Aqueduct of Pegões

I think I was done exploring the Convento de Cristo, I have a rather tight deadline because I need to reach another city before dark. However, I think I still have a little time to squeeze in a nearby attraction in Tomar. As I was driving to Convento de Cristo, I noticed a sign which points to a nearby aqueduct. I didn’t know there was one here and it was only through that sign that I knew about it. I asked the staff about the aqueduct and he enthusiastically described how good it is to be visit the place. After the tour of Convento de Cristo, I made sure to drop by this place since it was going to be along the way anyway.

The place is the Aqueduct of Pegões, it is a large aqueduct which was built to bring water to the Convento de Cristo. When I first arrived at Convento de Cristo, I thought that it was a rather remote place to build a monastery and fort. What’s more it became the base of the templar knights, as a result there were usually a large number of people here. Because of this, water was needed. To solve this, they built a six kilometer aqueduct to ferry water to the Convento de Cristo. I thought that this was a rather extravagant structure considering how remote and how little people there are here. However, this is the templar knights we are talking about and they cannot go without water. There is a little parking spot along the highway where you can get up close and personal with the aqueduct.

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