Stop #5:
Between Lisbon and Mérida, Spain is a town called Estremoz, a site of strategic importance since Roman times. It has a castle that overlooks the town. And I did get some pictures of the cutest elderly Portuguese lady I ever did see. 🙂 The pousada was also really impressive.
Thanks to Fodor’s Travel Guides, Trip Advisor, and Wikipedia for the great lessons that helped me to plan and summarize this trip.