Porto – first impressions – Around Our e-Table

Storyline: Portugal by trains

The days being short at that time of the year, it was already dusk when we arrived in Porto.

A high-speed train took us from Lisbon Oriente to Porto Campanha station. Checking Mr. Google earlier it seemed like a walkable distance to our new accommodations. But it was getting late and we had to check in, find some grocery store for food supplies and have dinner at a reasonable time. So, Uber it was.

Glad we decided on it. Later in the week we’d walk to this train station, which was mostly downhill from our place. So, dragging our suitcases uphill in the opposite direction for about 3km would have been a bad idea. (Because of the many one-way streets in this city, the drive was somewhat circuitous, and in the waning light the city was unimpressive to me. When we arrived at our destination I said to Diana, “OK, I’ve seen all I need of Porto. Not impressed. Let’s go back to Lisbon tomorrow”. Just goes to show how wrong one can still be at 68 years old – A.)

Self check-in is quite convenient when one doesn’t know the exact arrival time. As in Lisbon, I had selected a small studio in the city centre, not because of the price, but because of concern about heating. It was winter even in Portugal. I knew from past experience (I used to live in Europe after all) that they don’t heat their houses as we do in Canada. Eh, it’s not that cold, but 4° C to 6° C at night in poorly insulated apartments wouldn’t be fun. They have small heaters, but if the space is large a small heater won’t be effective. This studio as many others had mini-split AC and heating in one unit over the entrance door. Besides we were not going to be there during the days.

What do we need aside from a kitchenette, a sofa to sit on and a bed? Checking the supplies, there was enough coffee and cream for a few days. And we had Alex’s tea. Who in Southern Europe drinks tea but the English? (Other civilized people 🤣 – A).

Time for grocery shopping before the stores closed. Finding a store was a bit of a challenge. Mr. Google and our host sent us to one the entrance of which appeared to be under construction. We couldn’t find the door, and went for the next Google suggestion. While Alex was navigating us through the hills, I spotted one from a chain already known to us, Pingo Doce. Groceries done, we finally had dinner and called it a night.

Next day, after breakfast, we had to find a Vodafone store. Alex, perhaps because of the videos watched in the train, had run out of data. Or should I say his phone😊. Although later we’d walk by a store near us, Google sent us up the hills for a hike. We walked by Porto’s city hall (Câmara Municipal do Porto), found the store nearby, and the phone was fed with a new SIM card. It, like the first one, was for a month although we only had a week left; it, as the first one, had enough data for everything so we were not sure how the first one was burned. Was it his phone? Mine wasn’t even 10% used and I had it as long as his.

Time for exploring the city. We had a goal and a direction. The éclair place recommended to us first, the local food scene experience after. Armed with Google maps again, Alex led us to the aimed pastry store. Not that we needed the Google or any map. And we had a printed map of the city too. Time and time again I’d say, “what did we do before phones and google maps?”, but it was his thing.

Porto is a very walkable city as we’d discover the next few days. Our accommodation was in the historic centre. Glad we walked around it a bit, for Alex’s comfort, because of his first impression during our Uber ride. I, on the other hand, liked it from the moment we stepped out of the train station.

In the week we spent there, the city quietly revealed its charms: the river,

the bridges, the reflections, the boats, the ocean views (yes, we walked to there), the beaches and promenades,

the lovers in the sunset,

the music,

the steep back alleys, the endless port wine tasting, the dining and drinking establishments (for the lack of better word in English that refers to all restaurants, taverns, pubs, fast food and sandwich places, patisseries, eateries, and more).

As with Lisbon, I had a list of side trips that never happened. Little by little we walked the length and breadth of the city, amazed by its friendliness, art and architecture.

And all this in a laid-back local atmosphere, so very different from the frantic cosmopolitan Lisbon.

We had our éclairs with espresso just before our lunch in Casa Costa.

I’ll have another post for our dining experience. But these two, just around the corner from our accommodation (and uphill, of course – A), set us up for a good start.

First on my list was São Bento train station. It was 5 min away and a must visit even if we didn’t use it to visit places near Porto. Perhaps another time.

By that time, we had already walked by Clerigos Church and Tower (Igreja e Torre dos Clérigos),

the University of Porto, and more.

There is a lot of construction for a new metro line around the train station.

But the train station is an amazing exposition of Porto and Portuguese tile art.

We wandered around, checked with the information centre about some trains we wanted to take and then continued on the streets of the old town.

Took a few photos of local life, São João National Theater

and the beautifully tiled in white and blue Church of Saint Ildefonso.

Continued up the hill to another beautifully tiled building, the Chapel of Souls

and reached the pedestrian shopping area on Rua de Fernandes Tomás.

We poked our heads into one of the famous cafés, the Majestic Café. Really nice, in an old historic building, but our budget did not allow for €5 espresso or €6 tea or a €22 simple omelet with cheese and tomato. Or should I say we were not willing to spend this kind of money for those things when we had lunch for 2 (bread, wine, big meal, soup, apples and custard desert with espresso) for €14 in Casa Costa.

Late in the day we also visited the famous market, Mercado do Bolhão. Needless to say, that late in the day most stalls were closed. We still managed to buy a handful of cherries, a few tomatillos and a small local serra cheese.

From the market we headed home, where the leftovers from the previous night were waiting for us.