Margarida's weekend home in Portugal

I am in awe of this weekend home submitted by a reader named Margarida. Here is a bit of info she included: Its located 13 kms from the little village monsaraz & alqueva big lake in the region of alentejo (Portugal). Its our new weekend and holiday family house but its concept was done to be rentable by other families so we are building the new site for it. The Architecture project was done by João favila Menezes. He is very talented and conceptual artist. The interior decoration was done by myself and there is still a lot to do :) it accommodates 12 people and it took us 3 years to finish this project and the idea was to have a piece of modern land that would allow us to go free on modernity but respecting the landscape and the traditions of alentejo architecture. the next step on this family investment is the building of a garden, its a project made by an amazing award winning architecture Teresa Barão. It is absolutely beautiful in its surroundings, and perfection in its simplicity. WOW!

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CasasNaAreia

I was fortunate to be able to escape the dreary winter weather for a bit, but for those who aren't so fortunate, I've got a virtual vacation for you. This is CasasNaAreia, a magical holiday rental located in Alentejo, Portugal via Welcome Beyond. CasasNaAreia is a gorgeous retreat taking old masonry buildings and turning them into new, contemporary structures. The property with 4 double bedrooms is about the experience of living almost in an extension of the natural environment, especially when in the kitchen/dining area – which is laid out with a carpet of fine sand. Surrounded by rice paddies and umbrella pine forest, CasasNaAreia looks out onto the Sado estuary famous for its stunning sunsets, salt pans, flamingos and flocks of dolphins.

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Villa Extramuros

Just outside Arraiolos in Portugal sits a contemporary building that rises from its grassy base like a minimalist monolith. Inside the high white walls is a welcoming patio and within a wonderful small hotel filled with 50s furniture with a Parisian twist. Want to run away and play in Portugal with me? Fine food, fine hosts, fine house. Very cool in more ways than one. Villa Extramuros.

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An office in Portugal

Portuguese architect João Rosado Baptista, emailed us a recent project. This office/studio renovation saw Baptista and interior designer Ana Maças Nogueiro, create a dynamic and streamlined space from a rundown two storey building and neglected courtyard. Light, bright, modern yet firmly anchored in its historical past. A warren of rooms was opened up to provide versatile spaces enabling the office to be used in multiple ways. The completely rebuilt courtyard extends the interiors and provides a private retreat. No website as yet but Baptista can be reached here.

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A palace in Lisbon

We received the following email the other day from Joana: I thought you might want to take a look at Palácio Belmonte in Lisbon, Portugal. It's right in the heart of the old district of Castelo, two steps away from the castle. Palácio Belmonte was a noble family's residence for centuries; it has probably one of the best views in the city. It was one of the first palaces built in Lisbon (it dates back to 1449). It fell, however, in neglect; in the 90's, already in ruins, it was bought and patiently restored by a french entrepreneur. It is now a luxury hotel. I'm an architecture student and a photographer; when I came across the palace, by chance, I had no idea it even existed. You can walk right by it and not even notice it's there. There was a man playing the piano, though, and the music led to a cup of coffee, which led to a small walk inside the Palace. More than one year later, I eventually asked the owner for permission to go and take pictures; those are the images I'm sending you. WOW. I've always wanted to visit Portugal...and now I'm more determined than ever. This hotel is beautiful, and so are your photos Joana!

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