This morning we went on a walking tour unfortunately, it was not good. The guy seemed very disinterested and extremely unprofessional. As well the beginning of the tour was sort of like a review from yesterday’s sites. We went inside the train station, and it was stunning. The whole interior was decorated all in blue and white tiles, typical Portuguese. What was interesting was that each depiction had a different story from history. The second half of the tour took us closer to the Douro riverside, once we ended the tour Andrea and I headed off to cross to the other side.
We crossed over the Dom Luis Bridge. I have it say that it reminded me of the Granville street bridge back home. Once we got to the other side we were rewarded with a beautiful view of Porto and the old ships anchored in the river. These ships used to be used to transport the wine from the Douro Valley to the cellars here in Porto. Although today big trucks are used as a transportation method. We walked along the riverside and saw many shops selling anything you could think that could be related to wine, and of course the typical souvenirs. We make our way to Croft Winery. It is the oldest one in all of Porto and we went for a tour of the facilities and a tasting at the end. What we were told is that Port wine can only be made in the Douro Valley since it uses grapes form that region. Just like champagne can be made in the region in Champagne in France. And apparently the best of the best grapes are taken and squished by feet still to this day to produce the best bottles of Port, rather using a machine! I also learned that a vintage Port is able to age inside the bottle and can be kept for twenty years, however before you drink it you have to drain it first and then drink it immediately within the next few days. A tawny port is when an aged Port is combined with a new Port. The last interesting thing that I remember is that the Portuguese don’t actually drink Port that often. It is instead used for special occasions such as weddings or given to the new parents to drink when their child reaches the legal drinking age to share together. On the tour I realized how little I know about alcohol in general!
Once we left Croft we roamed the streets and ended up in a really interesting local neighbourhood. There was laundry hanging from every single balcony and children were playing cricket in the streets! We then made our way to find a view if the sun setting across the river. We weren’t the only ones that found this place either. It was full of locals enjoying one another’s company outside. We joined everyone on the grassy hill and took in the view.
We then went to one of the most beautiful bookstores in the whole world, the Livraria Lello. It is also one of the oldest bookstores in Portugual! Apparently it is also nicknamed the Harry Potter bookstore , due to the illusion of a floating bookcase inside. JK Rowling lived in Porto so lots of people believe that this city inspired and influenced the series. I can agree that it is stunning, definitely the nicest bookstore that I have ever seen!
Afterwards we went on search to find a good restaurant. Neither of us were feeling that hungry though or know where to go to avoid the typical tourist ‘traps’ so we called defeated and went back to the hostel to eat our leftovers form last night. We have gotten use to eating at a very late,around 10pm. I guess you could say that we are fitting into local life. We then started to plan for our time in Paris and the UK. I can’t believe the trip is coming to an end, only two more countries left!