Back in London

Welcome back to London, it’s cold, it’s grey and it’s wet. Lyn has had to borrow a coat so she doesn’t freeze. We were all happy to laze about and not do much when we returned from Portugal.
Sunday morning we were up early to head to the walkabout, 6am. We figured the first thing Lyn and Kevin did on there visit was to go to the Walkabout, so it would be nice for it also be the last thing that they do. That and it was Grand Final and the Saints were playing the scum from Collingwood. I’m writing this a long time after the event so there is no point in discussing it, but it was an amazing draw and the atmosphere in the pub with a huge crowd, standing room only, was absolutely electric. In the first quarter I thought we had lost it, in the last quarter I thought we had won it! But in the end, a draw.
Exhausted we stumbled back to Dean Court, it’s been a while since I left a pub at 9am! We slept for a bit, went for a run in Hyde Park, had some drinks and dinner in a local Thai restaurant.
Next morning was the end of mum and dad’s trip, one more cooked English breakfast, some farewells and they were on the tube headed to Melbourne via Heathrow and Malaysia.
The rest of the week was spent doing a lot of not much, with a few days work thrown in to the mix.

Faro

Lyn and Kevin left early to get to their flight to Barcelona. We got up thinking we would catch them in the lobby but actually missed them as the taxi arrived early. We had breakfast, packed up and went to get the car. This was an instance when we realised how good the European drivers were. It took Damien a while and a lot of smoke to get out of the narrow, tightly curved and steep parking garage. Finally we were on the road and out of Granada.

It was quite an easy drive as the highways are in very good condition. We had a Coffee stop in one of the last Spanish towns before the border just to have our last taste of Spain. This was interesting as I think I have developed a Northern Spanish accent with my ‘baby Spanish’ so the bar tender could not understand me when I was asking where the toilet was in just about every way I could think of.

Our lunch stop was in the small town of Tavira which is lovely. The main attraction is the old castle walls that contain a pretty garden. This was fun as there are no rails and absolutely no consideration for health and safety, just how I like it. We climbed up the walls and enjoyed the view of the river and surrounding houses. Tavira is also popular due to its Roman bridge which connects the two sides of the river. We also saw a giant squid swimming in the river.

Our next stop was Faro, where we would be flying back to London from. We arrived at the tourist information centre about 10 minutes before it closed and the lady was amazingly helpful. We felt a bit sorry for her when we left as there was a huge queue of people wanting help as we had taken so long. We got settled in the accommodation she recommended then took the car back to the rental company at the airport. We love it when there is cheap public transport from airports, it makes the whole experience of a city better.

The next day was dedicated to seeing the old town of Faro which is surrounded by an old city wall. It is very pretty with cobbled streets and what made it even better was that it was an environmental awareness day so no car traffic was allowed in the walls. This made if far more relaxed as it was quieter and you did not have to duck into doorways to avoid having your toes run over. We did some shopping, Lyn sent us a message asking for a Portuguese cock, then headed home for lunch before catching the bus to the beach. The beaches in Faro are all actually islands. This whole coastal region is Natural Park and is home to thousands of birds. Again the sand was lovely, the sun beautiful and the sea refreshing. At great day topped off by meeting a couple of German girls who we ended up having dinner with.

Our final morning in Portugal was the usual mad rush to have breakfast, pack up and head to the airport. Unfortunately Kevin’s much loved beach umbrella didn’t make it past the check in desk. It was also unfortunate that the French air controllers were on strike so our 9:20am flight didn’t get us back to London until around 4pm. It was even worse for Lyn and Kevin who arrived back at our hostel at about 1am and told us they had been waiting on the run way for about 4 hours. But as Kevin would say “it’s all part of the adventure”.

