Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Category: Porto

  • Porto – Views from Dom Luís I Bridge

    The Dom Luís I Bridge was constructed between 1881 and 1886 with two decks, the upper deck being for pedestrians, trams and cars and the lower deck also for cars. The cars seemed to get the best deal there. Anyway, in 2003 the cars were chucked off the top deck of the bridge (not literally I hasten to add) to allow for better integration with the metro system.

    This also had the result of allowing pedestrians to walk along the bridge without the fear of being run over by a car. Pedestrians can still be run over by a metro service, but these things are loud and more infrequent in number, so the odds are still in the favour of walkers.

    And the upper deck of the bridge allows for some wonderful views along the Douro River. These photos don’t really do justice to how beautiful that view is, but here they are anyway.

  • Porto – When Nature Takes Over

    There has been a high level of depopulation in Porto over the last few decades, even in the city centre. Many buildings have been abandoned, around 20% by some estimates, with some of the structures now well beyond repair. Although it’s sad to see buildings like this fall out of use, it can make for a beautiful sight when nature takes over the site.

  • Porto – Historic Tram 18

    Porto has three tram lines, although they’re all run as heritage lines with no modern trams in the network. There is also a light rail system in the city and it seems positive that the trams have been preserved at least in part. Unlike in many cities though the tram system survived until well after the end of the Second World War, lasting into the 1970s. By 1978 there were four tram lines remaining, routes 1, 3, 18 and 19.

    As the years went on it was clear that some provision of trams would be useful, but that the tram network wouldn’t be an integral part of the city’s transportation infra-structure. So after numerous changes and developments, the city ended up with three heritage lines, known as lines 1, 18 and 22.

    And this is line 18, running from the transportation museum at Massarelo to Carmo. It’s a popular service and the tram frequently looked full when I saw it, although generally it was easier to hear it, as it’s not the quietest transportation option that I’ve ever experienced. It might be unfair to use the word rickety, but it did at times give that impression….

  • Porto – Presto Pizza

    I had gone through a number of local delicacies when in Porto, including the Francesinha sandwich, so after all that exotic regional cuisine I returned to Italian food.

    This is the sort of positivity that I need in my life.

    The Super Bock stout is much nicer than I had initially expected it to be, although broadly it’s a consistently badly reviewed beer. I thought the lightness worked quite well in the heat of Porto, and it had a creamy flavour which lingered appropriately. It’s what I’d expect a southern European stout to taste like.

    The pizza with a crispy base and not too much cheese, just as I like it.

    And the lemon tart, with a suitably sharp edge to it.

    The pizza, beer and dessert came to just over £10, which seemed perfectly acceptable value for money. The service was friendly and attentive, with the whole meal service being efficient so I wasn’t left waiting for endless periods of time.

  • Porto – Cemiterio de Agramonte

    This cemetery opened in eastern Porto in 1855 following an increase in the number of burials needed following a cholera epidemic. The city authorities were a little panicked by the whole situation, with many closed cemeteries belonging to churches and monasteries being promptly reopened.

    The chapel at the cemetery opened in 1870 and the peaceful nature to the cemetery has made it a location commonly visited by visitors to the city. Including me….

  • Porto – Port Testing

    I’m not a huge fan of port, but I thought that if I was going to Porto then I should probably sample the local drink.

    There was a port tasting offer on which only cost a few euros, including three different types of port and some crackers. I was excited about the snack offering, or as much as you can be about crackers, but it was just to cleanse the palate between the drinks. I could have done with some crisps though to go with the port.

    I hadn’t realised that white port was a thing, but this was my favourite of the three. Although the other two were nicer than the ports that I’d had before and they were all pleasant to taste. The white port had a fruity and refreshing taste to it, not as rich as the other ports.

    And for those with some money to spend, here’s the price list of some of the finer ports that were for sale. One of the bottles of port was €5,770 and I had a think about buying one and then decided not to. I think I’m more of a €1.49 Fanta from McDonald’s kind of person…..

    This was a pleasant experience though, inexpensive and it lasted for around fifteen minutes or so, and it was a revelation to me about just how wide ranging port could be.

  • Porto – Arrábida Bridge Climb

    This is the Arrábida Bridge over the Douro River, an arch bridge made of reinforced concrete which was completed in 1963.

    I’m not sure why I thought this was a good idea, since I don’t like climbing and I’m scared of heights.

    Underneath the bridge. There were elevators on the bridge, but these were closed down in the 1990s as the parts to repair them were too expensive.

    The climbing bit. Incidentally, I was entirely confused by the whole harness thing, which seemed a complete conundrum to put on. The guides were really helpful and friendly, although there was a visitor who was a Russian bridge engineer standing next to me who kindly explained how to deal with the very complex harness situation.

    The view on the way up.

    The river.

    Me being very brave.

    I was at one stage the only person on this trip, but there were a few walk-ups which meant that there were around eight of us in the end. There was a family where the mother didn’t want to go up, so she sat at the bottom eating cake whilst the rest of her family traipsed to the top.

    There was a nice surprise of a chocolate and drink of port at the top of the climb, which was much appreciated. The climb wasn’t particularly expensive (about €14 I think), but it was an interesting attraction and the adventure lasted for around an hour. The views over the river were of course no better than just walking along the top of other nearby bridges, but it was still an experience and the guide gave lots of background information about the construction of the project. Apparently it’s the only bridge arch climb in Europe, which is slightly surprising.

    One of the things that was pointed out was some graffiti which had been painted onto the side of the bridge a couple of decades ago. The guide said that no-one was sure how anyone could have gotten there to paint it, it must have been a feat of some ingenuity. The underside of the bridge had for a period been unprotected, so people used to make their own way up. This situation wasn’t though seen as ideal, and it was all blocked up.

    Today, this is now one of the most popular attractions in the city centre, and it’s definitely worth having a little go. The climbing was actually relatively minimal and there weren’t really any potential safety issues as we remained some way from the side, something which entirely suited me.

  • Porto – Arriving into the City

    I visited Porto in October 2016 and I took these photos when walking from the city centre to my hotel, which was as usual on a hill nowhere near the centre. Unfortunately the Google Photos compression has rather taken the edge off them, but they seemed quite atmospheric when I took them.