Days 9-11 Down the Iberian Peninsular - Porto

8 Down The Iberian Peninsular – Porto

We left this little gem of a campsite, tucked away on the outskirts of Chaves, it isn’t a top modern all singing all dancing site, but it caters for all your needs, very adequate facilities (piping hot showers), wonderful friendly personnel (ask Linda the set up a TV especially for her) and in the middle of wooded hills, so if you are interested in nature this is for you.

We drove back to the motorway the same way as we came in, this would lead us to the Toll set up point, we now had researched and found out what was required, it was not at all difficult to set up the account, you put in your bank card and they photographed your licence plate, printing out a ticket as proof that you were who you say you are, from then on you can drive on the motorways using this system and you will be debited for Kms covered.

We travelled along at a 100km at times we disappeared into the low cloud but there was next to no traffic on the road, at times as we drove along the Douro valley catching glimpses of vine yards and small hamlets clinging to the hillside.

As we neared Porto, we could see that the cloud was lifting and we could see the sea, that was a lot of seas (sees). The Sat-Nav found the Campsite with no problems, it is about 5 km south of Porto, right on the beach (well not actually on the beach but separated by a road).

This is a site totally different from the last, all mod cons and a terrible WIFI connection.

We got our pitch and set up the camper, no real problem, just our neighbour thought he knew better than the staff, trying to tell us that we were pointing in the wrong direction (it was he who was pointing in the wrong direction as he will find as he tries to leave).

We inquired at the reception where we could eat some good seafood, the helpful receptionist told us in very good Eengleesh, that just 100mts down the road was a good place to eat. It was very windy, but not cold and we admired the bright dune flowers that lined the path. Arriving at the restaurant, being greeted by a monk (he didn’t actually say anything, as he was a statue), inside was quite busy, but once seated, the very attentive staff presented us with the menu. It wasn’t overtly large, but had  a very nice selection of dishes, both fish and meat.

We both plumped for the fish soup (Linda hadn’t ordered it, but she was brought it anyway), followed by a terrine of shellfish and rice in a wonderful tasty sauce. We drank a crisp Vino Verde and both agreed that it was a very nice start to our stay in Porto (2, 3, or 4 days, who knows).

We then went back to the campsite to get ourselves ready to get the bus into town, the bus stop was just outside of the Restaurant, but we needed some stuff (my camera and Linda wanted to get changed). We didn’t have to wait long when along came the number 15 bus, this route is very convenient, you get on at one end stop and get off at the bus terminal in town. The bus terminal is just across the road from a very impressive National theatre so very easy to find. We headed off in the direction of that tourist i, We found another of those helpful ladies that seem to populate these sites, we were wanting to do an open topped city bus tour the next day and she navigated us through a web of tours (red, blue, yellow) and got us just what we wanted. That done we asked her about the covered market, alas she said the original had been closed three weeks prior, it was being completely renovated, but all was not lost, she informed us that a temporary market had been put in place just a little way from the other site, we found it no problem, alas not a great market, as a matter of fact it was disappointing. I am sure the stall holders will be glad when the proper market reopens.

Retracing our footsteps, we came to a nice ice cream parlour, I was parched, I needed a cold drink, I saw they had Coffee Frapé. Linda said she didn’t want anything but when I sat down at the table outside with mine, she decided she wanted a little ice, this became a 4-scoop cup.

By this time we were weary and so headed back to the bus terminal and the number 15 bus back to the campsite, this was not without its excitement as the bus had seen better days and decided to conk out at the most inopportune moments (in the narrowest of streets, you could reach out and touch the walls of the houses), but with a lot of cajoling the driver got us back to the campsite, I bet he was glad when his shift was finished.

That was the end of our first day in Porto!

Day 2 Porto

Up showered and ready, we left the campsite and walked to the bus stop, we were way too  ofearly, so we popped into the restaurant we had dinned in yesterday, sat outside on the decking and enjoyed a nice morning coffee. We also saw a couple of chaps in wetsuits coming out of the sea beside the rocks with two bags of Goose Barnacles, these are a great delicacy and are collected, not a simple task and quite dangerous on the rocks with pounding waves. I must try them, it is one of the things on my bucket list of foods “to try”.

