Monday 2 November 2020

SÃO PEDRO DE MOEL (PORTUGAL)


SÃO PEDRO DE MOEL
 N 39.75730; W 9.02856

São Pedro de Moel is a place belonging to the parish and municipality of Marinha Grande, district of Leiria, in Portugal. According to the 2011 Census, 389 people reside in this place. It is fully inserted in the Pinhal de Leiria, a little south of the mouth of Ribeira de Moel. The beach here is very popular with families to rest and enjoy holidays during the summer.
The sea water is cold and usually rough, but it usually allows bathing. It is regularly used for surfing and bodyboarding. For those who enjoy outdoor sports, there is a tennis court, and several cycle paths. On the beach there is a playground, usually with two volleyball nets.
There are several hotels, restaurants, cafes and bars to welcome tourists, as well as two campsites.
When he married in 1902, the poet Afonso Lopes Vieira and his wife, Helena Aboim, received from their parents the beautiful house (formerly owned by the Marqueses of Vila Real, among others), where the poet was inspired and wrote, and received friends to gatherings.
It is a large house, with a terrace and a balcony (where a curious sundial is visible) that are just above the beach, and with a beautiful chapel decorated with maritime motifs, dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima, built by poet for his wife, inaugurating it on August 12, 1929. It is this chapel that gives the property the name "Casa-Búzio"; curiously, the poet called it “Casa-Nau”.