Arrival in Porto, March 20, 2023

 It was only a 90 minute drive from Coimbra to Porto and Rita had a couple of site inspections at hotels just across the river from old town Porto in the town of Gaia.  Once that was out of the way we headed into old town to try and find our accommodation which is in the heart of Upper Porto.  Even with our GPS we could not find our apartment and so we illegally parked the car in a vacated taxi stall and called the person who was waiting for us.  We were less than 100 yards from our apartment and she came to meet us and we made our way down a very narrow street to our home for the next week.  Thankfully, the apartment comes with secured parking.  After settling in we headed out to for an early dinner.

The view of the town of Gaia sloping down to the Douro River and the old town of Porto from the 5star luxury Yeatman Hotel terrace

Our apartment is in a newly refurbished old townhouse with its high ceilings and in the bedroom, the lovely light pouring in through floor to ceiling windows.  

We had a recommendation for dinner at Cafe'-Restaurante Guarany, about a 10 minute walk from our apartment.  Its been here since 1933 and it reminded us of an old Vienna Café as it was very spacious, high ceilinged and the waiters dressed in white waistcoats and bow ties.  

 Rita had grilled cod loin with potatoes, grilled peppers and onion.  The portion was huge but delicious.


I had a Brazilian dish called Picanha a' Guarany (strips of grilled pork loin with fried banana, fries, rice, cabbage and a side dish of black beans).  The combination of all those flavors was perfection.  We headed home happy and full and looking forward to exploring Porto.



 

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