Granada

We left Rhonda and headed for our next destination, Granada. The drive was not too long but we made one stop in Antequera. There was no reason for this stop. It was a biggish town and parking was difficult. After ditching the car in a multi level park we went for a walk in the gardens which had a medieval festival. There was some stalls, kids games and the worst coffee in Spain. Arriving in Granada was a nightmare. Unlike last time we were here, many of the streets were closed as they are adding tram tracks or a metro or something. After nearly two hours, and being pulled over by a tourist information officer on a motorcycle, we found the hotel. We ditched the bags and Lyn and Kevin, but still had to find a park. Taking a few wrong turns we first ended up on a pedestrianised street, a one-way street to nowhere, and then 20km on the highway towards Madrid. Another couple of hours passed and we managed to get back to Granada, the hotel and a carpark not too far away. Just in time for beer o clock!
In the evening we went for a walk which was nice. We saw the river that runs through the middle of town. Even though we were here last year, we didn’t know there was a river! As we headed back from our walk we saw some marching bands getting set up and playing a few tunes. We followed them for a bit before heading back to our room. Little did we know, until now, but the parade was actually a religious parade, and passed right by our hotel. This made our first floor balcony very handy as we had one of the best views of this parade in town.
After the parade and all the crowd had passed we headed up a nearby street to a tapas bar for dinner. The next morning there was no rush! We had a great hotel breakfast and then headed out to have a walk around Granada. Granada is a lovely town, with a lot of hills and winding streets. Our walk took us through some of the main town squares, past churches, views of the Alahambra and the big cathedral. It finished in a street which had some markets, this is where we left the girls. The boys headed to a tapas bar for lunch followed by a few pints in one of the Irish Pubs, watching the All Ireland Gaelic Football final. The publican was the highlight of the bar, a true Irishman. At one stage he told everyone he would be back in a few minutes and bolted up the street (leaving the bar unattended), 5 min later returning with a bag of ice. He also let some poms use his laptop to watch a soccer game and ordered food from the kebab shop across the road for a big table of his regulars!
Granada = Tapas. Unlike most places in Spain, in Granada when you order a drink in a Tapas bar, it comes served with a free plate of food. We learnt last night that some of it is a bit bland. Tonight we ate dinner at Minotauro Cerveceria, a tapas bar we visited last year, that has really good quality food with the drinks. Although I would have liked to try, we didn’t make it through the full list of tapas available (20 odd different plates).
The next morning Lyn and Kevin visited the Alhambra, and we slept in! Please note, anyone who is going to Granada, you have to visit the Alahambra, its amazing, and you should book your tickets a week or so in advance. We hadn’t done this so had to pay extra to get on a guided tour.
When they made it back we had stocked the fridge and prepared some food for dinner, just snacks and antipasta with beer, sangria, wine and liquor. Our last night together in Spain.

Rhonda

We had breakfast in the cafe again then headed to the supermarket to get salads for a picnic. The car was packed and we got on the way to Rhonda. Our lunch stop was in small town with natural springs. The very friendly locals made sure we knew that the water was drinkable as the springs are what sets this town apart from many others in the region. Most of the landscape we drove through was very dry so it was a pleasant surprise when we came into a town with large water fountains and lush plants everywhere. We sat at a picnic table next to a bar and ordered coffee. I think the locals were amused by our picnic and impressed that they had Australian visitors. Kevin even managed to get a photo which the Policeman’s motorbike.

We arrived in Rhonda and managed to find accommodation at a hotel after looking for probably about an hour and a half. It was then defiantly time for drinks which we then followed with a walk along the cliff. Rhonda is an amazing town as it is perched high above the surrounding country side on a cliff. The other notable feature is the Puente Nuevo (new bridge) finished in 1793 after 40 years of construction.

Whilst walking it began to rain, this meant we had to take refuge in the shops much to Damien and Kevin’s disgust. It continued to bucket down which made finding a restaurant for dinner difficult especially since no one thought it would rain in Spain and we therefore didn’t have any umbrellas. We all happily ate a very Spanish meal in a warm restaurant watching the torrents of rain continue.

The next morning we woke and it was still raining. We visited the internet cafe after breakfast then decided that it would be a good time to visit the bull ring as most of it should be indoors. Rhonda’s bull ring was the first to be built using stone and is one of only a few that still trains horses and matadors. Lyn also told us that it was used in one of Madonna’s film clips. The museum was interesting with its collection of costumes, weaponry and art work revolving around bull fighting. The rain did eventually stop so we managed to get a few photos of Damien and Kevin out in the middle of the arena.
After lunch Lyn was determined to go for a huge walk around the town then down to the base of Puente Nuevo which is about 120m high. We did have a look around town and she did nearly make it all the way down with Damien accompanying her but Kevin and I had more sence and less interest in climbing back up the massive cliff face. Whilst waiting I noticed other people collecting almonds, so I set about collecting some for us. We had these with drinks in Lyn and Kevin’s hotel room, trying to find easy ways to break open the shells. I’m sure the man at the reception desk came up at one stage to see what all the noise was. We ate at a bar for dinner and sampled some of the ham from the Alijar region that are famous as they only eat chestnuts. The meat did taste very nutty but you couldn’t have too much. We also had some eggplant that was deep fried with honey which was also tasty but sickly. Then it was time for bed before a big driving day.

