J. Gafarot's photos with the keyword: Mertola

Church Wall, Mértola is a town and municipality in southeastern Portuguese Alentejo near the Spanish border. In 2011, the population was 7,274, in an area of approximately 1,292.87 square kilometres : it is the sixth-largest municipality in Portugal. Meanwhile, it is the second-lowest population centre by density with approximately 5.62 persons/1 square kilometre (second to the adjacent Alcoutim). The seat of the municipality is the town of Mértola, which has around 2800 inhabitants (2011), located on a hill over the Guadiana River. Its strategic location made it an important fluvial commercial port in Classical Antiquity, through the period of Umayyad conquest of Hispania: Mértola's main church (the Church of Nossa Senhora da Anunciação) was the only medieval mosque to have survived the period in Portugal, it is part of the church.

Occupied since prehistoric times, this region is an important trading post frequented by Phoenicians and Carthaginians, thanks to the existence of waterways and land connecting it to the south of the peninsula. Faced with the Roman invasion of the Iberian Peninsula, this commercial importance was maintained. The first historical reference to this village is found in the Chronicle of the Suevos, by Bishop Idácio, narrating an episode dating from 440, from which reading it can be inferred the existence of a fortification on the site, then called Myrtilis Julia. - 15 years ago road rage, for old chaps only . . .

Things you can only see and smell and hear from your great old buddy, the motorbike. Peace in your mind.

Cork trees, holmoaks and searing heat.

Near Mertola.