Paradela

River Vouga's clear water by the mountain

 Today I would like to share one of mine favorite places with you.
 It is a humble place and I am sure almost none of you ever heard  of it. Even many people from my home region never guessed the  pearls they can find there until I told them and showed the  pictures.


 My friends let me tell you about humble Paradela.
 Paradela is a small village near the little mountain town Sever do  Vouga in Aveiro district, Portugal.
 See here: Paradela

Vouga from Quinta do Barco beach.

What is so special about Paradela?
The village extends itself in a mountain side and stretches from the valley bathed by the beautiful river Vouga upwards to the top of the hill.

By the river you can bathe on the river in a children friendly river bank beach, the Quinta do Barco beach. Or if the 20 degrees Celcius of the river water in July are too cold for you, just have a barbecue or sit at the Summer café.

View of the River Vouga from the beach

How is a river bank beach safe for your children to bathe?


Rivers are supposed to have currents and be deep and all...
However this beach is not a natural one. It was human made and it's makers made sure children could bathe there and you have facilities as barbecues, toilets, tables, benches, etc...

The people that made this beach made a floating deck with a built in pool so your child can safely bathe there.





Besides the pool kind of warms the water that slowly runs through it so it is warmer for your child to bathe there, or for you to just sit there and chill.


I did not understood when the river bank beach is monitored by a life gard but I did saw a guy there several times, and you do find life saving stuff there.





If you are up for a swim in the deepest part of the river you can do that too. Just jump from the edge or if you are more like myself, take the stairs!


Whatever kind of swimmer you are, or not, you can for sure spend a few hours surrounded by beautiful trees, the river and enjoying the village surroudings if you visit the Praia Fluvial (river bank beach) Quinta do Barco located at the very lowest point of Paradela.





Even if your Portuguese is rusty you can look at the back side of the information board at the beach and look for the latest water test results, or just see what kind of fauna it houses.

The old pasta factory. 

 Now if you get tired of the river bank beach you can actually do a  lot more in this little mountain village in the heart of Portugal.


 Just visit the Ecocafé in the old train station on Paradela.
 It is full of surprises!

Ecocafé

 There you can enjoy a concert, attend workshops on many different  subjects, loan a book on the village's library or leave a book and  take a new one on the café's book crossing initiative. On a rainy day  you can even seat there in the transformed library attic and read a while.

Blueberry lemonade

There you can enjoy a concert, attend workshops on many different subjects, loan a book on the village's library or leave a book and take a new one on the café's book crossing initiative. On a rainy day you can even seat there in the transformed library attic and read a while.

You can do all that while enjoying well manufactured local products as this delicious blueberry lemonade I had.

View from the Ecocafé. 

The view form the Ecocafé are a blend of industrial beauty, the mountains, the river and villages.

There you can find the old pasta factory that is nowadays home to a lot of offices.

Ecopista do Vouga 

 Now I'm guessing you already think this place is great. But it's not over!
 At the café you can hire bikes and helmets and take a ride in the eco biking  trail that covers the old railway track. My kids loved it! They learned about  wild blackberries there and now they can't wait until next year's ride there  and raiding the wild blackberries vines.

 You can find more information on the Ecopista in Portuguese in this  site: Ecopista do Vouga

 Hopefully that site could soon be available in other languages. 

Wild blackberries

Ecopista do Vouga

If you plan to eat a meal there are several restaurants that serve local produced food nearby.

If you're planing to visit the humble and beautiful Paradela you can in one of the villages rural hotels, in the near by town Sever do Vouga or in other location near/on Aveiro. It takes only 20 to 25 minutes to reach Paradela from Aveiro if you take the A25 and about 45 if you take the old road that follows the river Vouga's natural curves. 

  

 Now I have shared one of my favorite places and what I usually do    there with you. Hope you have the chance to enjoy it!