Over the years, Curral do Negro has welcomed much more than just visitors. It has welcomed stories, friendships, conversations around a table, children’s drawings, improvised sculptures, photographs, small gifts and messages left by those who have passed through here. Some return every year. Others have only been here once. But everyone has left a little bit of themselves in this place.
On this and the other pages of this website, we have brought together a small selection of these mementoes. Not because they are extraordinary works of art – although many are! – but because they represent what we most love to preserve: the connection between people and our little mountain corner of the Serra da Estrela. Every drawing, object or message tells a different story and helps to shape, just a little more, the identity of Curral do Negro.
In the Serra da Estrela, there is a commonly used expression that may surprise those visiting us for the first time: ‘bem-haja’. More than just a simple ‘Thank you’, it is a way of wishing someone ‘all things good’, that everything goes well for them and that life treats them kindly. It is still frequently heard in the villages of the Serra and conveys a warm expression of gratitude, accompanied by sincere wishes for happiness and prosperity.
That is why this page is our way of saying thank you to everyone who, over the years, has been part of this adventure. To those who chose Curral do Negro to rest, go for a walk, explore the mountains, celebrate special moments or simply take a breather. To those who return. To those who recommend us. To those who leave a drawing in the guestbook, a painted stone, a photograph, a sculpture or just a smile before they leave.
We hope these little mementoes will form part of your visit to our website, just as they have become part of the history of Curral do Negro.
Bem-haja! And see you soon.
