We piled into our first of two taxis (what they had to do as our initial ride got a flat tire) for the ride to the surprisingly large airport for Gran Canaria at 07:00. It was a straightforward ride to the airport and we got through ticketing and security in short order. We found a adequate bite to eat and settled down to wait for our first flight of the day. It’s a straightforward trip to Porto even though it does require two flights that go somewhat out of their way. About ten hours after we left Agaete and an absolutely lousy ham and cheese (sort of) sandwich on our flights we arrived in Porto, Portugal. We settled into our rooms at the Four Points Sheraton in Matosinhos. We are a couple blocks from the beach which turns out to be surprisingly wide white sand beach. We found a Napalese-style cuisine restaurant which served us rather good dinner which was a refreshing change from the dinners of the past week.
One nice feature of this hotel is the rooms are quite inexpensive at €75/night. You pay an extra €12.50 per person per day (and it must be every day) for a buffet-style breakfast. It’s money we might be able to better spend elsewhere given the quality of the breakfasts but we’ve bitten the bullet and that is that. The hotel in Las Palmas was easily twice as much. I’ve no idea what the Occidental Roca Negra in Agaete charged. The rooms here are exceptionally nice and goodness knows you aren’t going to find a hotel room in a city with a quarter million people living in it back home that is comparably priced. It’s probably this cheap because we aren’t really in the heart of the city where the historic center and far more touristy bits are located. The Ribeira by the River Douro is probably about 8km away: call it is 20 minute Uber/taxi ride. We decided to play things by ear as Dad was under the weather but we had at least one place to visit: Serralves Contemporary Museum of Art. From the hotel it’s a couple miles walk.
The walk Apple Maps took us on, chosen because it was the “fastest” was alright but not really exciting. We passed by a large park that we suspect was quite nice. We also suspected that going along a major avenue that we would later drive down would have been the better choice for city-seeing. Our route was residential and a bit dull. But the morning was sunny and warming towards the upper 50s so it was enjoyable enough. Fortified with a pastry of some sort or other and small cappuccinos (how else in Europe) we enter the Serralves Foundation complex. The buildings that house the museum and other things are massive. I think the architecture is a bit stark and rigid. The intereors are massive volumes that I think could eaisly contains 2 or 3 of homes of the size we have back home. Those volumes seem terribly empty. And the art just didn’t do anything for me. The space with the hanging ropes and patterned tiles around the walls that featured a ramp leading down to a tiled expanse that seemed to slope further down in front of a window that framed some wonderful trees was the best space. Too bad a photograph couldn’t capture the sense of the space.
However, the grounds were a very nice surprise. We ambled through the paper birch glade to an allee that had at its entry a sculpture by Claes Odenburg: a giant spade. I suppose it honors people who work the soil. While it’s impressive I preferred the vortex-like twisting metal that came up next as we strolled along the sweet gum tree lined allee. We had to watch where we placed our feet lest we trod upon seedpods from the trees. Those pesky pods can easily roll under your foot and were everywhere. The allee eventually took us to a set of connected pools. Everything is wonderfully maintained and landscaped. It is formal in its style but lovely.
Our walk through the grounds closed with our exploration along a boardwalk that runs easily a few hundred feet through the canopy tops of the trees in a portion of the complex. I’ve no idea what trees we walked through but it was an enjoyable stroll giving us a chance to look down from upon high. It also really marked the end of our time in the complex since after we returned to the main building we found that the restaurant served lunch but it was a €17-per-person buffet and we have had enough buffets for a while. Since Dad was flagging we got an Uber back to the hotel and tried the little place we had seen earlier for lunch. Arcadia was surprisingly good.
Mom and I did a bit more exploring of the beach/promenade later in the day while Dad worked on conquering his cold. We had a very light-style pizza: light crust, minimal cheese and sauce, decent toppings though not hot enough pizza at Pizzaria Luzzo’s. We suspect they do a brisk business even though, like many places, they don’t open until 19:00 (7:00PM). The spaghetti bolognese we got for Dad as carry-out was actually a better choice.
