Vila Do Bispo ~ Algarve Portugal

Vila do Bispo  ~ Village Main Square

Vila do Bispo, like many of Portugal's old villages, has a a central square with a church along one side.

Here, Flame trees and other blooming flowers line the perimeter. I wanted to take a photo of one older gentleman, but though we never spoke, he made it clear he didn't want me to. But he had a face lined with interest, and wore eccentric clothes.

From time to time, women clad in black from head to toe walked briskly past, bent on getting from point A to B.

And dogs! There are an alarming number of homeless dogs and cats millling about the algarve, so much so that some visiting Europeans started up an Adopt-a-Dog service.

Detail on Church in Vila Do Bispo Village Square

The church doorway has an 'eye-window' feature overtop; and the roof is described as 'kneading trough' style.

A museum is attached to the church, though neither it nor the church were open at the time of my visit (Late January, midweek, around noon).

If there is a particular church you want to visit, see if you can find out when it's open to the public, so you don't drive miles to be disappointed.

Your hotel may have tourism brochures, so ask if you don't see any.

Like many churches in Portugal villages, the interior of this one at Vila do Bispo is adorned with the traditional blue and white tiles.

Row housing along Vila do Bispo village street

Many doorways and windows on the houses in this area are framed in bands bright colours or carved stonework.

The roads through many towns and villages are quite steep and narrow, so renting a *small* car makes it easier, especially when parallel parking.

Detail on Vila Do Bispo house

This house, though in need of some maintenance, looked vacant but was occupied.

Throughout the area, there are a number of well-kept and brightly painted homes that looked recently renovated, which I would have liked to visit.

From time to time, we passed horse drawn wagons laden with goods for sale.

Someone told us these wagon nomads were Gypsies.

Older House, in ruins, in Vila Do Bispo

The narrow streets around the church are lined with whitewashed houses typical of many old Algarve towns.

You'll see its clones many times in the small villages along the inland roads; not as much along the coast, as that's where the development is.

As you drive around the countryside, keep an eye out for the cork oak trees, identified by their peeling bark.

You may notice cork bark in large piles, similar to haystacks, in fields.

A few blocks west of this square, down the hill, there's a town center with a few cafes and the municipal office, where you can might be able to get a menhir field map.

Water wheel near Vila do Bispo

Next to the highway that takes you from Albufeira / Faro to Vila do Bispo,  we spotted this old water wheel on the north side.

Keep an eye out for it just as you getting close to Vila do Bispo.

You can see this water wheel in the farm yard.

Wildflowers in a field near Vila do Bispo

Everywhere I travelled in early February, the fields were blooming with these wildflowers.

We stopped outside of the village to walk the menhir fields, and this is where I took this photo.

West of Vila do Bispo on the South West Algarve Coast

From Vila do Bispo, you can get back via a nearby on-ramp to the main highway, then continue driving west to Cape Vincente, or head back to Albufeira and points in between.

You can also take a narrow back road to the west coast cliffs, ruins and villages north of the Cape.

We found this road on one of the small maps.

Much of the Algarve coastal area is protected parklands. Road signs, once you are off the main highway, can be hard to spot. It helps to have a sharp-eyed navigator!

Atlantic Surf Algarve Portugal Coast

A closer look at the wild surf, the sea air
all misty and fresh and full of negative ions!