Porto

We arrived this morning in Porto and Gaia (the twin city on the opposite side of the River Douro from Porto) and promptly began a walking tour of the old city, beginning from the cathedral.

Porto Cathedral

Porto is hilly! Everything is built on a steep slope as the Douro cuts through the high hills on its way to the sea. The narrow, cobblestone streets are switchbacks that need to be navigated with some care.

View from Cathedral Plaza

A distinctive architectural element here is the use of porcelain tiles on the facades of many of the old buildings. The Moors introduced tiles to Iberia, and trade with China in the 16th and 17th centuries deepened the connection. So tile is used nearly everywhere.

One extraordinary example is the main railway station, very near our hotel, that is decorated inside with depictions of historical events all created in tiles.

Porto is also crawling with tourists! The old city is so crowded that it's difficult to walk the streets. Relatively few people appear to be locals. The citizens of Porto don't bother fighting the crowds in this old town area unless they have to come here for work.

We ate lunch at a nice restaurant along the river, which is prime tourist territory. The meal was very good, but had we not had the group reservation for this included meal, I doubt we could have gotten a table.

Old houses and warehouses along the river have been restored, and the walls designed to protect from frequent floods are no longer needed because of flood control dams upstream. So these areas are now mostly restaurants, with a few other tourist services mixed in.

In the evening we took a walk in the neighborhood around the hotel and crossed the Ponte Luis I. This bridge is constructed of iron by a protege of Gustave Eiffel and is the second oldest existing bridge in Porto/Gaia. The oldest was designed by Eiffel himself, but can no longer be used. The Luis I bridge carries only trams and pedestrians.

After our walk, many in our group went to a Fado Club to hear traditional Fado music. One of the singers was especially good, and it was obvious that she had a professionally trained voice.