The Last Day
It’s too bad we didn’t find this walking tour before coming to Porto. Mom found what looks like a lovely walking tour if you have only one day (though they suggest 2 is better) in Porto. But with Dad still contending with his cold a 6-hour tour spanning several kilometers of possibly hilly walking and at least some rides on public transportation just wasn’t going to happen. We settled on a little exploring at the queyside where the bridges tour boats moored near Ribeira Square and Pont Dom Luis 1 (Dom Luis 1 Bridge). I’m sure we would have liked to do more but you do what you can or are willing to do. It’s a lively area. Tourists, locals, groups of school-aged children going places, all moving about in a fairly small region. That would become more noticeable later in the day when we climbed 200-odd steps and some ramps to get to the upper level of the Dom Luis 1 Bridge passing through areas that seemed rather devoid of life. The sun shone down in an essentially clear sky. Little wind blew. It felt considerably warmer than the day before though I supect the actualy air temperature was barely any higher. The boat pulled away from the dock on time and we were treated to a gentle ride up and then down the River Douro under half a dozen bridges. I wish I oculd tell you about the places we passed but it was a trial to get the app to work. Bad design: light gray text on a white background to select the langauge of choice. Hard for me to read; hard for people not really comfortable with technology to use. By the time we had it working properly I am not at all sure it was synced with the boat’s movements. It was then the descriptions were not up to the locations we passed. I’ve no doubt there is a vast amount of history here but I absorbed none of it. Mom and Dad didn’t gather much informaiton either. However, it was a pretty ride on a nice late morning.
When we climbed away from the river to find the entry point on our side of the river we had to contend with about 200 steps of various heights and some sloping streets. It seemed to pass through pretty dead bits of city for a time before popping out on a bustling street where I suspect a lot of things were going on. I was able to go out on to the bridge and the views are pretty good though I am pretty sure they won’t remain in memory for long. While I did that Mom and Dad found some shops to explore. But in time it was time to get an Uber and ride back to the area of the hotel: Dad was ready to be done. We settled on a second lunch at Arcadia and I am sad to report our second meal selections were nowhere near as good as our prevous ones had been. In fact, they were pretty mediocre if not donwright poor. Don’t get the stuffed crepes. My gelato from the ice cream place down the street was far more enjoyable.
I am quite sure there is a lot to do in Porto. Two or three days would be plenty for us under normal conditions I think. It’s hard to get explore when someone is really under the weather. If I were adventurous I suppose I could have gone out on my own but I’m not willing to do that. Maybe in an English-speaking city. That’s not really a given here. We will find a nearby place for dinner. Maybe one of the hole-in-the-wall seafood (maybe some meat) places Mom and I saw yesterday or the Nepalese place again. Tomorrow we get what we all fully epect not much from box breakfasts from the hotel at 06:30 and get a taxi to the aiport to start our flights (around 09:00) back to Rhode Island. Is it wrong of me to say I am looking forward to picking up dinner at Dave’s or perhaps Picasso’s Pizza? I think we all are.
Photos
Claes Oldenburg’s spade marks the entrance, close enough, to the formal gardens here at the Serralves Contemporary Museum of MOdern Art. I suppose it is a salute to the people who work the soil like master gardeners like Mom here. Photo by Jonathan
—February 27, 2024 at 11:35 AM.
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I am not sure who created this vortex of a sculpture. We have passed thorugh a blade of birch white birch trees and entered an allee lined with sweet gum trees that are already dropping their seedpods all over the ground waiting for someone to step on them. Photo by Jonathan
—February 27, 2024 at 11:38 AM.
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Looking back along the sweet gum tree allee. It’s a cool sunny day.
—February 27, 2024 at 11:40 AM.
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The lands around the buildings are landscaped in a formal style. This set of connected pools is just one example of the lovely grounds.
—February 27, 2024 at 11:50 AM.
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I do not know what types of trees we are walking through as we walk along this boardwalk amongst the treetops. It is a lovely stroll.
—February 27, 2024 at 11:58 AM.
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This is a remarkable sculpture by American artist Janet Echelman. It’s called Sea Moves or Sea Changes. The net moves.
—February 27, 2024 at 2:33 PM.
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We think many of the buildings here along the River Douro are residential. I expect they go for a pretty hefty sum. The colorful facades are created by extensive tile mosaics.
—February 28, 2024 at 10:51 AM.
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—February 28, 2024 at 11:44 AM.
Maps are centered on the photo: Google map, Apple map, OpenTopoMap map
—February 28, 2024 at 11:44 AM.
Maps are centered on the photo: Google map, Apple map, OpenTopoMap map
I think we are nearing the downstream end of our cruise. The river is lined with all sorts of biuldings. Not really visible from here are the intricate tilework facades.
—February 28, 2024 at 11:55 AM.
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—February 28, 2024 at 12:11 PM.
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Near the dock, though at the end of the ride, for our cruise. I do not know what the church on the Villa Nova de Gaia side of the RIver Douro is. The bridge is the Dom Luis 1 bridge. Perhaps you can see people walking on the upper level. Trams run across the central section of that level.
—February 28, 2024 at 12:13 PM.
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Views from the center of the upper level of Pont Dom Luis 1 (Dom Luis 1 Bridge) looking upstream (top) and downstream (bottom ) from a couple hundred feet above the River Douro.
--February 28, 2024 at 12:52 PM.
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