Seville

We left Alijar after Lyn, Kevin and Damien had a walk around town and I had a swim. We were on our way to Seville and parking proved to be a bit of a nightmare. We managed to find an underground car park then walked to the very unhelpful Tourist office. We decided to stay across the river from the central part of town due to where the car was. Lyn and I had a break in a cafe which Damien and Kevin braved the heat to find us a hotel room as lots of the accommodation was booked out. They managed to find something so we then had coffee and sandwiches for lunch, and because we were in Spain, a siesta. In the afternoon we all had a walk around town. Lyn and Kevin decided that they had had enough for the day and headed back to the hotel whilst Damien and I headed to a bar for dinner. It was a relief when we finally made it back to the hotel and into bed. Travel is exhausting!

The next morning everyone was still a bit tired but we got up for breakfast in a café next door to the hotel. It was then time to hit the food market for fresh fruit and have a look in all the ceramic shops. Kevin decided he would like a tile of a castle to take home as a souvenir. It was then lunch time and then Lyn and Kevin went to Plaza de Espania whilst Damien and had a wander around the Jewish quarter of the city. Again a siesta was necessary before we had drinks at one of the river bars. Kevin decided it was Chinese for dinner then we all headed to a Flamenco show. This was in a bar around the corner from our hotel. It seemed to have a combination of local people and tourists so the place was packed. The band consisted of three men who all sang as well as two of them on guitars and one on a strange sort of amplified box thing. As the night progressed a lady joined in with the singing and some people did short dance performances.

Into Spain

It was yet another early morning, car packed and we were on our way to Spain. We had a stop in Serpa, a small walled city (photo 1). We had coffee and cake then climbed the castle in the middle of town (2). We headed off again and arrived in Alijar which the Lonely planet recommends for hiking. Our accommodation was a converted stable but the best part was it had a swimming pool. We had lunch then headed out on our walk. It all began well, the instructions were very clear, but that all soon changed. Instead of being a charming walk through the hills, listening to free roaming pigs searching for chestnuts it was a bit of a nightmare with swarms of flies and fruitless searches for non-existent markers. We finally arrived at the first town and discovered that everything was closed! No coffee, no coke, no caffeine of any form was available. Everyone was a bit over the whole experience at this stage so we began the trek back to Alijar. We stopped a couple of times to admire the view of the mountains and look at all the pig tracks on the sometimes hard to find path. It was 9pm and dark by the time we arrived back in town. Everyone was tired, dirty, hungry and tired. We had dinner in the pub then headed back to the stables. Kevin, Damien and I soaked our feet in the pool outside and listened to the church bells chiming. This is when we realised that it was actually 1am not 12am as we had crossed a time zone.

Alentejano Coast line

We left Lisboa early and headed over the bridge past the giant Jesus. The drive was quite nice along a peninsular. Eventually we came to a town where we had to catch a ferry across the bay. This was very mundane until we got a dolphin show as they were enjoying the wake from the ferry. We arrived in the town of Porto Covo and had lunch before finding our accommodation. It was a two bedroom apartment with a huge kitchen, lounge room and an outdoor wood BBQ, this is what we call luxury! Kevin and I organised pizza for dinner but first we headed to the beach to watch sunset with our home made Sangria. Lyn has become a HUGE Sangria fan.

The next day we drove to a Pessegueiro do Mar which had a fort just off shore on an island called Ilha do Pessegueiro (picture 1). Damien a Kevin must have felt motivated as they walked/swam out to it rather pay the €10 per person to get the boat. The island also had some Roman ruins and would have been quite interesting if it hadn’t been so hot in the sun. What I liked most about the beach was the cross current. There were waves coming from two directions and it was amazing to watch them cross paths (2).

We headed back to the accommodation for lunch and a caffeine fix then got back in the car and went to another beach a short drive North. This was much quieter but still busy. There was a family with a dog that kept us entertain. First the dog was stealing the ball that the girls were playing tennis with so they pull its tail until the dog dropped the ball. When the girls stopped playing the dog started digging, by the time we left all you could see of it was the tip of its tail.

