The best museums Portugal

Built in 1401, but never inhabited, the palace first surprises by its many rooms in rows, its chandeliers and its huge tapestries on the walls. Four copies of Pastrana are remarkable: those telling of the Portuguese conquests in North Africa, and those of Flemish origin executed by Rubens. On the roof of the building, strange very tall cylindrical red brick chimneys reflect the influence of the seigneurial architecture, unique in the Iberian Peninsula.

Instead, we should talk about the dungeon, because it is all that remains of this th century castle, which was used as a residence for the first duke of Bragança. Beautiful view across the region.

In the fortress dungeon, the Military Museum fills several small halls on three levels. Those who, in their childhood, loved the novels of Cape and sword will appreciate the collections of white arms and armor from the th to the th century. A steep staircase leads you to the top of the castle. Grandiose!

This beautiful church housed the Saint-Sébastien chapel, whose first stones were laid at the beginning of the 18th century. Observers will find confirmation at the base of the arch, the date "17-40" is engraved there. The brotherhood was known to have a large religious influence on the lives of its contemporaries. The sacristy, far from its original purpose of serving as a space to store sacred vessels and priestly vestments, houses a small museum of sacred art.

This museum, close to the Jardim do Palacio, recreates the atmosphere of the 19th century, lulled by the bourgeois pomp of the booming industrial era, when the city was at its economic peak. King Carlos Alberto do Piemonte lived here in precious luxury during his brief exile in Portugal in 1849. Almost all the rooms, redecorated in his memory, are open to the public, including the drawing room, the small chapel and the room where he died.

The Jewish cemetery in Faro is the only post-Inquisition remnant of the Jewish presence in the Algarve. The first person to be buried there was Rabbi Joseph Toledano, and the last burial was in 1932. After being abandoned for several decades, it was finally restored in the 1980s. The cemetery has a total of 107 graves. Within the perimeter there is a museum dedicated to Jewish traditions and a synagogue.

Inaugurated fairly recently, this charming place allows to discover a green stroll, where nice walks have been arranged, this former black powder factory has been beautifully restored and provides an interesting overview of the evolution of industrial techniques since the th century: water mill, steam, and generators. The walk on foot in the city recalls the th century Portugal if you forget the few large buildings that invade the horizon!