Some sightseeing

We had a leisurely start with breakfast of warm bread, cheese, tomatoes and fruit in the apartment.   With a free walking tour booked for 1000, we didn’t have much time afterwards but had to walk uphill to the starting point near Clerigos Tower, which I learnt was the tallest building in Porto (surely not, perhaps just in the old city).

While the tour was good, was also platform to sell other tours.  The weather was very dull through most of it which meant that we weren’t trigger happy with photos.  The most memorable bits for me were:

• When Portuguese leaders need to escape, it is to Brazil.
• Portugal had their version of the Spanish inquisition following the marriage of the King to a Spanish princess.  Their target were “New Christians” who were former Spanish Jews (and their descendants) who had escaped from Spain.  They had been forcibly baptised by throwing holy water at them during a protest.
• Livraria Lello is a beautifully ornate bookshop which we didn’t go into.  It costs EUR5 to enter, but the entry can be used towards a book purchase probably an inflated price.  The shop shot to fame as it was frequented by JK Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series.
• After the dictator Salazar suffered a fall and cerebral hemorhage, he was made to belief he was still ruling and in charge.  Officials would meet with him to take orders, and he would come on radio etc.  But that was all a clever ruse.

Mid-afternoon, we visited the Sao Francisco church nearby.  We started at the museum, then the catacombs where there were walled-in crypts and underfloor crypts.  Finally we saw the stunningly ornate church with numerous intricate altars.  The gold paint adorning the carvings had tarnished but typically the crown of each altar was much brighter with gold-leaf coating.

It was sad to see all this glory knowing that it was acquired with the blood, sweat and tears of people in the colonies.  Slaves were taken from Africa to work in mines and agriculture in Brazil.

Lastly, we took a tram to Passeio Alegre at the estuary for a look-see and a walk. It was a pleasant way to round off our exploration of Porto.  We didn’t feel the need to pay a visit, or pay and visit the Se Cathedral which is less ornate than Sao Francisco or some of the other older buildings.  Porto with its charm, and oodles of atmosphere is best appreciated just by wandering around.