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Arrábida Natural Park (Parque Natural da Arrábida) is a natural park located on the northern shore of the Sado River estuary in Portugal. Founded in 1976 and covering 108 square kilometres (42 sq mi), it is one of the 30 areas which are officially under protection in the country.The park covers the Arrábida Hills, the Mediterranean-like vegetation and microclimate of which resemble Adriatic locations such as Dalmatia. The highest point in the park is the Serra da Arrábida at an elevation of 499 metres (1,637 ft). Two of the park's beaches - Portinho da Arrábida and Figueirinha - are popular among the inhabitants of Lisbon and Setúbal. The Portinho da Arrábida beach is famous for being a regular feature on Portuguese TV commercials and in 2004 a major fire destroyed a significant area of the park.

Cephalanthera longifolia

Carob tree, locust bean, St. John’s bread Ceratonia siliqua is an evergreen Tree growing to 15 m (49ft 3in). The pulp in the seedpods of carob is very nutritious and, due to its high sugar content, sweet-tasting and mildly laxative

Ophrys fusca

Quercus coccifera. The Kermes Oak was historically important as the food plant of the Kermes scale insect, from which a red dye called crimson was obtained. The etymology of the specific name 'coccifera' is related to the production of red cochineal (crimson) dye and derived from Latin coccum which was from Greek κὀκκος, the kermes insect.

Over looking the two beaches is the Convento da Arrabida, which was established in the 16th century and today is managed by the Fundação Oriente.

A stretch of road in the natural park is notable for being the scene in the 1969 James Bond film On Her Majesty's Secret Service where Tracy Bond (played by Diana Rigg) is shot dead by Irma Bunt (Ilse Steppat) in a drive-by shooting at the end of the film.Arrábida is depicted in the video game Tom Clancy's Endwar as one of the theatres in World War III, when the U.S. Army invades Portugal in an attempt to weaken the European Federation's defences.

The Arrábida Monastery was built in the 16th century and consists of the Old Monastery (located on the uppermost part of the hillside), the New Monastery (halfway down), the Garden and the Bom Jesus Shrine, set in the property’s 25 hectares. In addition, there are the adjacent but separate quarters of the Duke of Aveiro and the houses where the pilgrims stayed.The Old Monastery, which stands at the highest point of the Arrábida hills, consists of four chapels, the series of shrines on the mystery of Christ’s Passion and some cells hewn out of the rocks

Sesimbra is a municipality in the Setúbal District, lying at the foothills of the Serra da Arrábida, a mountain range between Setúbal and Sesimbra.Due to its particular position at the Setúbal Bay, near the mouth of the Sado River and its natural harbour, it’s an important fishing town, with a total area of 195.0 km2 (75 sq mi) and a total population of 37,567 inhabitants

Sesimbra

The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Pedra Mua, also known as Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Cape Espichel, is located in Cape Espichel, in the municipality of Sesimbra

In the thirteenth century, the place was very popular within the pilgrims, after a man had a vision of a great light that shone on the Cape. There arrived, he would have seen Our Lady rising on the back of a mule through the rock above

More than 600 years ago, in the mid-fourteenth century, a chapel was built to store an image of the Virgin, venerated long on the rock where it was found. Around the chapel were growing modest homes to receive the pilgrims who demanded here, giving later, in 1715, place to the construction of houses and inns with shops, also known as Casas dos Círios. To the chapel arrived several and numerous groups of Círios (large groups of pilgrims).

Sound: CANTO CHÃO - Música Popular - ALENTEJO - Ventos do Sul

Text: Internet

Pictures: Internet

Sanda Foişoreanu

Gabriela Cristescu

Copyrights of the photos belong to each photographer

Presentation: Sanda Foişoreanu

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