Francesinhas & Port Wine

 Today was our first full day in the city of Porto! The name Portugal actually originates from the name of this city.

We arrived here yesterday afternoon after a pretty miserable travel day, but the taste of port wine helped us forget about late busses, lost things, and exorbitant ATM fees.

Port wine originates in Porto, but was actually invented by the British as a way to help wine survive the journey from Portugal to England. This fortified wine comes in several varieties. The main two are “Ruby” and “Tawny”. Ruby is generally more fruity and has a more vibrant colour, whereas tawny is aged in oak barrels and is more nutty and honey tasting. We both enjoyed the tawny more than the ruby.

Sampling white, ruby, tawny, and reserve port wines

This morning we took a “free” walking tour through the old city of Porto. Our guide told us many interesting tidbits about Portuguese history and society. 

The city has many beautiful buildings, but also lots of construction everywhere and lots of run down complexes. 

Main square in Porto

Inside the São Bento Train Station

Beautiful murals in the train station

Lovely old church

Overlooking the oldest house in Porto (800 years old!)

What I found quite interesting, was that during the times that Portugal was a dictatorship (1933-1974) the government had a “minister of propaganda” whose was involved in villainizing anything “modern”. Because of this, there are many structures in Porto that look old, but that were actually built during the dictatorship to promote values and culture of “old”.

A “baroque” stature built in the 20th century 

We also walked to the Douro River which runs to the ocean and separates the city of Porto from the city of Gaia. You can cross the river on a very nice bridge which was built by a student of Eiffel (the same guy who did the Eiffel Tower!). Eiffel himself actually also built a bridge spanning the Douro a little further up the river.

View of Gaia over the Douro River

Close to the river in the misty rain

After all our walking we were hungry, so we went to Lado B Café for a francesinha sandwich. This sandwich is inspired by the French croque-monsieur and is a classic must-try dish from Porto.

The sandwich consists of three layers of different meats (or in my vegetarian case, three layers of vegan ‘meats’), then there’s a fried egg on top, the whole thing is covered in melted cheese, and absolutely drenched in a Piri-piri-like sauce whose recipe is a secret. 

Vegetarian francesinha

Classic meat francesinha

Wow was this good! I ate every little bit off my plate and I think I will be full until tomorrow. 

Now that we were energized, we visited the famous Livraria Lello. This bookstore became famous about 10 years ago when it became associated with J.K Rowling and Harry Potter. Although it turns out J.K Rowling never actually saw Lello while she lived in Porto, this city is where she conceptualized the Harry Potter books. 

Outside view of Livraria Lello

This bookstore is absolutely stunning tho, I can understand why it’s called “the most beautiful bookstore in the world”. With the purchase of a ticket, you get that price discounted from the price of a book… so of course we both had to get a new book to read! Although the bookstore does get very crowded, it’s a must see in Porto for any book lovers. 

First views inside the bookstore

Classic red staircase in the bookstore

Little Prince Books

Ceiling of the bookstore

Two new (spooky) books for Liam and one new book for me