The name
A frequently asked question is whether the word “Cano” is Portuguese for dogs. Given the number of dogs we have it might well be true. In fact, “Cano” comes from the Latin “Cannum”, which means channeled flowing water. Our Quinta is named after the passing aquaduct, where water still flows to this day and although not fit for consumption is suitable for gardening and agriculture. The aquaduct is 32 km long; it extends from Graça the Divor to Évora and was completely restored in 2010.
Who and what are we
We are a Dutch couple and although we have known each other since 1987 we have only been a couple since 2005. In 2006 we decided to start living together in Portugal. When we started our relationship, Wim had lived in Portugal for more than 15 years. In 1993 he was visiting his parents in Portugal for a holiday and he has stayed there ever since. At first Wim owned an estate agency and was a partner in a building business, but now only works at the Quinta. Monique had previously owned a little hotel in the Netherlands (in Achterhoek). She sold the hotel and moved with all her livestock (donkeys and dogs) to Portugal. We are now installed in the house bought by Wim´s parents. Since the property is quite large, we decided to take advantage of Monique’s experience and run it as a Bed and Breakfast.
After the first year
In October 2014, almost a year after we opened the Quinta for guests we carried out a short evaluation. This revealed that opening the house as a bed and breakfast worked well. Monique had missed her work more than she realized and Wim’s concerns about our privacy had all gone. At this point we like to give thanks to all that year’s guests for making it a good beginning and a memorable year. In the wintertime, a small change, just relocating a door, made it possible to convert the former “servants room” part of the guest area, enabling us to incorporate a single room, the Quarto dos Solteiros (single person’s room). Previously, this room was used mainly for washing and ironing but by giving the garage a big clean-up, we ended up with a wonderful laundry and ironing area. Also, the couple that lived and worked on the Quinta, decided it was time to start up something by themselves and the house where they lived on the Quinta became available. The house consists of two bedrooms, a bathroom, a living room, a large kitchen and private terrace. It is now prepared for receiving guests and called the Quintinha do Sobreiro, after the giant cork tree that shelters it. at.Dutch, Portuguese, English and German
Summer 2019, the cork is taken of the trees.
Because we still enjoy working as owners of the Bed and Breakfast, we decide to invest the money we get for the cork. The bathroom of the Quintinha do Sobreiro will be renovated in November. By uniting the large storage cupboard in the kitchen, which no one uses, to the bathroom, we realize enough space to make a separate bathroom and a separate toilet room. Which, we think, will increase guest comfort. Enough money remains to realize a somewhat larger project, which we have had already in mind for a while. In the winter of 2019/2020, we construct a bathroom to the building that was used as a slaughterhouse. After some doubts, we decide to keep the original form, an overnight place for shepherds, intact. The large chimney outside is closed, but not demolished. We have some doubts about the large chimney inside, but with the law in mind that a bathroom door may not be placed in a kitchen, we decide to leave it also intact. And that is how the Tiny House, Cabana do pastor (the shepherd's hut), was realized. We hope that all future guests will enjoy it as much as we enjoyed the construction.And here we are in the year 2023.
What we didn't know in 2019/2020 was that Covid-19 was just around the corner. In hindsight we endured well, we had some reserves, kept some money aside for painting and minor renovations and luckily, we always leave guest deposits in a separate bank account until they have been at the Quinta. When we closed for a few months in mid-March 2020, we started painting ourselves and tightened our belts. In June, with many restrictions, we were allowed to receive some guests again and it turned out we had two very good friends. We will have mainly Portuguese guests this summer, which was actually very nice, from whom we have good memories and of whom return regularly. The Casinha Minúscula will also have a different destination; a Polish man, who has been living in Evora for some time, is on our doorstep as a covid refugee and will eventually continue to live and work with us for almost three years. We more or less survived the first covid winter because we sheltered a Portuguese and Spanish construction team on weekdays and hosted Portuguese refugees from the big cities on the weekends. We divide the tasks, Wim takes care of the construction teams and Monique the other guests, to keep people separated a bit. 2021 is starting to look a bit normal again and we can slowly pay off our covid debts to our special friends and the Portuguese State. In 2023 we are on our feet again; we can say that we survived. Because “our Pool” has meanwhile also travelled on, the Casinha Minúscula is again without occupation, it is being decorated for guests and will now really open for guests for the first time.
