Vila Real, Portugal

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Template: Infobox city in Portugal / maintenance / management location is empty Template: Infobox city in Portugal / Maintenance / Web page is blank Vila Real is a city in Portugal and the administrative seat of the district of the same name. It lies in the north of the country on a mountain plateau (about 460 m ), surrounded by the mountains of the Marão and Alvão. The old town is bounded by the rivers corgo and Cabril. In Vila Real motorcycle race Circuito de Vila Real is organized every year.

History

Presumably the area now Vila Real was already inhabited in the Palaeolithic period. Traces of Roman settlers can be seen (eg in Rupestre de Panóias monastery) today. With the beginning of the great migration and the invasion of Arab tribes, however, depopulated the area.

In the twelfth century Constantim de Panóias was commissioned by Count D. Henrique, the government ( and thus the re- colonization ) to take over. In 1289, the Portuguese king Dom Dinis founded the city of " Vila Real de Panóias ", today's Vila Real. The preferred location of the city to the major roads postage Bragança and Viseu - Chaves guaranteed continuous growth. From the 17th century, many noble families settled that gave her the old town today typical face.

In 1922 the Diocese of Vila Real was founded from parts of the dioceses Braga, Lamego and Bragança - Miranda. It was not until 1925, however, Vila Real was officially declared a town.

Among other things, by the construction of a theater, and a music conservatory there in recent years, great progress in the establishment of a cultural scene. Also the new construction and expansion of the county library and the municipal archives can to be counted. In addition, a number of urban development measures were carried out, such as greening through parks in the old Bairro dos Ferreiros and the promenade along the river corgo.

Management

Vila Real is the seat of an eponymous district and administrative headquarters of the district of the same name. The extent of 377.67 km ², which is 49 957 people ( as of 2001) share. The neighboring districts are (clockwise starting from the north ): Ribeira de Pena, Vila Pouca de Aguiar, Sabrosa, Peso da Régua, Santa Marta de Penaguião, Amarante, and Mondim de Basto.

The following parishes ( freguesias ) lying in circle Vila Real:

Abaças
Adoufe
Andras
Arroios
Borbela
Campeã
Constantim
Ermida
Folhadela
Guiães
Juste
Lamares
Lamas de Olo
Lordelo
Mateus

Mondrões
Mouçós
Nogueira
Nossa Senhora da Conceição ( Vila Real)
Parada de Cunhos
Pena
Quintã
São Dinis ( Vila Real)
São Pedro ( Vila Real)
São Tomé do Castelo
Torgueda
Vale de Nogueira
Vila Cova
Vila Marim
Vilarinho de Samardã

Pictures of city

Pillory in front of Church of São Domingos

Typical alley in the old town

Mateuspalast near Vila Real

Twinning

Vila Real maintains twinned with the following cities:

Germany Osnabrück ( Germany )
Spain Ourense (Spain )
France Grasse (France)
France Mende (France)
Portugal Oeiras ( Portugal)
Portugal Portimao (Portugal )

The twinning with Osnabrück in 1989 called into life and officially expanded in July 2005 to twinning. As an expression of solidarity there is in Vila Real one Avenida de Osnabrück.

University

In the northern Portuguese town of Vila Real, there is the State University of Trás -os- Montes and Alto Douro ( UTAD ). The university was founded in 1986 ( on 22 March 2006 it celebrated its 20th anniversary ). At this university can be, inter alia, Applied Foreign Languages , biology, chemistry, forestry sciences, engineering, economics, oenology, communication sciences, landscape architecture, mathematics, sports, theater sciences, veterinary medicine and environmental science study. Some courses are not offered in Vila Real, but only at the branch of the UTAD in Chaves (eg tourism). In the academic year 2009/10 studied 7,000 students at the UTAD. The following foreign languages are taught at the university: German, English, French and Spanish.

Traffic

Vila Real has a station on the Linha do corgo. In about 4 km to the city, a small airport with a 950m long runway. Are served daily Lisbon and Bragança.

Distances to known locations

Porto Airport - 100 km
Porto - 97 km
Lisbon - 411 km
Braga - 100 km
Chaves - 68 km
Bragança - 120 km
Viseu - 90 km
Madrid Spain - 520 km

Climate

Due to the geographical location ( the mountain ranges of the Marão and Alvão act as natural barriers) Vila Real has extreme weather conditions: winter last long and are unusually cold, and it snows at least once in most years. In contrast, the summer is very hot. Moderate temperatures are measured over the year only a few days. As the saying says " Nove meses de Inverno, três meses de inferno " ( literally "Nine months of winter, three months Hell" ).

Trivia

Vila Real was the first Portuguese town with electric lights.

Trails in Vila Real

Ecotourism is now highly sought after as an alternative to spending leisure time in the north of Portugal. The region around Vila Real is no exception, there you will find hiking trails and so can admire the wonderful landscape heritage. In 2005, in Vila Real, a project was developed to highlight five trails and classify. All marked trails are classified as "short", that is, they are less than 30 kilometers long. In fact, these routes are between three and twelve miles long, they always start in the center of a village.

These are the five marked trails in the area of Vila Real's:

Famous people

Diogo Cão ( † around 1486 ), navigator and explorer
Camilo Castelo Branco (1825-1890), writer, novelist, critic, poet and translator
António Montes Moreira ( born 1935 ), former bishop of Bragança
Luís Castro ( b. 1961 ), football coach
Delmino Pereira ( born 1967), cyclist and sports official
Simão Sabrosa ( b. 1979 ), football player

Culinary

The gastronomy is known for its rich desserts, such as " Toucinho do Céu " (ham of the sky), " Pitos de Santa Luzia " ( chicks of St. Lucy ) and the " Ganchas de S. Brás " (Bart of St. Brás ). The latter two have a special tradition: on 13 December, the young women of the city over her elect a " chick ", while the young men return the favor on February 3 with the " beards ". Traditional dishes from Vila Real are also the " Tripas aos Mohlos " ( spicy offal from pigs), prepared in stone oven roast lamb with rice, roast veal and of course varied prepared cod. Nationally known and sought after are the " bolas de carne " ( in bread is baked meat).

Cultural Calendar

Holy Brás, February 2 and 3
São Lázaro, the Sunday before Palm Sunday
Academic week, early May
St. Anthony, patron saint of the town, June 13 ( official holiday in Vila Real)
São João, June 24, with numerous parades throughout the city
São Pedro, 28 and 29 June. Its portfolio includes products from craft ( especially pottery )
Procession Corpo de Deus, in June
Procession of the Virgin de Almodena, September 8
Festa da Senhora da Pena, first week of September
Receipt of the first semester, with a variety of games and activities. In the evening many music concerts. The end of October / beginning of November
Santa Luzia, December 13

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