Discovering Porto

Porto is truly a magnificent city. Though unmistakably Portuguese, it is quite different from Lisbon. Obviously Porto is much smaller then the sprawling Metropole in the south, but that’s just the obvious difference. While Lisbon is more polished and colorful, Porto has a more rugged feeling – ochre color tones being much more prevalent in the cities architecture. Basically the narrow streets of Porto are every writers dream city for the location of a suspenseful historic thriller set somewhere between the 16th and 19th century.  And then there are the churches, covered in pure gold, they are monuments of the past glory of the town. A time when Porto was literally the main port of the country and all the riches of Brazil poured through the city, bringing previously inconceivable wealth to the citizens. Finally there is the Port wine, conceived by the British, to be able to ship wine from Northern Portugal to the British Islands. While it is strong and heavy, at the same time it tends to be sweet and gentle. Much like the city itself actually.