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Showing posts from October, 2012

A doer-upper

Aldeia da Mata Pequena is a small rural village on the extreme outskirts of Lisbon. The village is one of only a handful of Portuguese villages that have been bought in total and restored as holiday destinations. This whole village (although only 7 or 8 houses) has been taken from the jaws of decay and restored to create a 'traditional' Portuguese village. Complete with little old lady, dressed in black from head to toe. We stayed there recently on a trip to the area for a wedding. The self-catering houses are basic but beautiful, resulting in some creature comforts (fridge, tv) but traditional features (two ring cooker, no fire place but a wood oven) creating what their website calls a 'balanced restoration'. http://www.aldeiadamatapequena.com/langEN/01aldeia/index.php The village has won awards for this balanced restoration, using traditional materials such as, lime mortar, poplar, cedar and pine timber work, barrel roof tiles, stone flooring, wood-fired fl