portugal: porto

another early morning bus took me from coimbra to porto...though portugal is small, the differences between lisbon and porto (portugal's two main cities) were apparent immediately...
unfortunately the weather was crap that whole day...yuck yuck yuck...as i've said before (many times) and will probably say again (many times) i hate rain...and it rained most of this day...
i wasn't able to check into my hostel, but they let me drop my bags for a few hours, and use wifi...
upon starting my explorations, i tried to find the main post office...it didn't happen...i'm guessing lonely planet labeled it wrong on the map, or perhaps it has moved since this edition of lonely planet was published...or maybe i'm just blind and missed something very obvious...

i did find a yummy pasteleria (surprise!) with a few items i hadn't seen before...of course i had to try them...i'm not a foodie, i don't go into food descriptions of pictures much, but they were yummy...and totally unnecessary, as i wasn't hungry...across the street from that pasteleria was a market, at which i found strawberries...i doubt they were in season, but it was well worth the splurge...i also found cheese, and was sorely tempted to buy several varieties...porto is known as a town in which to buy cheese and port...(hence the name: porto)...howeva the lack of refrigeration facilities on a regular basis reminded me this wouldn't be a good idea for a budget traveler...

i walked back down the hill, toward the river that flows through town, and bought a ticket for the palacio de bolsa...it was originally built by businessmen, and still functions as the chamber of commerce for porto...you can only see the building on a tour...there are paintings everywhere, the steps are built of granite, many rooms have specific themes for decoration...one room has paintings of many members of portugal's royals over the years...in my opinion, they were not attractive...the middle of the building is an area called the hall of nations, there are many flags to see...(it's always fun to play guess the flag)

the president and directors of the chamber of commerce still meet in the gold room of this building every month, and the full chamber meets once a year...the arabian room of the palace took 18 years to complete (and looks like the alhambra palace in spain) and the whole palace took 68 years to finish...unfortunately, visitors are not allowed to take photos...
from the palace i walked around the corner to the ingreja (church) de sao francisco...i started with a small museum, which led me down to the crypt...lots of tombs and bones everywhere...inside the church itself was a LOT of carved wood and gold leaf...
each time i went outside i had to deal with rain, and wind...it is difficult to take photos when rain continually lands on your camera lens, no matter which direction you face...ugh...my feet were cold and wet, and i was generally pissed off at the world...

if it hadn't been for the rain, i would've really enjoyed my walk along the riverfront...i should mention that this area of porto is a UNESCO sight...i walked for a while, then went back up the hill to see the se...a cathedral/fortressy looking building...it wasn't open, as there were no services at that hour...but it provided a nice view in several directions, and there was a break in the rain, yippee!!!
not long after i left the se, it started raining again, so i took refuge in a cafe and ate way more than i should've, even though the food wasn't wonderful...(adequate, but not great or bad...i should've picked somewhere else)

one of the sights mentioned in the guidebook is a particular bookstore...of course i visited...it's mentioned because the staircase in the middle of the store makes it quite picturesque...i wonder how many of their sales are due to tourists who just want to see what the fuss is all about? now called livraria lello, it was originally founded (under a different name, by different owners) in the late 1800s...
there was still a bit of daylight as i left the bookstore, but i was not in the mood to continue wandering, as the weather had finally gotten to me...in for the night at my hostel...thankfully there was a space heater in my room...portuguese buildings don't often have heating systems, i spent a LOT of time during this trip huddling under blankets...this space heater felt like a true luxury!!

the next morning i woke up to fog...really? argh...my thoughts were something along these lines: first i get screwed by rain and now i won't be able to see far due to fog? not fair!! fortunately, the fog quickly...i walked to the bus station (i wanted to go to a UNESCO listed town nearby,) but it seemed to be closed...probably because it was 1 january...happy new year and all that...i'd forgotten, not that i've ever been big on celebrating this holiday...trains weren't running either, argh...
howeva, since the weather was far better today, i walked, a lot...i ended up retaking many of the photos i'd taken the day before...(blue skies always beat grey skies in a photo)

as i walked by the se, i realized it was open, as there was a service going on...the inside wasn't stunning, but i did appreciate the atmosphere in general...the organ was powerful, and there is always something that gets me when i hear so many people singing in unison...i could see at least 3 priests participating in the service...
i walked across one of several bridges, it's a nifty bridge...the upper level is for pedestrian use on the sides, public transport goes down the middle...private cars and taxis use a lower level...lovely views of the river from both sides of the bridge...

i walked to vila nova de gaia, which was once a separate village on the other side of the river from porto...now it's just part of the big city, though i think the actual boundaries make it technically separate...it is known as the home of several lodges that make and store port...it was originally founded by the celts, and was once a town in the roman empire...
i didn't think much of the area, but i loved being able to look back at porto over the river...for people who have cameras with wide view lenses or the ability to stitch pictures together, it's a great place for photos...this is also where you can catch any number of boat tours along the river...(which are probably quite popular in warmer months)...

i went back to the hostel to relax for a while, then headed out again after dark, i wanted a few photos at night...a beautiful town...
i should mention that porto is known for it's restaurants, and for that reason alone i'd like to go back, as i didn't make those part of my visit at all...
not only did i not visit the restaurants, i didn't get to any of the towns around porto...my next visit to portugal will definitely include a return to porto!