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We came away with fond memories of a friendly, kind people and have returned to Portugal many times since. The Algarve, on the south coast, is an especially nice winter destination for Canadians escaping the cold of winter. The weather for this June trip was especially fine -- clear skies and very warm.
In Lisbon we stayed at the Hotel Borges, an old hotel with very large rooms in the Barrio-Alta (a high area) not too far from the Santa Justa Lift (elevator) which would take you down into the newer Chiado area. The Chiado is all shops and such with a regular square street plan (because of the great earthquake in 1755). Most of the old city seems to be irregular lanes and walkways with three story and more multi-unit apartments sadly in need of repair. Porto is similar in style and structure. We explored a bit of the older Alfama area in Lisbon with its winding narrow streets that climb up the hillside to the Castelo de S. Jorge. In the Alfama we bumped into a wedding with a pretty young bride -- we captured a photo of the beaming bride and her mother on their way to the cathedral by leaning into the car window to congratulate them. We had dinner one night in the Alfama and were first introduced to "family style" dining where you order dishes to be shared.
This was one of our first trips to a non-English speaking country. We travelled with a tourist language guide book and tried to learn a bit of Portuguese (abrigado, por favor, descuple, vino tinto, cerveja). It seems similar to Spanish with an odd mushy pronunciation. Portugal was a world power but the language is only spoken here, Brazil and a few African nations. There were occasional language problems but the kindness and generosity of the people, coupled with a bit of sign language, always seemed to work. Oddly many seemed more comfortable with French -- Kate is better there than me.
On our last night in Lisbon we had dinner in a neighborhood seafood restaurant near our hotel. At the time Portugal was not on the Euro, they used the Escudo and the prices involved a lot of zeros and commas (often, for us, the commas were in the wrong place). Keeping track of what a price would convert to in dollars could sometimes be challenging. At this dinner Kate and I had each ordered a plate that converted to something modest in the $10-20 range. Cindy, who was travelling with us, ordered a plate that she thought was in a similar range. The waiter, who didn't speak much English, seemed a little concerned by her order and tried to make it clear that there was an error of some sort. But we were sure it was fine, she was going to try whatever it was (we too thought it was in the same price range). When he started bringing each of us extra plates, little wooden hammers and crackers we recalculated and discovered that she had ordered a sea food feast of some sort to be delivered family style that cost over $100! Nevertheless we tucked in, enjoyed the meal together and split the bill.
Our newer hotel in Porto, booked through the conference, was near the Rotunda da Boavista (Praça de Mouzinho de Albuquerque), the Mercado Bom Sucesso and the Agramote Cemetery. It's in the old city but some distance to the west of the city center and the Luis I Bridge (pictured above) which crosses over the Duoro River. Porto proper is on the north side of the river with Vila Nova de Gaia and the famous "Port Houses" on the south bank. The boat, in the picture above, is one of the many old Rabelo Boats that were used at one time as cargo boats carrying barrels of port wine from up the river to Gaia for aging in port houses like Grahams, Sandeman and Taylor-Fladgate. The British developed a taste for port wine (as did we after this trip) and started many, if not all, of the port houses which make Porto and Gaia famous. We had a conference dinner at Taylor-Fladgate on the Thursday night of the conference. On the Wednesday afternoon we did a bus tour up the Douro to visit wineries and port houses. The vineyards are built in terraces along the steep river banks.
Portugal has all sorts of interesting wines beyond Port (and even with Port there are all sorts of versions including a white port wine we had never seen before). Port is actually a fortified wine -- brandy is added to stop the fermentation before all the sugar is consumed to make a sweet high alcohol drink. In contrast, to the north they make a Vino Verde (green wine) that's usually white, often with a bit of sparkle and always low alcohol. When out at a restaurant with the gang one night we tried some Vino Tinto Verde (green red wine). They're both called "green wine" because the grapes are harvested very early and not fully ripe -- they're green. That accounts for the low alcohol. Wines from the Douro and the many other regions are well worth exploring. Our friend Pat, Cindy's husband, had educated us a bit about wines to look for. We were to find "Barca Velha" (velha means old) and even bumped into a bottle on display at a wine shop but well out of our price range. We've since learned to love wines from the Alentejo which are often fresher, fruit forward versions.