Before dinner we had a walk around town to find the port area. As we went we were picking up kindling for our BBQ dinner of amazing supermarket kebabs and salad. After dinner Damien was excited to see there was Bull fights on TV. I’m still not sure if I would want to see the real thing. It looks so one sided. The Matador rides a horse and when the horse gets tired he gets a fresh horse, they don’t put in a fresh bull when the first one gets tired. I’m just glad I have seen some of the bulls get their own back (nothing serious) at Pamplona.

The next morning we were up early, packed and travelled to Zambajeira do Mar. This is a beautiful seaside town with a church perched upon the cliffs. The beaches here were amazing! Up to scratch with Australian beaches. There was towering cliffs and fine sand punctuated by huge rocks which created natural swimming pools and lots of rock pools. We found accommodation which was two rooms in the top level of a house with a shared a balcony but we had to wait until 2pm to check in. After coffee Lyn and Kevin hit the shops, while Damien and I had a walk on the beach. Finally we were able to check in so we had lunch then went for a walk. Lyn had read about a port a few kilometres down the road but this, we found out the hard way, takes a long time when you walk along the cliff top paths which are not always very well maintained (3). The view of the coast line was stunning and well worth the walk but I we all came away with lots of scratches from bush bashing when we lost the path. We found the port then headed to one of the restaurants for a well deserved break and something to eat. Kevin and I enjoyed a serving of cheese, olives and bread whilst watching Damien and Lyn struggling to remove barnacles from their shells (4). The walk home didn’t take nearly as long as we walked on the road. It turned out to be quite a long but a good day especially once we had possibly the slowest service ever at one of the restaurants in town, I just glad the food was good.

In the morning Lyn, Kevin and Damien headed for the local fish market to get stuff for dinner. We then packed for the beach and headed to the next cove (5). We had heard this was the most beautiful beach in Portugal and I was impressed! It had huge cliffs, a small waterfall, beautiful sand and heaps and heaps of rock pools. I explored the rock pools while Damien and Lyn went for a walk to the nudist beach (Lyn has a knack for finding them) and Kevin (6) enjoyed the shade of his new beach umbrella. I found big crabs, little crabs, shrimp, barnacles, clams, jellyfish, a few types of fish but the highlight was a huge black frilly sea slugy thing that crawled away when I pocked it with my thong. Eventually our stomachs began to rumble so we dragged ourselves away from the beach and had lunch. The afternoon was happily spent at the beach of Zambajeira do Mar. Dad looked a million dollars lying under his umbrella next to his fluroescent pink esky, at least the beers were cold! Then it was time to pack up and cook the fresh Seafood BBQ for dinner, on the balcony, which was amazing. It was a great way to finnish the relaxing beach part of our holiday.

Lisboa

It was interesting revisiting a city after being so impressed with it only a year before. Our highlights last time were the food and a small town about a hours train trip away called Sintra, so our first day we got up early and headed to Sintra. This is amazing as it is full of amazing castles, palaces and villas. We headed up the hill along rocky paths to the Moorish Castle (Castelo dos Mouros) which provided views of the village and surrounding countryside (image 1).

Unfortunately the weather changed while we were exploring the castle so we got quite wet and nearly blown away (image 2). We retreated down the hill and decided to visit the Palácio Nacional de Sintra which dominates the town with its two giant chimneys. The palace was full of beautiful tile work, expensive tapestries and elaborate furniture (3).

Much to my delight Lyn and Kevin suggested we go to the Museu Nacional do Azulejo or tile museum. The Portuguese are famous for their painted tiles and the museum had examples of Portuguese work and work for other regions spanning centuries. I was particularly interested in all the processes used. Who knows, maybe I’ll start making tiles when I get home. The museum was also a lot of fun due to full size copies of some of the works that you could put your face behind (4).

After the museum we headed to the port region to have a look around. It is very impressive with a huge sculpture in the middle of the plaza and then a huge archway that leads onto the main shopping strip (5). We caught a tram from here up to Belém, a suburb of Lisboa jam packed with galleries and museums but more importantly Pastel de Belém (Portuguese custard tarts). I had been looking forward to gorging myself on the pastries since we arrived in Portugal and they were just as good as I remembered. From the bakery we headed to the Monument of Discoveries and the large church. When we got back into town it was a little too early for dinner so Lyn and I hit the shops. Lyn did very well and has a whole new summer wardrobe to go home with.

