Extra time in Porto

The only thing John and I remember from our earlier visit to Porto was riding the train through the Douro Valley and going to up to some viewpoint in the city center. We thought we would spend some extra time in Porto this visit.

At a first look Porto is very likable city, built on the steep hills of the Douro River Valley, crisscrossed by interesting bridges, scenic viewpoints abound. It failed to charm me, though John liked it. Maybe there were too many visitors, many came from cruise ships. Maybe Porto's top two attractions, seafood and port, are completely orthogonal to us. Maybe the city's top bookstore charges a four-euro admission and there is always a line outside; this to an avid reader is a sacrilege against the intuition of bookstores!

The highlight of our Porto visit has to be the opportunity of meeting up with our friend Jinyi who lives in Beijing and is vacationing in Portugal and Spain. Glad to be living in this century when such a rendezvous is easily organized.

On the bus from Amarante to Porto.


Sao Bento Train Station, Porto. It's always full of photographers it seems. And rightly so; it's a beauty.


Porto has plenty of hills.


A busker on the waterfront.




No shortage of tables with a view.




View out the Douro River to the Atlantic Ocean.


Porto has a good number of city parks.




And there is a Modernist and an Art Deco, 1930's-ish, above ground parking garage. Wow!




Plus the Teatro Rivoli.


Not to mention the Louie Louie Record Shop.


Plenty of churches in Porto.




Santa Catarina shopping street.


There are some great views from the Dom Luis Bridge and surrounds.






The bridge at night.




Walking the narrow streets of the Old Town with a view to the Cathedral.


Our apartment overlooked Liberdade Plaza. And since it was the weekend of Liberty Day, a national holiday, there were concerts, fireworks, and parades there.










The old jail is now a photography museum.


Spy cameras on display.


Sun-Ling and Jinyi (left).

Quick visit to Amarante

Amarante is another last minute addition. It's a small picturesque town on a river. We happened to be in town on a Saturday, just the right mix of locals and tourists. The best part was getting to know another of Picasso's contemporaries, Amadeo de Souza Cardoso, who was born in Armante...The more of Picasso's accomplished contemporaries I uncover somewhat vindicates my prejudice against Picasso; at least in my mind.

The bus ride from Guarda to Viseu to Vila Real and through the Douro River Valley to Amarante was visually spectacular.


Amarante is on the Tâmega River, a tributary of the Douro.


Our good fortune: the sole vegetarian restaurant in Amarante was nearby, open, and served a tasty curry dish as the prato do dia (dish of the day).


I suspect these folks are a hiking club as they were huddled over a thick binder of laminated topo maps. Not to mention the spiffy hats.


At the de Souza-Cardoso exhibit.




Scenic Amarante and the Tâmega River.

On Guarda

Guarda only made it onto our itinerary less than two weeks ago. We are glad for the switch. Guarda, at 1000 meters above sea level, bills itself as the highest city in Portugal. We had in mind to do some hiking. Even though the online maps show a smattering of trails, it was not immediately obvious where to go. Since Guarda has enough historical monuments, it does not really to promote its hiking potential.

In the end, with the help of the tourist office, we made two great day hikes. The first day, we made a 23 km loop out of the popular the Quinta do Maunca hike. The second day, we took the bus to Frenao Joanes and walked back to town - 16 kms. Both days we crisscrossed the Portuguese Camino (Way of St James) many times, first we have come across in Portugal.

Guarda itself is another one of those towns -- what does everyone do here?!

Waiting for our bus to pull in to Bay 6; somewhere between Coimbra and Guarda.


We had a 1 hour "layover" in Viseu so we walked up the hill to visit the Old Town.




We pulled into Guarda around 5PM and trudged uphill to the Hotel Santos were we had a reservation. It wasn't until the next morning that we realized the hotel was literally built against the old granite city wall. Very cool!




The next day we headed straight to the tourist office when it opened at 9AM and got some great information on local hikes, studied them some, and set out on a 23 km loop that was very rewarding. The walk started right at the city wall and the old road.




This part of the walk was also part of the Portuguese Camino (Way of St James); see stone cross and windmill.


We turn away from the Camino and follow the windmills. First time in my life so close to modern windmills.






We reach the village of Alvendre; nothing much happening but they have a fountain or two, and many stone dwellings.






We cross the expressway and walk by the railroad tracks where there's some farming.


The last 4kms (all uphills) are through Guarda, and we spot some low maintenance lawns and a Chinese store (inports).






Finally we pick up some provisions at the spiffy new Mall (right) which is across the street from the old City Wall.


Day Two: AM walk around town; then ride the bus about 15 kms SE and walk back to the hotel. Here's a city gate.


On the old square.


The granite Cathedral with tourists (right) and construction crane (left).


The Modernist bank building.


We take to bus to Fernao Joanes and start walking, but first we walk up to the town's "threshing stones".


Of course there is a fountain and a community oven.




A few kms later, in nearby Meios, we spot a community clothes washing tank; the first of several that day.


We are on the Camino again!


We begin a long descent to the river, and will eventually climb out of the valley on the switchbacks of the dirt road (left center) in the distance.


Stone Chapel on the Camino.






Cross the river and up the other side.


We took a short break a few meters too close to this flighty stork's nest.






We reach a plateau of sorts with a 360 view (from atop a concrete pylon) at the Old Fort.








Then back into Guarda and the hotel.


But first a quick stop for provisions at the La Vie ... which has self-checkout!



THE END