Porto, Portugal - November 6-9

Finally, three months after we returned, we've reached the end of the trip. I wish I could say that we went out with a bang, but due to a convergence of factors it was more of a whimper. We were tired, the end was near and we were admittedly looking forward to getting home, and we spent the majority of our three days there like this:



It rained. And rained. It was not the ideal way to see a city when we were already unmotivated. We spent most of our last day in Europe holed up in our hotel room reading. In some way, it seemed strangely appropriate. The rain also set the mood for visits to our new favorite place: Portuguese pastry/coffee shops.

It's a shame because Porto really was a beautiful city. The topography makes for some cool scenery and there were some interesting sights. Perhaps next time.

Of course most people go to Porto for the Port. We planned poorly and went on a Sunday meaning the only lodges open are the big, touristy ones. Of course, the whole thing is touristy now. Back in the days, the specially designed port barges would bring in grapes from the Douro Valley through the rapids of the Douro river. Now the grapes arrive in trucks and the river is damned. Nevertheless, the barges linger to maintain the atmosphere.



The port lodges are all piled together on the other side of the river from the rest of town.



Because of the location and the time we arrived, we went to the well known Sandeman's lodge.



It was, like the Guiness factory, an over the top tribute to the founder with minimal current usefulness. They did have a storage area with 150 year old ports which probably the most interesting thing. Admittedly, most people go for the tasting. Presumably some of the smaller places are more liberal with the pours, but Sandeman just offered a few small pours for us to try. Nothing interesting enough to remember. We enjoyed it nevertheless.





Later in the evening we went to the Crystal Palace Gardens. We went to the Romantic Museum which is the former residence of the exiled King of Sardinia. I'm sure it was interesting, but the Portuguese language tour made it difficult to understand. We smiled and nodded and laughed when everybody else did. (Ali wants me to add that she liked the little ballroom upstairs.)

In the same building is a port bar which was a bit more enjoyable than the lodge tour. We got some cheese and asked the server to pick some ports to pair with it. The attached garden went right out on a cliff over the water and had a great sunset view of the river feeding into the Atlantic.



In retrospect we got a bit done when the rain let up. But the next day the rain returned and we conceded defeat. Plus we had to be up early the next day for a 24 hour trek back home. Not that any amount of rest prepares you for that.