For several days I explored the nooks and crannies of the old city. It's a good hike from our hotel to the old city which, like Lisbon, is hilly with narrow streets/lanes and steep walkways down to the river. One day I hiked in, crossed the river and explored the south shore to the next bridge down river (the modern Ponte Arrabida). Along the river in Porto there's a busy market with lots of fresh seafood. On the south bank I met some folks who were busy digging clams (I assume) at low tide. I came back after a very long walk red and roasted from too much sun.
One day the three of us (Kate, Cindy and I) took a trip north of the city to see the farmers' market at Vila de Conde. It's a smaller port city on a smaller river: the Ave. We took a inter city bus ride out. At the Porto bus station we were struggling with our limited command of the language. When it was clear that we didn't understand and would probably not figure things out on our own the kind helpful clerk came out from behind his cage and walked us out with a helpful hold on my arm to the right bus, got us on board and made sure the bus driver knew where these idiots were going and to make sure we were discharged at the right place. The ride, barreling down narrow country roads, cost us about $4 each. On the way back we decided to take a commuter train from the small country train station. Again we were having trouble with the language and how much it was going to cost. I asked the clerk to write it down ("escriva por favor" is one of the few expressions I learned). With a dollar conversion it looked like it was going to cost us about $21. I guess that means for each of us (which seemed excessive but hey, what do we know). So I'm trying to pay $21 each and he says, no, no! So then I figure he means $2.10 each and try to pay and he again says, no, no! Finally I hold out some cash and coins in my hand and he picks out what converts to $2.10 for the three of us! (Footnote: Kate recalls the prices differently in this story but the overall effect is the same). This is a good example of the kindness and honesty of the people. He could have easily pocketed what I had offered and kept a healthy bit for himself. But no, he would only take what it cost. No more, no less.
The farmers' market at Vila de Conde was very interesting. It was as if the entire Eaton's store had relocated for an afternoon with all their dry goods, clothing, bras and panties, pots and pans and much, much more. There were lots of flower vendors, fresh vegetables, fish and live goods -- chickens and ducks. Some to be taken home and fattened up (the ducklings), some to be killed and plucked right there -- the chickens.
Vila de Conde was an opportunity to get our feet wet in the Atlantic. There's a good wide sandy beach to explore, kids running about, sun bathing and fishing. Nearby we had dinner at a seaside restaurant where we had a nice fish dinner served family style. Again, language was an issue (there wasn't an English menu, we don't recognize the familiar names of our fish in Portuguese, and the waiter spoke no English). Fish are fresh here, you're at the sea side. The right way to select a fish would have been to walk over to the cooler display and pick one. But we figured it out.
There's another nice story about the kindness of the Portuguese. Our waiter was very kind, patient and helpful even though we didn't speak his language. Our friend Pat had suggested we find some aged wines while in Portugal. We had never tried an aged red (totally the wrong choice to go with fresh fish) but had selected one from a display table. When it was poured it looked very brick like and a bit goopy. The waiter insisted that it be taken away (we had not complained, he insisted) and he returned with another bottle that was very nice. Often things work the other way around. You tell the waiter the wine is bad and he argues with you. This was a case where he told us the wine was bad! Thankfully.
There's also a picture of our waiter out on the street helping someone with their motorbike! Another example of how kind and friendly people are in Portugal.
Finally, I write these notes during the COVID-19 crisis of 2020 with fond memories. We really enjoyed the country, the old cities, the food and wine but especially the kindness of the people. We heard from our colleagues that the Algarve to the south is a tourist destination we should explore and in the years to following the conference we did.
Ps. the picture album is made of scanned 35mm slides from the trip (macro photography). These need more work to organize and label them.
