12 & 13 September 2016, Monday and Tuesday, Porto rest days

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12 & 13 September 2016 Porto

And why is Porto special? The three of us have declared it to be our favorite Portugeuse city/town!!

- incredible location on the Rio Douro (River of Gold) near the sea

- home of port wine

- wonderful mix of old and new in architecture, food and life style

- one of most beautiful bookstores with Harry Potter connection

- where we meet our Australian friends, Moira and Julian, who now join us on the Portugeuse Camino

Our weather is holding and we enjoy walking up and down the city streets, including the old medieval quarter near the Se, (old cathedral.) Also, the city is known for its fabulous buildings with the tile azuelo scenes, both inside and out. We ride the Hop-On/Hop Off bus to get a good overview of the city. We climb more stairs when we labor up the 225 steps of Clerigos Torre. We visit the haunt of J.K. Rowling, Lellos Book Store, that provided some of the inspiration for her Harry Potter series. We take a 6 Bridge River Cruise and have a tour and tasting at Calem Port Wine Lodge. Up the funicular we go and we walk twice, back and forth over the Douro, using the Ponte de Dom Luis I bridge.

We dine at a 'hole in the wall' that features all organic food, including a vegetarian option. We arrive early, which is good as within a half hour there is a line outside the door. At the other end of the spectrum is the lunch featuring the Francesinha sandwich which could start cardiac arrest. We split that meal! The hotel breakfast is good and provides us with items for lunch later in the day. Another little restaurant, Cana Verde, serves up wonderful fried sardines.

We love Porto!

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Photos

Hotel Carris Porto Ribeira
Our home base in the Ribeira 'Old Town' section

Casa da Musica - major concert hall space
Architect - Rem Koolhaas (Dutch) only concert hall in world with 2 walls made entirely of glass

Palacio da Bolsa - Stock Exchange building
Built by captains of commerce to show the grandeur of the city and nation

"By the sea, by the Sea"
Mouth of Douro River and Atlantic Ocean

One of many of Porto's bridges
Viewed from Vila Nova de Gaia

Cafe Santiago - home of Portuguese sandwich
Ingredients: bread, wet-cured ham, linguica, fresh sausage, steak or roast meat, covered with melted cheese and hot tomato and beer sauce

Knights Templar were also here!
Notice the distinctive red cross

Mosterio da Serra do Pilar
Vila Nova de Gaia side of river