Em Porto: Port Tasting

We were lucky enough to spend several days based out of Porto. This beautiful city is, as the name would indicate, a port, and, also as the name would indicate, the hub of port wine.

This city sits on the end of the Duoro River, and served as the transportation point for the port made further north up the river. As such, the port houses have caves and/or tasting rooms, largely located directly across the river in the town of Vila Nova de Gaia.

We were lucky enough to be staying in Vila Nova de Gaia, so we could stare at the beautiful Porto from our windows. It was also fortuitous when it was time to go port tasting.

My friends decided to take a bike ride, but due to our very late start I decided to stay back and hit up some caves. I figured this would be similar to wine tasting here in the States, where you can sit at a bar and learn about the wines, and talk to the pourers or others standing nearby. So, I didn't think it would be a big deal to head off by myself.

I think this was stop 5...the barrell wouldn't dance with me

Unfortunately...port tasting at these houses is way different than what I was expecting. Perhaps it was the places I went, but my experience went something like this:

1. Pay for tasting -- one place was 5Euro for 3 tastings, one was 20E for 6 (including a few wines). Others were about 2-3E per glass
2. Go sit down...by myself somewhere on a chair, usually no where near where the drinks are poured
3. Get drinks brought to me. All of them. At once. With very little explanation and no way to ask further questions.
4. Drink everything provided. These were not small pours, either...they were what we would get here in SF if we paid for a nightcap. And remembering that port is much stronger than regular wine, and that there was no food other than some chocolates, well...things can get weird.

This is not to say it wasn't fun -- it was just much less social than I would have liked it to be. I had so many questions, and the pourers really don't come back around to answer any. With so much delicious port, the experience really makes the difference in what you'll purchase. In fact, the only bottle I bought was probably mediocre, but we had the most fun tasting at that particular cave (they were open late, and had a fado singer). You really can't go wrong with any of the ports you'll try, and you'll figure out what time you like -- white, tawny, ruby... and you'll figure out just how much you can drink before this happens: 

Porto: In Pictures

Porto is easily one of the most beautiful cities I have ever had the pleasure of visiting. Vibrant, hilly, and on water? I am sold.

These are a few of my favorite images...

One of my first pics -- the port boats with Porto in the background

Hope it's not time to leave yet.

Sunset on the coast -- edge of the world

One last shot before we go.

Em Porto: Day Trips!

"Here Was Born Portugal"

 We were lucky enough to spend quite a bit of time in Porto -- and I highly suggest at least 2 full days there, if not a third. But it is also a great place to be based, as there are several easy day trips that take you to smaller towns in Portugal -- just a quick train ride away. We were told that we needed more time/overnight stays to visit the Duoro Valley, so we went along with some suggestions provided by the trusty bike rental place guy.

The first we were told to visit was Guimarães, a university town up northeast from Porto. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage site (Portugal has a lot of these!). It is about a one hour train ride from Porto -- just make sure you purchase the correct ticket (we didn't), and seemed, to us at least, to be a nice quiet escape from the business of Porto.

Historical Center of  Guimarães

The two sites that we headed off to see were the Palace and the Castle. We discovered that these two terms to not mean the same thing. The Palace was lovely -- it wasn't overly used and then was refurbished and is now just a museum. There is a beautiful chapel full of stained glass windows that was a nice place to just sit a spell. Right up the hill was the Castle...which was largely a shell with a pile of rubble inside. It was perched atop a hill, so clearly at some point it was an important fortress...but now it just looks like a cool place for maybe a live show or a photo shoot!

The town has many cute little shops and restaurants that line the streets on the way between the train station and the Castle/Palace. Also, if you wander a bit around the center, you'll come upon a beautifully manicured street that leads up to a pretty church.

Then, the following day, we headed to Viana do Castelo. About an hour north of Porto on the coast, it is a lovely train ride. For some reason, in my head, I thought we would be seeing a really pretty castle. I was incorrect!

Upon arrival, you can see the beautiful church that sits on top of a very steep hill. We had planned on taking the funicular (the Portuguese love their funiculars), but by the time we got there it was closed for lunch. So we braved a cab ride...and brave it was, as this guy whipped us around the steep hills and curves like they were straightaways. I think we were all holding on for dear life.

Despite the ornate facade, the inside of the church was rather plain. Very pretty, but not crazy. What is really special about this church is the view from the very top. For 1Euro, you can opt for the stairs or the elevator to get there. But, be warned...even with the elevator, you'll still need to climb quite a bit -- including a very narrow and steep spiral staircase. It is worth it for the view, from which you can see the whole city and then some; it feels almost as if, on a clear day, you could see across the seas to the Americas. Getting down from this peak was a little daunting -- I pulled some muscles in my leg doing it! Ouch.

After taking the funicular down from the mountain, we meandered through the old town to find some food and take in the sights. Of all the places we visited, this seemed the least touristed...also the most difficult to find someone who spoke English. My Spanish came in handy, because at least I could read most things, and we found that was more easily understood than our English. This town isn't too big, so it is easy to walk around the old center and see the other churches, municipal buildings, and what not. It felt like siesta time while we were there, but perhaps it is just that sleepy a town!

If you feel like shopping while in Viana do Castela, you're in luck -- there is a large mall right across the tracks from the main train station. If you can figure out how to get over there (read: take the stair overpass or the kind of unsavory looking underpass).

Again, another very worthwhile day trip. While Portugal overall doesn't seem to be too heavily-touristed by Americans (yet), it was fun to really get away from it all into towns that, while they had some tourists, felt more "local."

Em Porto: A Cruise Down the Duoro

 It is hard to escape the lure of the water when you're visiting Porto. You watch it lap gently against the shore in the morning, and by evening you fall asleep to the stronger waves that have developed.

Easily one of the most touristy things we did on our trip was a boat cruise down the Duoro -- which I highly recommend. It was about 15 Euro (I don't think that was the cost; it could have been between 10-20E so 15 seems like a happy medium).


These are guided to a point...there is someone talking to you, but, it had gotten too windy for us to hear anything. But it is really cool to cruise and see the edges of the city, as well as to get close to the mouth of the ocean. Watching the sunset over the Duoro was truly incredible, as was getting to see the city of Porto drenched in that dusk light.

The boat we were on also had a bar, however, it was barely staffed, and not worth our time to try to get a drink. We did end up with a few glasses of wine...of which we could barely choke down two sips. It had definitely turned and was no good! 

Taking one of these tours is definitely a great introduction to this beautiful city.

Em Portugal

Apologies (mom) for the lack of posts...Internet here in Porto hasn't been that great -- we essentially have to go into the hall outside of our apartment and pray that we hook into it. I wanted, however,to provide a quick update.

We left Lisbon on Sunday afternoon (after a beautiful sunset on Saturday night, above) and headed up to Porto. This city is amazing. I will write more about it later, but...not sure it could be more picturesque. We've been so very lucky with the weather, as well -- hot but not too hot, a little humid but overall really pleasant. Sweaters haven't had to come out until about 9 at night (or 21:00, as they call it here (I think)). 

That pic above is from my window here in Porto -- not sure we could have a more amazing view! We spent some time here in town, which included a river cruise for allows us, some port tasting & exploring for me, and a bike ride for the other ladies. We also visited the towns of Guimarães and Viana do Castelo. It was great to see others parts of northern portugal, but I do think Porto is my favorite!