Falling For Portugal: A Mai Tai Tom “Trip” Report
Chapter Sixteen: Enjoying Energizing Porto
Day Eighteen: You Don’t Bring Me Flowers, It’s Almost Like I Know You, Garden Setting, The Surprise Around The Corner, Ildefonso, On Track For Tiles, You Can’t Fight City Hall, Heart Attack On A Plate and a Majestic Cafe
Our four nights in the Douro had ended. In retrospect I believe three nights and two full days would have been the better option, however with Kim under the weather, it probably turned out as well as could be expected. We careened one last time down the wonderful Quinta do Pego Grand Prix course (fortunately we never met a car in the opposite direction), and we were off to our final destination … Porto.
Bidding farewell to the Karen Valentine Highway, we hit a toll or two and remembered to stay in the Via Verde (Green Lane) whenever those toll signs popped up. I can still hear the ding of our transponder.
A friend had recommended we check out Amarante, but after getting shut out of parking, we then encountered a little “Flower Madness” as we found ourselves stuck behind a flower delivery truck on a narrow street. As I waited patiently (or as patiently as anyone from Los Angeles could be), time kept ticking away. I was in my “Euro Tom” mood, so no cursing or horn blowing occurred. Finally, the flower lady re-emerged and we were on our way trying to keep that annoying Barbra Streisand/Neil Diamond song out of our heads.
Safely arriving at the Porto Airport without somehow damaging the car over the past nine days, we dropped it off and Ubered to the In Porto Gallery Guesthouse (Rua do Bonjardim 358, 4000-116), which turned out to be in a great location.
At the front desk I finally met Cátia, who I had been corresponding with since 2019. “I feel like I know you,” she said. Thankfully the Guesthouse had survived Covid, and we were shown to our rooms up one flight of stairs at this charming boutique lodging. There’s a quaint breakfast room and a peaceful garden with a covered deck where we enjoyed some wine on a few occasions during our stay.
Cátia gave us some helpful pointers on navigating Porto, and since we were ravenous, told us about a fantastic restaurant nearby that catered primarily to locals. We took to the street and within two blocks not only had we forgotten the name of the restaurant, but also her expert directions (we would eventually make it there later in the week). Apparently none of us are good listeners.
Wandering aimlessly, which very well could be a headline for each of these chapters, we happened upon Garden Porto (Rua de Fernandes Tomás 985), an eatery that took us 20 minutes to discover, although it is logistically only a three-minute walk from the In Porto Gallery Guesthouse. At least we got to see some cool street art on our rambling journey (this one by street and tattoo artist Nuno Costah, aka Costah, whose work can be seen throughout Porto) …
The ambiance seemed good …
… and the service turned out too be very friendly (as most all places were in Portugal). I had a delicious mac & cheese with Kimchi vegetable soup, while Tracy opted for a chicken burger. Mary went for the pulled pork burrito, while Kim had the odd pairing of mac & cheese with a croissant (he’s still trying to get those taste buds back).
After lunch, we first stopped back at our lodging where Cátia had us write down the name of the restaurant we had forgotten. Kim and Mary stayed behind to rest, while Tracy and I explored Porto. The streets were crowded. I guess I’m a city person, because I love the buzz of a busy metropolis.
Our first stop was a building virtually around the corner. The Beaux-art style Mercado do Bolhão (Rua Formosa, 4000-214) opened originally in 1914 and has had many iterations since. Even before the building was constructed, merchants were selling their fruits and vegetables at this location.
Due to building falling into near disrepair, in the 2000s there were plans to construct a luxury hotel with offices on the site, but the citizens of Porto had other ideas. In 2015 a refurbishment project commenced and knowing the four of us were going to be in town in October, just a few weeks before we arrived, the neoclassical building reopened for business. Timing baby! Tracy and I wandered the market, perusing the stalls full of fresh produce.
It looked like it was winding down a bit at 4 p.m., but still there lots of people and the market had a good feel about it.
Sometimes I really wish I didn’t like pork so much.
Tracy, of course, found a floral booth.
It had been awhile since we’d seen some sardines. We decided we’d return with Kim and Mary another day to explore more.
Along R. Formosa lots of people were shopping …
… and eating.
Speaking of shopping, we made a right at Rua de Santa Catarina, a mostly pedestrian street with tons of stores and dining options.
We’d return to this street after dinner to sip wine at a famous café, which was very busy this late afternoon.
Buildings throughout Porto are colorful.
Not too far away, near Batalha Square, we admired the 18th-century Igreja de Santo Ildefonso, with its incredible façade featuring about 11,000 azulejo tiles. I’d seen pictures before we left, but it was even more spectacular in person. The wall tiles were painted by Jorge Colaço in 1932, who was famous for his painting on azulejo. We’d check out more of Colaça’s work at our next stop.
The Baroque and Rococo altarpiece dates to 1745 …
… while the numerous stained glass windows were installed during the 20th century.
We also ran into a few saints in its museum.
If there’s a church … there’s a ceiling.
As we left, we noticed that atop the church the flag of Portugal was standing proudly.
Walking to our next destination, we ran across someone who needed a little love.
