yellow slate, sculpted stones, and heather at the door
Gondramaz is different from the other villages on the Serra da Lousã in one easy-to-spot detail: the slate is yellow, not dark grey. It sits on the western slope of the hills, halfway up a steep hillside, in the municipality of Miranda do Corvo. It has 7 permanent residents and fits along a main street from which narrow alleyways branch off.
Arriving visitors are greeted by a poem by Miguel Torga, engraved on a metal plaque at the welcome area: "Life is made of nothings / Of great mountains standing still..." It's not a decorative touch. This is a land of stone craftsmen: the house facades have figures sculpted and carved into the slate, and the street itself is a hand-crafted surface (accessible to those with reduced mobility -- a rarity in a mountain village).
The only thing that escapes the yellow slate is the chapel of Nossa Senhora da Conceição, plastered white, which contrasts with everything around it. It lies within the Serra da Lousã Site of Community Importance, with chestnut, oak and holly trees making up the woodland. You come for the slate, you stay for the writing in stone.
good to know
- yellow-toned slate, distinct from the other villages on the serra da lousã (usually dark grey)
- land of stone craftsmen: facades with figures sculpted and carved into the slate
- hand-crafted street surface, accessible to those with reduced mobility (extremely rare in a mountain village)
- metal plaque at the entrance with a poem by miguel torga ("life is made of nothings")
- 7 permanent residents, within the serra da lousã site of community importance (natura 2000 network)
