Final stop – Óbidos. It’s a small village surrounded by a castle and its walls about 80 km outside Lisbon, so about a 40-minute drive or bus ride. We happened to go there on a day that was raining like crazy and it was quite an adventure to walk through the small village’s steep hill and stony ground with our luggage in the rain. Usually, a taxi could take you all the way up to the top of the village where our hotel would be, but due to a Christmas festival that extended all the way to the beginning of January, the road was blocked off. Our very friendly taxi driver was very apologetic that he had to leave us at the gate of the castle walls. He had no idea that his friendliness had made our otherwise miserable evening up to that point.
That first rainy night we had a room at the castle which is actually a hotel now. It was I who insisted on staying one night at the castle, cos it is kinda a once-in-a-lifetime experience. But to be honest, it turned out to be our least favorite place we stayed at in Portugal. Neither of us are a big fan of traditional hotels, and the castle was the peak of what a traditional hotel would be. The rooms are somewhat unique with super high ceilings but it wasn’t really cozy.
Determined to save the evening from doom and gloom from the rain and the underwhelming (and very expensive) hotel room, we braved the rain yet again and ventured out to one of the restaurants that the taxi driver recommended – Pontinha. It’s a cute little restaurant with a carefully curated menu created from all local fresh ingredients. We let our charming server decide all our wine pairings and she excelled at the tasks, proving just how well she knew the menu and their wines. She also told little stories about each wines, the way she described in details about each wine, if she would create an app explaining about wines, I would get a lifetime subscription. The menu included beetroot soup, seabass, arrancinis and veal plus pear pudding with Morello cherry (the speciality of Óbidos) and cream. It was one my favorite dinner experiences, for the food, the wine, the professional server and chef and the intimate cozy surrounding of the little restaurant. It made our night very special.
The next day, we walked through the village and did the famous and exciting castle wall walk. We had lunch at Maddok, a nerdy restaurant welcoming witches and wizards. 😀 Then we checked in to our second hotel – The Literary Man. This hotel is the reason I wanted to visit Óbidos. The little village is known for its bookshops and this hotel – it is the home of over 50 000 books. The books occupy every inch of the hotel, everywhere you look there are floor to ceiling bookshelves filled to the brim. Staying there was like being hugged by thousands of books, I absolutely adored the place. We splurged a little and booked a suite and its rustic interior was very charming. The room even had its own tiny library. When we visited, it was off-season so it was very quiet, with only a few other guests in addition to us. I felt like a ghost haunting the place when I explored the bookshelves all by myself, but like, in a good way. 😀 I even found a book I instantly felt a connection to, and carried it to the hotel restaurant that had a giant fireplace. I sat on the green velvet sofas in front of the fireplace with a glass of red wine and the book I found while listening to the crackling of the fire and feeling the delicious warmth. I have no words to describe just how content I was at that very moment.
I love Óbidos with my whole heart. Even though not all bookshops were open in off-season, we got to enjoy the ones that were open. It’s a special place that would delight any booklovers out there. Although it’s small and can be explored within a one-day trip, I do highly recommend staying for at least one night at The Literary Man.
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