Beja

Beja, the capital of Portugal's Lower Alentejo, is a city built on a gentle rise, allowing it to command a view over the vast, rolling plains-a landscape of cork oaks, olive groves, and wheat fields that stretches to the horizon. Its character is one of deep antiquity and quiet resilience, far from the coastal rush.

The city's silhouette is dominated by the majestic Torre de Menagem of the Castle, a granite and marble sentry standing standing almost 40 meters tall, the most imposing tower of its kind in the country. This monument testified to the city's Roman past (when it was Pax Julia) and its centuries under Moorish and Christian control.

Beja invites visitors to step into the relaxed pace of the Alentejo: the local life is concentrated in the shade of the arcades around the Praça da República and the unhurried walk through the whitewashed streets of the old quarter. Beyond its history, the city offers an authentic taste of the region's famous couisine-simple, hearty flavors that celebrate local bread, prized black pork, and wine from the surrounding estates. The city's cultural soul is perhaps best found in the powerful, harmonic Cante Alentejano, the unique choral singing of the region.