Bridges

The arches of the Aqueduto de Óbidos, or Óbidos Aqueduct, together create a simplistic form that has cut across the landscape to supply the town with water since it was first constructed on the orders of Catherine of Austria, the queen consort to King João III, in the 1570s. To fund it, she had to sell other lands under her ownership nearby, demonstrating just how important she thought the project was.

The attractive medieval bridge crossing the River Lima dates back to 1368, but there has been a crossing here for much longer and this is where the town gets its name from.

Spanning the slow flowing Lima river this, granite bridge features fourteen arches. There were originally seventeen but three have been lost as the riverside was developed over the centuries.

The picturesque town of Tavira was founded in 400 BC and was an important trading post between Europe and North Africa. The River Gilão, on the banks of which the town is built is crossed by two main bridges.  One of these is known as the Roman Bridge (Ponte Romana) as it was built on the foundations of the bridge on the route of the Roman road which linked Faro and Castro Marim.

Literally meaning the "Aqueduct of Silver Water", the Agua de Prata Aqueduct is an incredible testament to 16^th century engineering.  It was built to ensure that the strategically important citadel of Elvira would not run out of clean drinking water during the hot, dry summers. King John III of Portugal appointed Francisco de Arruda, who had built Lisbon's Belem Tower to oversee the project, which took six years to construct, finally opening in 1537. 

This striking bridge spans the Tagus River at its widest section in the city of Lisbon connection the northern suburb of Sacavem to the historical south bank of the river near Montijo. The Vasco da Gama Bridge is a vast stricture that is 17 Km (11 miles) long.First opened in 1998 it is still the longest bridge in Europe. To this day it remains as one of the longest in the world with 10km of it passing over water and a suspension section that allows ships to pass through close to the Lisbon side.

Stretching across the estuary at the Tagus River in Lisbon is the Ponte 25 de April (25th April Bridge); the largest suspension bridge in Europe and the 20th longest in the world. Often considered as a twin sister of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco because of its similar design the bridge in Lisbon is actually 300 feet (100m) longer.

The double-decker Dom Luis I bridge is an icon of the city of Porto. It spans the River Douro linking the Port wine houses of Vila Nova de Gaia with the bustling downtown Ribeira district of Porto. Construction took place between 1881 and 1886 with the bridge being built adjacent to an existing bridge which it replaced. The granite pillars of the original bridge are still in place, standing on the Ribeira like a pair of gate posts.

As the name suggests, the Roman bridge in Chaves dates back to the days of the Roman occupation during the first century AD. The sturdy granite bridge spans the River Tâmega as it meanders its way though the outskirts of Chaves.

The local name is the Ponte Trajano (Trajan's bridge) after the Roman Emperor Trajan. It was actually the Roman's who founded Chaves and named it Aquae Fluviae, after the hot springs found there. During this period Chaves was an important frontier town and the bridge allowed the town to be easily accessed from the east.