Surroundings: The houses of Casas do Minho are mainly situated in the area of Vieira do Minho and Cabeceiras de Basto, municipalities in the Minho-province in Northern Portugal. There are several facilities in these small towns. The nearest is Cabeceiras de Basto. It offers the amenities of banks, a post office, a hospital, shops, cafés, a discotheque, an indoor and open-air swimming pool, a newly-restored picturesque square with a beautiful old monastery and a market on Monday, to which merchants and visitors stream from far and near. Vieira has a Monday-market as well. There are several swimming-places within a radius of 10 km. These places range from quiet spots by a brooklet to spots near bigger but yet calm rivers. In some cases the municipalities in the area have realized additional facilities such as toilets, bars, barbeques and diving boards. These facilities are-except the bars of course - free of charge. Cabreiras and Vieira are set in the offshoots/spurs of the extensive mountain range of the Serra da Cabreira, making an ideal base for touring, walking, biking, cycling and horse-riding. In and by the Serra da Cabreira you can find small, ancient villages with pubs and cafés almost everywhere. It happens that the boorish looking, but at the same time sympathetic café-owner turns out to be the mayor of the village. This part of the Minho is an area of small-scale farmers and wine-growers (Vinho verde). The locals take their time, are social, like to have a chat and like to offer "um copo" or "um copinho" (earthenware mug of wine). If you are willing (speaking Portuguese or not) to make contacts, you will notice that the people in this area are nice and hospitable. Towns like Brage, Guimarâes and Chaves are not far off. (Approximately a one-hour drive). When you are fond of art and culture you should not miss the university-town of Braga. Porto, famous for its bridges and Porto-wine houses, is 90 km far. Barcelos (an a 75 minutes drive) has got the biggest market for art and crafts in Northern Portugal. On this market, always held on Thursdays, you can find woodcarving, ceramic art, leather goods and textile, among which table- and bedlinen, woollen jerseys, etceteras. You can enlarge the pictures by clicking on them.