PORTO, Portugal - April 22, 2017

Portugal's second largest city is also its most authentic, where port wine mixes beautifully with strolls past historical architecture.  Shops up and down the lanes of the historic Old Town invite endless window shopping and browsing.  But the imposing Romanesque Cathedral commands more than just a passing glance with its ornate and towering facade.  Along the Douro River, the prosperous fate of Porto was sealed when the "barcos rabelos" delivered the first wine shipments here from the vineyards upriver.  These vessels still bob with the current.  Across the river, and over the distinctive 19th century Dom Luis 1 Bridge, cellars of 58 companies fortify the prized wine that is still produced in the Douro Valley.

No ships can navigate the Douro River, so we docked at the huge terminal in Leca Da Palmeira City, and were bussed into Porto. Taking about a half your, this gave us a great panorama of the outskirts of the city.  What a beautiful place!  Porto deserves a return for several "walking days".  Even though this is a high tourist time of year, things were a lot easier to deal with than Lisbon.

Our first stop was the Cordoaria District where enjoyed some exploring. 

 

These olive trees were on a rooftop garden and the location of a geocache. Below the olive trees was a Mercado (fish market) ---- rather a strange mix of flavours in the air.

 

This photo was taken in the old square and we love the architecture, which is typical to Porto.  Local musicians busker here and we able to experience the strong Celtic influence.  They play a small version of the bagpipes, rather like the cantor . 

 

Unfortunately we were not able to cross the river to visit the wine district.  This could easily eat (or drink) up several days.

 

The famous blue and white tiles can be seen on the side of this church.

We also walked around the Ribeira district, a UNESCO World Heritage Site where explored the cobblestone streets and found 2 more geocaches.  Pretty good day for geocaches because they are generally difficult to find in these old cities, especially since they are written in Portugese.

Don't know how these photos are going to line up in this blog, but we think you can get an idea of this beautiful city.

Back on the ship, time to relax .....

 

Love to all ......