June 11 in Porto
We awakened to the view over the river to Gaia. We are so very lucky. We figured out the shower and had coffee and headed to the Hungry Biker, a place we found on either trip advisor or Rick Steves.
It was a steep uphill climb but worth every extra heartbeat. It is kind of a new age place, not what I expected to find in Portugal. We had far too much food but it all felt so healthy. Yogurt and fruit, eggs, two kinds of bread, jam, cheese, thinly sliced smoked ham, salad and black tea with oranges.
We wandered around for a few hours. We explored some shops, picked up some groceries and climbed every mountain, as the song goes.
I should describe the terrain. Everything is up and down and I am serious about up and down. To add to the fun cobble stones pave every outdoor square foot. Each Fit Bit step should count for 6 steps.
We took a lovely nap and woke up at about 4:00 realizing we were still not at all hungry. We made reservations for dinner across the river in a town called Vila Nova de Gaia. We planned to eat at Adega E Presuntaria Transmontana. We headed out for a walk before dinner.
We crossed the river on the lower of two bridges. The upper bridge was designed by Eiffel several years before he designed his famous tower. The joke here is that he built the Paris tower out of left over parts from the bridge.
The restaurant is located in a very touristy summer holiday kind of place with lots of music, shops, and places to eat and drink. We easily killed our time before dinner.
We had another great meal. We both had cod, mine in a sauce and Neal’s lightly fried with amazing home made potato chips. Potatos are especially good hear.
We hit the dessert table after dinner and were each given a glass of port.
Then it was a walk back home and another hill climb and we were home. There are exactly 28 steps up to where we get the elevator in our building.
We shared one more glass of port, ate some of the great cheese we bought earlier in the day and fell fast asleep.