Portugal dos Pequenitos

On the left bank of the Mondego, a few minutes’ walk from the old town, Portugal’s monuments shrink to the height of a child. Portugal dos Pequenitos — ‘Portugal of the Little Ones’ — is a miniature park opened in 1940, where the country’s houses, castles and monasteries stand in small scale along lanes built for small visitors, and where generations of Portuguese children have had their first lesson in the geography of their own country.

A pedagogue’s dream in miniature

The park was conceived by Fernando Bissaya Barreto, a Coimbra physician and pedagogue, with architecture by the modernist Cassiano Branco, and it opened in the year of the Portuguese centenary exhibitions. Beyond the miniature Portugal — from the tower of Belém to the whitewashed houses of the provinces — its pavilions reproduce the architecture of the former overseas territories, a legacy that makes the park as much a document of its time as a playground. The old town across the river offers the grown-up counterparts: the Mosteiro de Santa Clara-a-Velha at the water’s edge and the university hill above, where the students of Queima das Fitas traditions pass in their capes.

What to see

• The miniature monuments and regional houses of Portugal
• The pavilions of the former overseas territories
• The child-scale streets and gardens
• The view of Coimbra’s old town across the Mondego
• The museum rooms of the park

Practical information

The park stands at Rossio de Santa Clara, on the left bank of the Mondego in Coimbra, a short walk downhill from the university hill. Paths are easy going and built for children: bring sun protection in summer, and check the official website for opening times before visiting.

Image credit: Portugal dos Pequenitos by Daderot — CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.