Aveiro

Next to the Ria, a vast lagoon basin where the fresh waters of the Vouga River mix with the waters of the sea, Aveiro, crossed by water streets where the colorful moliceiro boats slide, is one of the most interesting cities on the Portuguese coast.

Its foundation occurred at the time of the Roman emperor Marco Aurélio. Due to the existence of numerous palm-footed birds that populated this lagoon area, its first name will have been Aviarium.
D. João I (r.1383-1433) donated the settlement to his son, the infant D. Pedro who ordered the construction of his first walls, which have since disappeared. Later, D. João II (r. 1481-1495), made a donation of it to his sister, Infanta D. Joana, collected in the convent of Jesus, which today is the Museum of Aveiro.

In the century. XVI, the development of the salt industry, agriculture and fishing and the first fishing campaigns in the distant Terra Nova in 1501 brought to Aveiro a period of prosperity that earned it the charter of 1515, granted by King D. Manuel I. , in the winter of 1575, strong storms destroyed the deep channel of communication between the estuary and the sea, through which the great ships that docked in Aveiro passed, destroying the maritime trade, fishing and saline activity.

In the century. In the 19th century, Barra Nova was built. Its opening to the Ocean, in 1808, led to the formation of a wide channel of about 264 m in width and between 4 and 6 in depth, which opened the Ria to the sea, reconstituting the source of life and survival in the region. .

The Ria communicates with Aveiro through 3 channels: the Pyramids (marked at the entrance by two stone pyramids), which extends into the Central channel, the São Roque channel, which limits the city to the Northwest and separates it from the salt pans; and the Santos Mártires (or Paraíso) channel that flows to the Southwest.

From the Central channel, the city's main axis, you can build two itineraries in Aveiro: - on the Left Bank, see the graceful Art Nouveau buildings, reflected in the canal, wander through the Mercado do Peixe, the Beira Mar neighborhood and close to the banks of the channels absorbing the light sea air; - on the Right Bank, visit the Aveiro Museum, at the Convento de Jesus. Monuments and churches, a city life that moves under the translucent light of the Ria complete the seduction of this coastal city.

Evidently, it is essential to know the Ria de Aveiro. In the two circuits proposed, you will get to know the labyrinth of the canals, the white dunes next to the sea, the immense expanses of seascapes with their salt pyramids. If you like to stroll through nature, the São Jacinto Dunes Nature Reserve is an irrefutable proposal.

(source: www.visitportugal.com )