10 km from the belly button of the country, and the rest you do on foot
Água Formosa is 10 km from Portugal's Geodesic Centre: the Picoto da Melriça, in Vila de Rei, is the central point of the mainland. The village sits on a sunny hillside, between the Ribeira da Corga and the Ribeira da Galega, and is the southernmost slate village in the network. If you're arriving from the south, this is where you come in.
No cars in the streets. Life is lived on foot, in houses all built of restored slate on the left bank of the Ribeira da Galega, with a single footbridge making the crossing. The village's name comes from the spring: there's a spring that yields beautiful water, and it was around it that the settlement took root.
The traditions are still there to see. There's a communal oven in the centre that's still in use (not just for bread), several wood-fired ovens scattered around the houses, the Eira dos Réis on the outskirts where maize and beans are dried at the end of summer, and the Lagar de Azeite da Ferrugenta that still runs on water power. Small, but full of substance.
good to know
- 10 km from portugal's geodesic centre (picoto da melriça, vila de rei)
- southernmost slate village in the adx network
- no cars in the streets: everything is done on foot
- working communal oven, several wood-fired ovens, eira dos réis for drying maize and beans
- lagar de azeite da ferrugenta still runs on water power
