Some beloved family members – and their pets, two dogs and two cats – moved to Porto, Portugal about six months ago, and last month I went to visit them for the first of what I expect to be many trips to Portugal (as long as I don’t ruin things by being a terrible guest!). This trip was mainly about seeing them and where/how they are living now, but I can tell you about a few fun things I experienced this time and recommend if you plan to visit Porto.
My first day there, while staying up to fight jet lag and get adjusted to the time change, we went to a tour of the Pinhais sardine factory (more information and tickets here). In addition to seeing the factory itself, we learned about the history of sardines in Portugal, saw a staircase designed to look like a sardine when viewed from the correct angle ( see above – the light is its eye), practiced wrapping a tin of sardines (which the professionals can do perfectly in mere seconds but I definitely could not), and finally had a sardine/wine tasting.
The next day, feeling fresh and ready to go, we enjoyed a fantastic tile painting class at Gazettes Azulejos (more information here). The tiles that are so beautiful covering the exteriors of buildings in Porto also serve practical purposes, keeping moisture from seeping into the facade, insulating from excess heat or cold, and strengthening the structures. Gazettes Azulejos is working to catalogue all the Porto facade tiles, and you can use a pattern from an actual address to recreate your own tile to take home as a souvenir. They admonish that “too much perfection is a mistake” and I would say that keeping that in mind is key to enjoying the workshop, as it is harder than it appears at first. The tiles I painted are definitely not perfect (the second one was better than the first, so practice helps), but I enjoyed making them, learning about the process, and bringing them home as a memento. One thing that surprised me is that Cobalt Blue looks light lavender before firing! You leave the painted tiles and come back to pick them up the next day after they are fired. I made a reel about the class that you can see on Instagram here.
One of my favorite things to do in any city (including my own New York City) is to simply walk around and experience it. Porto was a beautiful walking city, with plenty of hills and staircases to keep things interesting and muscles fully engaged!
The rooster is the symbol of Portugal, and they roam many of the public parks. At the park next to the Crystal Palace, there were also peacocks. You can see a video of the peacock showing off on Instagram here.
Porto is – not surprisingly – known for its port wine, and a port wine tour and tasting at Grahams – across the river in Gaia -was fantastic. This particular tasting paired food (a pastel de nata pastry, aged cheese, and chocolate) with three different ports. Grahams has some bottles still aging from the 1860s! A reel about Grahams can be seen here.
Speaking of pastel de nata, I tried several at different places. You can get these cups filled with sweet custard either plain or with cinnamon, and I liked mine with cinnamon. And the official cocktail of Porto, the porto tonico, was enjoyed several times! The porto tonico is white port and tonic water, garnished with orange peel, a cinnamon stick, and a mint leaf. Really, really good . . .
Livraria Lello proudly states itself to be “the most beautiful bookstore in the world” and I would dare not disagree. It is very hard to get into – you need timed tickets that you pay for, but the ticket cost can go toward a purchase. We went just before closing and managed to get a few photos without dozens of other people in the picture as well. To find out more about the bookstore or purchase a timed ticket, click here.
My final day before returning to NYC, we did a guided tour of the Douro Valley including wine tastings and a boat ride. The Douro Wine Region Valley is the oldest demarcated wine growing region in the world, and a World Heritage Site. The Douro (which ends up dividing Porto from Gaia just before emptying into the Atlantic Ocean) carved out this rich and beautiful landscape. I have written before about wine tasting in Napa and this day was just as special (see a reel about the day here on Instagram).
Of course the best part of this trip to Porto was spending time with family and experiencing a bit of the new life they have made there. They threw an amazing dinner one night where a private chef came in with all the ingredients and then we, the dinner party, made the meal under his guidance – so much fun, see a video reel here. And I look forward to exploring much more in Portugal as I visit them over the next many years.
Julie Brannan, NYC residential real estate 