The old episcopal city of Miranda do Douro (Altitude: 690m/2,264ft) in the northeast of Portugal lies on a rocky hill above the deep valley of the Douro (Spanish Duero and dammed at this point), which here marks the frontier with Spain (no frontier crossing). The remoteness of the region, one of the most thinly populated parts of Portugal, has
acted as a brake on its cultural and linguistic development, so that it has preserved not only many old customs and traditions but also a local dialect close to Vulgar Latin, the lingua charra or mirandês. Traditional crafts such as weaving and pottery are still widely practiced. Every year on the third Sunday in August (the feast of St Barbara) the dance of the pauliteiros (wooden staves) takes place, a folk dance for men that harks back to the Roman sword dances.
Townscape
Rather a somber little town, around its marketplace Miranda do Douro has a number of handsome old burghers' houses with coats of arms and Manueline ornamentation.