One last tourist attraction on Kevin’s list of things to do was a ride on the tram up to the Fado district (6). The ride was quite entertaining as cars were parked on the side of the road and were obstructing the path of the tram. The driver had to ding his bell until someone arrived to move it. We had a look at a few bars but they all wanted €15 before you had even walked through the door. We headed back down the steep hill and called it a night.

Northern Portugal

We picked up our hire car and as usual the woman at the rental company was a bitch! Nevertheless we got our car and headed out of Porto as quick as we could, after a few laps of the city!
Out of Porto our first stop was for coffee and information in a nice little town called Braga. We sat in a café on a pedestrian street, under the old arches into town, sipping our coffees and relaxing. As we did so the local butcher rolled a trolley full of baby piglets past ready for sale and eating… mmm… bacon, ham, pork! The town looked nice, old cobbled roads, but still decorated brightly from a recent festival. The information office was useless, but the walk around town was worth the stop.
Just out of Braga is the Bom Jesus which we semi stumbled across. It is a big church high up on the mountain, looking over Braga town. We drove up and visited the church before walking down the Baroque stairway that climbs 116 metres. The different levels of the zig zaging stairways had chapels, statues and water fountains as well as great views of the surrounding area.
Back on the road we headed to Lindoso in the Peneda Geres national park. We had visited another information place along the way, Ponte de Barca, who were much friendlier and had booked a house (Casa Assento) for us to stay in for the next two nights. The house was in the traditional style of the old Portuguese country houses and was at the base of a castle. We had views out over the valley, lake and mountains below. We sat by the castle with drinks to watch sunset before eating chicken and chips (Portugese style) which we had picked up on the way into town.
The next morning Lyn (and everyone else) slept in! Damien was first up and went for a walk around the town and castle. The castle is surrounded by Espigueiro’s which are used to store maize after it is harvested to keep it dry. They are very old and look a bit like an above ground grave. When he got back everyone was still asleep. Eventually he had to wake them! Once we got moving we headed out to find the start a walk through the national park. This turned out to be a difficult task, even after getting a map from the tourist info. The track was not well made and the markers often difficult to find. Almost at the point of giving up, after trying various trails that all led to dense forest, prickles and dead ends. We retreated to the local café. After a coffee, some helpful words of advice and a dodgy hand drawn map on a napkin from a local we found our way. While the walk was not a stunning as some walks we have done, it was interesting. It took us into the valley, along a creek to the ruins of a power plant and water canals. Climbing out of the valley we got some nice views. We had our packed lunch at a local swimming hole by a small waterfall. It was nice and had a few people around swimming, but we wanted to finish the walk and then come back for a swim. The next part of the walk took us further up into the mountains above the town. We met a friendly but scary looking cow with huge horns along the way. The mountain was more exposed to the hot sun than the earlier walk, but was still nice, much of it was on old stone horse cart trails and along old rock walls. The end of the walk was through small vineyards, which we sampled some of the grapes. Another interesting part of the walk was the end which left us in the top of the village meaning we wondered past all the local plots and houses, which was nice to see. The walk had taken longer than we had thought so by the time we got back to the car we decided it was a bit late for a swim, but a good time for a beer!
The rest of the evening was spent by the BBQ! The house we were in has a BBQ so we had a cook up. First we collected wood, then we lit it on fire (the best bit), then we watched it burn with a beer, once the coals were just right we cooked the pork chops and chicken drumsticks and then of course we ate them (which is also the best bit!). After a few glasses of port the day finished as it had began, everyone was in bed while Damien had a few extra glasses of port (although this morning it was coffee).
Alarms were going off left, right and centre the next morning to avoid sleeping in again. We had a big driving day in front of us. We drove through the other side of the national park in the morning, which was a really nice drive. Many dams, mountains, forests, narrow roads and small villages. We had hoped to stop in Germil for morning tea, but it was so small that it didn’t even have a sign and we drove straight through it not realizing. This is even more amusing to us that we missed the town, as the town is only about 200m long but it took us about 15 to drive through, as a herd of cattle were being moved and we had to sit in the car and wait for them to pass around us. Instead we stopped in a campsite café outside of Campo de Geres, which is on a big reservoir although we only saw it coming into the camp, not in the actual campsite. We also had a stop along the way at a lake we saw on the side of the road, which we made our picnic lunch spot.
Our destination was Guimaraes. After finding a place to stay and a carpark we went for a walk around town. It is a larger town but still very nice. It has a Castle, Palace, remnants of a city wall, stone squares around town and numerous churches. The next morning we were up early and headed to the Palace. Being Sunday it was free entry before midday so we wanted to beat the crowds. The palace is made of stone bricks with a large central courtyard. It is also very decadent with nice paintings, tapestry and furniture.
Next we visited the Castle which is next to the Palace in some nice gardens. Castles always seem more interesting and less crowded than palaces. This one is always free to enter but today was free to climb to the top tower. The castle is semi ruined I suppose but has been restored so that you can walk around it and climb the tower. The top gave nice views over the town and Palace below. It is actually father’s day today so we called it ‘Dads Castle’.
I hope you don’t get the impression that all we are doing is eating and drinking over here! Before we left town we had coffee and Portuguese tarts. Our destination today was Obidos, but before we arrived we stopped for a father’s day picnic (same as any picnic really except there was beer involved). We also had a side trip to Nazare beach. Our brief visit here consisted mainly of a big traffic jam as we drove past the bullring just as crowds were gathering for a bullfight. We eventually made it up to the lookout which gave great views of the coast line and beach below. We also met some friendly Dutch campervanners, visited the old church and got ripped off at a market trying to buy cashews.
Obidos is an amazing town. It is small with a very narrow cobbled main street. The entire town is surrounded by a wall which is still intact. There are only a few entry and exit points through the wall. These are extremely narrow corners which made for some interesting driving. We got in late after all the sightseeing and eating earlier in the day. After finding a lovely pension overlooking the main street to stay in and getting the car through the walls, it was well past beer o’clock! We had a father’s day dinner in a little restaurant ran by a very friendly man. The food was good as were the beers and wines that flowed.
Next morning we were up early again to explore the town a bit more. There were many shops that the girls liked on the main street (just watch out for those bus tours!). We also walked around the city on top of the wall. This was great, very high and narrow in places with no safety rail, just how Christine likes it! This had views of the town and the plains outside of town.
After coffee and cake with our friendly little man from last night we back on the road headed for Lisbon. Lisbon is the capital and biggest city in Portugal which made finding a carpark and accommodation much more difficult. We eventually managed, much thanks to Mum randomly sticking her head into a hotel (Hotel Roma) to find our if they had apartments. Turns out they did! They also had a garage for 10 euro a night right in the centre of town. We took the scenic tram around town the first night and hopped off when we saw a busy looking restaurant for dinner. It was a bit too busy as the service was almost nonexistent.

