Porto

Welcome to the northern capitol of Portugal. On the drive in from the airport it reminded me of Chicago. Not sure why but I think it was simply the change from palm trees to deciduous trees. Definitely more hills in the town than any of our previous destinations.

The first things I notice walking around the town is the transition to exterior tile on the homes. This trend renders nearly every street as a unique art walk. The second thing one notices about Porto is the high number of derelict buildings and homes. We estimated nearly 20% of buildings in some level of disrepair. Googling the data returned an 18% number.

Overall Porto is a large town, second largest in Portugal, with a far reaching commuter rail system that covers most all of northern Portugal. The heart of the city is the Douro river, lined with cafes and tourists. Across the river are more tourists and an assortment of wine shops. The river valley is picturesque but a bit too many wandering tourists for my enjoyment. Just a few blocks up the hill from the river you find yourself in a more classic European styled town, with the addition of tiled homes and buildings, bakeries and cafes never more than a block away. I tried my best to sample as many as possible. I also learned that one of my favorite pastries actually had its beginnings in Porto, locally the Pastel Nata. Don't ask how many I have sampled at this point, but rarely a day has passed without one. Pro tip, even the tiny grocery stores often have a bakery cabinet where you can get fresh Pastel Nata for 35 cents. Sadly the fresh made coffee is rarely available at the grocery store so compromises must be made at times. Thankfully many cafes offer Pastel Nata and coffee menu for less than 2 Euro so still not going to break your wallet.

We took advantage of the regional train options and stopped at a couple beach towns on the Porto metro line and made a day trip down to the university town of Coimbra on the regional commuter line. Each with its own character and charm. Apparently I only took the one photo at the two beach towns we visited outside Porto, the rest are Coimbra.

One other common occurrence in our travels is finding and shopping at the nearest LiDL grocery store and shoe shopping. The Porto LiDL combined both passions. But I was informed it was too much for my 50lb limit. Also, sadly, they didn't have my size.