Indeed, it was the proximity of their fish supply an important economic engine, particularly in the canning industry in Setúbal, but in the meantime languished since the mid-1970s until complete relocation to other parts of the country.

Although most of the local cuisine wasbased on fish dishes, the population migration from the regions of Alentejo and Algarve brought changes to the gastronomy with the introduction of new meat dishes and poultry, and açordas that have adapted to seafood and fish. Also part of the gastronomic repertoire of the city spirits (muscatel wine and liquors), cheeses, fruits and typical traditional sweets of the region.

Setúbal is known for cuisine based on grilled fish dishes, baked or grilled. It is very common to find the local restaurants that serve grilled sardines, usually served with boiled potatoes monitoring and seasoned lettuce salad with oil and vinegar. You can also find grilled or baked fish dishes such as spicy grilled mullet with made from fish liver sauce.

Other dishes on the sea-based products include: whelks and choco-based salads and octopus; seafood-based dishes Sado river (spider crab, crab, Crab); shellfish-based dishes (clams “Bulhão Pato”, oysters, lamejinhas, cockles, razors, scallops, sea snails); fish stews or seafood, made far more frequently in cataplanas (a legacy of Arab culture); and also masses of grouper or other fish.

Wine production in the Setubal region has led to internationally recognized products, with a variety of red and white wines of quality, made from grapes matured on the slopes of the Capuchin Convent. These products should stand out the Moscatel, a renowned liqueur wine origin demarcated centered Azeitão. The Arrabidine liquor, less known to the public, is produced by the friars who live in the Convent of Our Lady of Arrábida. In the production of liquor, whose manufacture, which began in the nineteenth century, is shrouded in secrecy, it is known that berries are used collected during the month of December at the Capuchin Convent and other unique ingredients of the region. The Arrabidine liquor is bottled and need to intern about 15 years before being consumed.

The repertoire of traditional sweets of the Setúbal region are part of the cheesecake, pies, and “these Azeitão” – biscuits in the shape of the letter “S”, made with flour, sugar, margarine, eggs and cinnamon. Setubal also stand out the Logs of “shell” of orange, made from oranges produced in the region. Finally, we emphasize the production of cheese as one of the significant craft and economic activities of the Blue Coast region.

The cetárias, or fish salting tanks, stretched even in 1858 a distance of 4 km, according to Carlos Ribeiro. Thus concludes that once there stood an industrial town, with a bulky of garum and fish canning industry, whose production would be exported outside the peninsula and therefore also an important center fishing. This Roman center occupied the best part of the peninsula and how the land was not unhealthy, in contrast to Setúbal, workers have been recruited from neighboring indigenous settlements, which led to the depopulation of the area according to the Roman strategy, mentioned by Strabo.

Research carried out show that this settlement date of the second century AD, showing signs of progress and development in the following centuries. Shows signs of decay season in recent years of its occupation. Living an industrial activity that had its markets outside the peninsula, the decline of the empire and the fall of its western part implied and explain the decline of the town.

The Lusitanian-roman site of Troia is important in the religious point of view, as well as any traces of pagan worship and Christian, is one of the rare places in Portugal where it is known to have the  worship of Mithra, revealed in a bas-relief.

The foundation of a convent in Arrábida date of the end of 1538-1539, when Bishop John of Lancaster 1st Duke of Aveiro promised to Brother Martin (Martin de Santa Maria Benavides), an Andalusian barefoot friar of the Order of St. Francis, fulfill the his desire to lead a hermit’s life and exclusively dedicated to Our Lady.

The duke gave him the Capuchin Convent, where already was an open chapel for worship in that worshiped the image known as Our Lady of Arrábida. It is then that there comes St. Peter of Alcantara help your relative, the Spanish friar to create the Franciscan Custody Arrábida then subject to the Minister General of the Franciscan convent. Later custody Arrábida was elevated to Arrábida Province and was formally subject, albeit with a high degree of autonomy, the Minister General of the Franciscan Observant. The Franciscans friars, as they were popularly known, began by call itself officially as Discalced Franciscans and later as followed the constitutions drawn up by St. Peter of Acântara, Discalced Franciscans Alcantarines or abbreviated Franciscans Alcantarines.

Jorge de Lencastre, son of the first Duke of Aveiro, continued the works in the Convent of Arrábida and did build a fence to seal the area of the convent. Later, Don Alvaro de Lencastre, his cousin, had built the inn that served as his bed and designed the watchtowers on the crest of the hill, linking the convent to the foot of the mountain, leaving, however, three unfinished. In 1650, Dona Ana Manique de Lara, widow of the Duke of Torres Novas and daughter of Don Alvaro, he built two chapels. In turn, the son of Don Alvaro, D. Anthony of Lancaster, had built the Sanctuary of Bom Jesus.

The Mua Stone Natural Monument is a natural monument created in 1997 (Decree No. 20/97) 1 in Sesimbra and from 2005 became part of the limits of the Arrábida Natural Park and consisting of tracks with Sauropods footprints.

The Park presents diverse, rocky and sandy bottoms with depths up to 100 meters. With sheltered areas such as various coves at the base of coastal cliffs, to swell zones, as in Espichel. The high animal diversity can be easily observed along the rocks, where there are frequent anemones, the starfish, sea urchins sea and crustaceans. The variability of fish is also amazing, with lesser known species, because they are not fishing target, that make this marine ecosystem of the richest national and European level. Particular emphasis on marine wildlife in Stone Anicha, with the coastal bay to be an important area for the development and maintenance of marine fauna of the North Atlantic. The underwater flora also has considerable ecological importance features.