Porto - Portugal

We arrived in Porto without any dramas and made our way from the airport to the hotel on the tram. After checking in we headed out to have a walk around. This started in the Praca General, the main square near our accommodation Pensao Avenida. We visited the town hall which is a grand old building with an exhibition on the Popes recent visit to Porto. We also saw a nice old church and the clock tower behind the town hall. The city is very nice, many grand old buildings, although some look a bit run down and empty. We then wandered down to the river Douro which runs through the city.
There is a big bridge with a road crossing the bottom of it and a tram line across the top. We crossed on the lower path and found a bar on the waterfront for beer, sangria and nibbles. Mum was happy as she got to see traditional boats shipping barrels of Port along the river. We visited one of the Port cellars on the waterfront and did a (rather limited) tasting. It was nice and we did try a White Port which we hadn’t seen before. We hung around and bought a glass of 40 year old Port, which was Very Nice! We finished the evening with a seafood dinner in a restaurant on the river.
Keen as mustard, we were up at 8am the next morning for breakfast and good coffee in the hotel before heading out for a big day walking. We started visiting the grand train station which has a lot of old ceramic tiles, a local fish and veggie market, the grand cathedral Se and a small tourism office which had roman ruins displayed under the building. We then crossed the bridge on the upper tram line and found a café for coffee and cakes.
Over the river we found another church with nice views back over the bridge and city. We had a half hearted look for the Port Caves but gave up and headed back over the river for lunch.
We visited an amazing bookshop. The interior of the shop was all wood and looked a bit like a hobbit hole, very cute and decorative. We visited another grand church and the exterior was covered in tiles. Porto has a lot of decorative tiles throughout the city which makes it very beautiful. It was getting into the afternoon, our last stop was Jardim do Palacio de Cristal which had nice gardens but no palace! It did have a sports stadium that looked like a UFO! The gardens were nice with lakes and ponds, birds, castle walls and views of the river.
We had about 3km walk back to the hotel along the river. We broke this up with a stop in a bar for a beer and nibbles and then dinner in a local café near the hotel.