The "Muscle" man

By then bus 15 had arrived and the driver was aboard, and we got on and off he went through the very narrow streets of the locality. We arrived in Porto and alighted, went towards the Cathedral to get our Yellow Tour Bus. When we got on, alas all the upper deck seats had been taken, so we had to make do with commentary and peering between trees and lampposts to get a glimpse of the buildings, statues and squares, but it was still interesting and as we had visited the Historical Part of Porto yesterday we had seen most of the buildings.

When the bus crossed the Douro River by one of the two wrought iron lattice work bridges, we alighted at the other side.

This is the famous Port Wine district, most of the main Port Wine houses in Porto (Port wine, should in all reality come only from Porto) have their cellars in this area, and along the quay are the Douro wine vessels moored, these lighters were once used to  transfer the massive Barrels of Port out to ships, waiting to take it to foreign lands (in the main England). It was the English that were once the main importer of fortified wines, and the names and cellars are still mainly in English hands.

We wandered along the quayside in pleasant sunshine, turning up a side street, that turned into an ever steeper and smaller street. Reaching the top we found ourselves with a wonderful view down onto the wine houses and across the river to the main city of Old Porto, we walked down the hill until we met the place to catch the Yellow Tour Bus, this took us around the places of interest on the South Bank, before we got off at a point where the second tour (purple line) bus would take us out to the fish harbour at Matosinhos.

We first went down the street with comprises of restaurants selling fish, this was the place for us, outside each restaurant was a grill kitchen, with the seating behind, we chose Alfonso’s, it had a great display of fish and the friendly waiter (aren’t the all) invited us to sit and peruse the menu.

We ordered a bottle of Vino Verde, a salad with all the trimmings including a plate of olives, a tuna fish pâté and bread. This side order is always offered in a Portuguese restaurant, you do not need to take it but I normally do. Linda had ordered blackened swordfish and I my first sardines of this trip, yippee, I do love my charcoal grilled sardines.





A young pair sat on the adjacent table to us, they were just starting out on their pilgrimage to Santiago, they worked for a TV sender in Leipzig, but were originally from Berlin. By a funny coincidence, the mans farther lives in Grunau, on the same street as my daughter Janice.

 

Forte de Sao Fransisco Xavier

The cruise liner centre with a cruise liner

We then walked down to the front promenade and had an ice in the sun before catching the Yellow Bus back into town and then the normal bus back to the campsite, another quirk of fate it was the same bus driver as yesterday,  this time he had a different bus, so no breakdown this time.

After a light supper of cheese, chacuterie and rosé wine , Linda  went to the laundry to wash our various garments in need of a wash (when on the road, I don’t do that normally as long as people don’t make a detour around me, I am still fresh).

I was a bit exhausted so we had an early night, I slept through until 07:00.

Linda got washing hung out from yesterday, I popped over to the WiFi hotspot. I done a bit of blogging and read my e-mails. Linda was all done and dusted, I had asked at the reception as to the where about of the nearest supermarket, the kind lady told me just 500 meters down the road. So off we went along the boardwalk, we stopped at the other café cum restaurant along the route and had an Americano, we then walked on to the supermarket. A very nice compact one, with a small bakery and café, we did our shopping (tonight is a fish BBQ, sardines, prawns, scallops and Gold Bream), before returning to the café for Linda’s 2 pastel de Nata’s and I a Tuna empanada and a sausage roll, now loaded up, we headed along the beach to have a bite to eat at the restaurant we had visited on the first day. 

We had a very nice light lunch I grilled baby calamaries with vegetables and Linda the chefs salad, a mixture of sweet and savoury fruits and salad vegetables. I drank my lunch time beer and Linda her wine. We slowly walked back to the campsite, packed the victuals in their cubby holes, I decided on an afternoon nap and Linda sitting in the sun reading her book. When I awoke it was almost time for our evening meal, time for our first BBQ (the other trials had been abject failures) I had bought a nice gold bream for Linda, 6 juicy sardines for me and prawns and scallops make skewers for us both. Linda made a small mixed salad. BBQ lit, and hooray we had a very nice fish BBQ. We had bought a bottle Mateus Rose, it wasn’t quite to Linda’s taste, but then she isn’t a child of the 60’s, this was the bottle that all hippies had on their tables, along with the Lava Lamps.

Meal finished, Linda off to the wash up area and I’m writing up my blog. Tomorrow we head off down the coast, we shall see where we end up.