Cork

Unfortunately we couldn’t stop on the motorway to photograph the cork trees well. Cork is the majority of the trees in the Alentejo region and here you can buy anything you want made from cork…from shoes and bags and caps; to wedding dresses and bikinis!

The trees have their bark stripped off every 7-9 years, but only after they have been planted for 25 years! We have seen trucks and stacks of bark sheets, which they then soak and steam to make into flat sheets. The bags etc are waterproof and very supple and smooth to touch. Newly stripped trees have great big orange scars, which fade out to black

Plus one photo of a marble quarry discard heap. A lot of marble comes from around hereRead more