Patterns of Porto

I don’t know if I’ve ever been anywhere so full of aesthetically pleasing patterns and textures. I’m a sucker for a good wall tile, and Porto has plenty. The views were memorable too. I walked, ate, walked, ate and drank … as per normal travel routine. Though this time port was the drink of choice because… well Porto. Yep that’s where it comes from.

Walk: Porto is along the coast of Portugal and while meeting my temporary room mates back in the hostel, I found that it is along a leg of the Camino and there was some serious walking that could be done along the beaches. This tickled my fancy for sure. So I set of one morning to see what I could see. As it turns out, what I could see was a groups of old leathery Portuguese men lining the sand baking away. Oh there was beautiful stretches of beach too… it’s just that the men is what is etched into my memory (not voluntarily mind you).

Eat: Oh boy the things that you can eat! Firstly it should be no surprise to anyone that Portuguese tarts or Pastes de Nata are little pastries straight from heaven. If you are unfamiliar with these cinnamon delights then life as you know it is about to change. THEY ARE GOOD. Let’s leave it at that and move on because there are bigger and cheeser matters. While doing some foodie research I stumbled across the Francesinha which is basically Porto’s beast that they contribute to the sandwich world. It is massive! Layers of meat and bread are topped with an egg covered by cheese and smothered with gravy. Would you like fries with that? Of course, why not go the full heart attach. Yep she’s not for the faint hearted, of which I am not. So I conquered the beast and was even able to polish most of the fries too. Hey… don’t judge me like that, see above, I have done plenty of walking.

Drink: I am by no means a connoisseur when it comes to alcohol. My drinking philosophy is as complicated as house wine or beer. I do try though to drink local and enjoy what each place has to offer. So here in Porto, it was port’s turn. There are plenty of cellars to choose from all offering tours and tastings. Port is unique because it only originates from Portugal specifically Porto as the grapes are grown along the Douro River. It is a sweet red wine and has a particular aging process. The ‘caves’ that I visited to learn more was Burmester which is close to the river and has beautiful views. It also seemed to be less pretentious or popular which is always a win. The tour ended with tasting and although it was a bit sweet for my liking it was cool to see the difference the barrel and year made to the taste. There is so much that goes into the process that I can appreciate the effort if not the taste.

So enjoy the patterns, the sights and the tastes that Porto has to offer.