefonso, the imposing 16th century church which dominates the main square.

A map on a nearby wall points out places of interest in the village.  Just what’s needed!   Number 2 is the clock tower, or Torre do Relogio.  In the 8th century, Almodôvar (literally ‘place in the round’) was rebuilt by the Muslims, with a surrounding wall.  No trace of this exists today.  A clock tower, served by an outside staircase, would typically have been part of the ramparts from the 17th century.  The clock was housed in the right tower of Santo Ildefonso, but was removed in 1889 when the parish church was struck by lightning.

As so often in Portugal, the smartly modern sits alongside the shabby and forlorn.  A pedestrianised shopping street comes as something of a surprise, but I am no longer surprised by wall art.  Meet poet Fernando Pessoa, and friends!

Still loosely following the map I headed along Rua do Convento, the convent of Our Lady of Conception inviting me closer.

What to make of this?  I hunted high and low for an explanation of this fanfare of an art installation.  Why red shoes, I was at a loss to know.  No clues inside either, but the interior was a show stopper. All that glitters…

I did solve the mystery, though.  Close by the convent there’s a 6 metre high sculpture of a cobbler on a roundabout.   Marked ‘Aureliano, 2001’, in researching it I discovered that Almodôvar had a history of shoe making.  Between the years of 1940 and 1970 there were around 200 manual shoe makers working in the town, and selling their wares at fairs throughout the county.  This sculpture, made by Aureliano Aguiar of Coimbra, from cogs and recovered bits of metal, is in their honour.

I strolled back to the sleepy little square with a fountain, and found a cafe opposite the museum. In the shade of the trees, sensible villagers idled to pass the time of day.  This place would be like a furnace in full summer.  I was melting in March.  So when I was offered a half litre bottle of vinho verde (they didn’t sell it by the glass) there was nothing to do but sit and watch the world go by.  Of course, I needed a substantial amount of food.

Back in the car, we rolled down the N2 towards the coast, passing the village of Ameixal with its Thursday morning roadside market.  The stalls were all but empty.  A venue for another day?  I had been thrilled by the wild irises, dusting the kerbside, on our way north.  Worth a last quick leap!

And that was Almodôvar.  I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.  I do like a wander.  Sorry about the lack of cake again.  I was too full after that enormous toastie.  Speaking of which, it must be time to put the kettle on.

Cuppa to hand, it’s time for this week’s wonderful shares.  Thank you all for your company and the great support I receive on here.  If you’d like to join in at any time, details are on my Jo’s Monday walk page.  You’ll be made very welcome.

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Look where Lexi’s landed!  Doesn’t it look fine?  You just might be surprised :

Happy in Houston- Part 1

I love a sing-a-long, and where better than the charms of Paris? (and Drake) :

Unforgettable

From one magical city to another! So lucky to have Debbie show us the heights :

Views from Montjuic

There’s always something to be thankful for in the company of Lady Lee :

52 Weeks of Thankfulness- Week 43

Geoff’s lessons on life, ably assisted by Dog :

Brecon Beacons- a lesson in green living

Jackie’s not quite so exuberant this week, but then, look at the weather!

Day 2- So Cal, Monterey

It’s not every day that I’d go walking around a complex, but Sedona surely makes a stunning backdrop.  Thanks, Marsha!

Resort Walk Reveals 15 Top Things to Love

Woolly wins it for excitement this week.  Up, up and away!

Jo’s-Monday-Walk-Wk16-Hot-Air2

Amy goes hunting for wildflowers in Texas, and finds boots and saddles!

Texas Hill Country

But Dawn is more than happy with her finds :

WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge : Surprised and Delighted 

I went looking for wood sprites or elves with Denzil, in Belgium :

The Valley of the Hoegne

And then I really struck lucky when Gilly found me a baby dragon!

A Forest walk

And finally, what did Carol find at the top of a hill?

Unrivalled Views

My English walk today has been rained off!  And it’s not even a Bank Holiday.  That’s next Monday, isn’t it?  See you then!

151 comments

  1. Pingback: Jo’s-Monday-Walk250417-Wk17_ANZAC_DAY – WoollyMuses

  4. This was one of your best rambles! I loved all the things you discovered in this little village, but my favorite has to be the shower of shoes. I also thought this must have been some homage to Almodovar the filmmaker, but it’s even more fascinating to see an age-old profession represented by this modern spray of color. Thanks for featuring my new walking route on a link here today; I’m off to explore some others, and first off will be another Texas jaunt (the Hill Country) – yay!

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    1. You know I set out with a blank canvas and no real expectations that day (and a resigned looking husband who was doing the driving 🙂 ). I love it when it works out that way. Thank you very much. I’ll watch out for it.

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      1. I meant the Hill Country walk whose link is in the list of walks today! 🙂
        And yes, the best results are usually the ones that follow no expectations!

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  9. I do not know much of Portugal, and it is so nice to be pleasantly surprised by what one can see there. Breathtaking religious decoration, vibrant architecture and weird red shoe installation. That is a real mystery.

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  13. At first I thought that the shoe cascade could be a bizarre Almodóvar ‘s idea…. (I mean the film-maker !)
    Then the story turned much more interesting after your read and photos ! Both beautiful and unique….

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    1. I felt quite embarrassed never to have heard of the film maker until I Googled the town, looking for information, Anna. I must have led a sheltered life 🙂 🙂 I learnt something and enjoyed myself too! A win win situation! And if you enjoyed it too, even better 🙂 Happy Monday!

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  14. What a fabulous peek at Almodôvar .. . . .wonderfu post Jo.

    Don’t think we are going to have time to return on our Alentejo adventure this week, but that shoe sculpture is calling my name so might just have to make the time! Apparently one of the cobblers has created a miniature shoe collection and I was hoping when I saw your title and picture that this might have been part of it . . . . something for us perhaps to find if we do have time this week.

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    1. I wonder if it’s in the museum? It was closed by the time we’d had our amble (if it was ever open- I didn’t notice because I was lured by the red shoes 🙂 ). I knew nothing about the cobbler history and even now can find very little information on the place. Pedro Almodovar hogs Google 🙂 🙂 We did pass a corner shop with some miniatures in the window but not shoes. Maybe inside… Mick had his ‘back to the car’ face on by then. 🙂 Have a wonderful few days! And, thank you 🙂

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      1. Not surprised you were lured by the Red Shoes . . . at least you didn’t try them on though as one of the pairs might be the infamous Red Shoes that Hans Christian Anderson wrote about!

        Hee hee MrB can have that face too sometimes, but then so can I after 3hrs looking at waders!!

        Have you seen the Southern Portugal book by John and Madge Measures as that has a section on Almodôvar?

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  15. I think it’s just as well Moira Shearer never visited Almodóvar.

    I think the Alentejo is odd. Mind you we visited in February (?) and it was cold. Very cold. We found a nowhere in particular place which was definitely nowhere. Couldn’t even find a decent toastie! We headed back to the coast after that.

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    1. Woolly made me chuckle by saying that Imelda Marcos would have been in 7th heaven with 200 cobblers 🙂 🙂

      I agree, it does have it’s moments. We were in Evora and thereabouts one late October and it was freezing too (but beautiful 🙂 ) Monsaraz is wonderful and the stretch around Mertola but it’s definitely a place of extremes.

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    1. Not a one! Someone must have had fun with the red paint though. 🙂 🙂 Strange what you find when you’re not looking, isn’t it? Becky says there’s a collection of shoe miniatures there somewhere too. Darn! Missed it 🙂

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