The Marine Park includes a Total Protection Area 4 km² (10% of the Park area) where it is not allowed any fishing, four Partial Protection areas with a total of 21 km² (40% of the Park area), with restrictions fishing traps and lines, part of the Portinho Arrábida and Figueirinha (about 1.8 km²), and three areas of Supplementary Protection with a total of 28 km² (50% of the Park area) where only licensed vessels can operate .

Is the only point of the Portuguese coast where nests the rare Bonelli’s Eagle (Hieraaetus fasciatus)

Among the mammals include the fox (Vulpes vulpes), the weasel (Mustela nivalis), the toirão (Mustela putorius), the genet (Genetta genetta), wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), badger (Meles meles) and the likely occurrence of wildcat (Felis silvestris), the weasel and the weasel (Martes foina). The caves, especially the cliffs have associated a very particular fauna of bats: Bat-of-Teddy (Miniopterus schreibersii) bat of horseshoe-Mediterranean (Rhinolophus euryale) bat of horseshoe-large (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum) and bat -of horseshoe Moorish (Rhinolophus meherlyi).

Among the birds stand out Bonelli’s eagle (Hieraaetus fasciatus) – with the only couple nest in the Portuguese coast, the peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus), the eagle owl (Bubo bubo), the screech owl (Tyto alba), the swift-real (Apus melba), the blackbird, blue (Monticola solitarius) and the black redstart-(Phoenicurus ochrurus), the nightingale (Luscinia mergarhynchos), the robin and the wren (troglodytes troglodytes), Hawfinch (Coccothraustes coccothraustes), the hoopoe (Upupa epops), the common-partridge, lark-Tit (Galerida cristata), the nighthawk to-neck-red (Caprimulgus ruficollis) and the kingfisher (Alcedo atthis), the woodpecker spotted-large (Dendrocopus major), the tits (Parus spp.), the common-creeper (Certhia brachydactila), and the common Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus).

Amphibians and reptiles, the lizard, the snake-legged pentadáctila (Chalcides bedriagai), the snake-of-ladder (Elaphe scalaris), the snake-Ratter (Malpolon monspessulanus), the Horned Viper and the snake-in -ferradura (Coluber hippocrepis). Water resources provide shelter to the turtle (Mauremys leprous) and her water snakes (Natrix spp.).

Among the thousands of species of invertebrates is included one of the few Portuguese animal species classified as Endangered Extinction of Critical by the International Union for Conservation of Nature – the cave spider Frade – Anapistula ataecina.

The fauna is diverse, although it has undergone major changes since the nineteenth century. By the early twentieth century it was still possible to see wolves, wild boar and deer. The current fauna are part of, among others, the wildcat (Felis silvestris), the fox (Vulpes vulpes), the hare (Lepus capensis), the bat, the eagle of Bonelli (Hieraetus fasciatus) the eagle owl (Bubo bubo) the partridge (Alectoriz rufus) and the actual swift (Apus melba). In 2004, as already happened, a fire destroyed a significant part of the Park, which is slowly recovering.

In the mid-fourteenth century, a chapel was built to save an image of the Virgin, venerated long on top of the cliff where it was found. Around it grew modests homes to receive pilgrims in there demand, giving later (1715) place the construction of hostels with houses and shops, also known as House of Tapers.

To Lay of the Cape flock various and numerous groups of candles (large groups of pilgrims). Was the designated Candle Saloio (pilgrims nearby the capital) that fitted encouraging the construction of the sanctuary, as can be read on a plaque on the wall of the south side inns: “Homes of Our Lady cable made by Syrian account of. hillbillies in the year 1757 p. accommodation of stewards that may give bodo “.

Architectural ensemble of the Sanctuary

The Church of Our Lady of the Cape seventeenth century has his back to the sea. The church interior is decorated with baroque, votive paintings and frescoes. Also inside the church is a body with final characteristics of the century. XVIII / beginning of the century. XIX, possibly made in the workshop of Joaquim António Peres Fontanes.

On each side of the church there is a queue of accommodation for pilgrims called House of Tapers or simply inns, forming the Terreiro at Cape Espichel in the background one can see a cruise, where truly begins the Sanctuary.

Next to the church is the Chapel of Remembrance, a vaulted chapel, with blue tile panels and white inside. Outside are two pictures of tiled images that are highly degraded.

Next to the hostels are the ruins of the “Opera House”, built in 1770. It was designed to provide cultural activities, especially theater, for the pilgrims and revelers, having been used in shows promoted by the royal family, which also remained in the sanctuary throughout the festival period. In his stage act reached the greatest artists and theater groups from Europe, especially Italians, and the building divisions of support that ensured the permanence of these groups during the festivities.

Out of space itself the Shrine of Our Lady of the Cape, but still within the set is the Water House and the Aqueduct at Cape Espichel, very important buildings to the Sanctuary because this led to drinking water.

Weakly manned, the fortification of Sesimbra was initially taken by the forces of King Afonso Henriques (1112-1185) on February 21, 1165, that have carried out repairs and reinforcements in defense.

The conquest of Silves Castle in 1189 by the forces of King Sancho I (1185-1211), raised a Muslim counter-offensive that resulted not only in loss of Silves as much of the region of Alentejo, to the left bank of the Tagus river. The inhabitants of Sesimbra, alerted by Alcacer do Sal and fall sick with fever who then raging in the kingdom, left the village, which thereby was occupied and devastated by the forces of Caliph Abu Yusuf Ya’qub Almohad al-Mansur (1191).

Sancho I (1185-1211) reapossou up this village around 1200 with the help of Crusaders Northern Europe (then usually called francs), which offered land for colonization. On 15 August 1201 the sovereign granted Foral Charter to the village, determining his reconstruction of the castle “from the ground up.” This charter was confirmed by his son and successor, Alfonso II of Portugal (1211-1223).