Porto

In 1755 most of Lisboa was destroyed in a massive earthquake and subsequently rebuilt. Porto was spared and as a result, a lot of the beautiful old architecture still exists. The streets remain the appropriate size for horse and cart, but that's ok, as we left our car back at the airport in Lisboa. We arrived by train. Only 25 euros each, cheap! We have continued to eat and drink our way through the country. Every time we arrive somewhere new we are inundated with local specialties, which include seafood, pastries and in Porto, the strong, sweet, fortified wine called port. On Sunday afternoon we walked over the Ponte Dom Luis I to Vila Nova de Gaia and toured the Offley cave. As we sampled a white and a red port, we chatted with some teachers from Oregon who were in the country for a Habitat for Humanity project. Of course, we purchased a bottle to enjoy with friends and family at home.

We found an amazing guest house called Casa das Loios, located in the "centro" just 2 blocks from the Sao Bento Train Station (one of the Seven Wonders of Portugal). We were given great advice and daily Portuguese lessons from Marco, Luisa and Patricia.  Knowing how easily we could travel by train, we decided to go to Guimaraes for the day. Guimaraes is called "The Cradle of the Nation and Portuguese identity," as it was the birthplace of its first independent king in 1110. As well as ending up in the middle of a wedding, we spent the day wandering narrow streets, viewing castles and palaces, and having several cerveja with some new, old friends from Liverpool and their young girls, who enjoyed playing in the fountain in the Praca S. Tiago.

Our time in Porto has been way too short, but we are running out of days and our plan is to spend the time we have left on the beach. So, we are heading south to Aveiro where we will hang out with the rest of the Portuguese, French, Spanish and Italian holidaymakers, until we return to Lisboa for our flight to Amsterdam.

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