Port Wine and Bridges (Porto, Portugal 06/13/2019)

We are loving Portugal!  Today we discovered the wonderful town of Porto.  We toured a beautiful old cathedral, visited a magnificent train station, learned the history of the area’s port wine industry, and felt the wind in our hair as we cruised under the town’s six bridges on a river boat.  We drove through the town’s Lion’s Square, passing by the world’s most beautiful McDonald’s (it used to be an imperial house; when it was converted to a McDonald’s they kept the original chandeliers and other items, making it the most unique McDonald’s you’re ever likely to visit), a church with the largest external panel of ceramic tiles in the city, and the skinniest house in the world. 

Just as Champaign can be legitimately called Champaign only if it comes from a specific region in France, wine can only be legitimately called Port if it comes from the Douro Valley of Portugal.  We visited Cockburn’s, in business in this same location since the 17^th Century, and the oldest Port wine manufacturer in the region.  Port wine earned its name in the 12^th Century when monks in the area began shipping their product downriver.  Buyers there began referring to it as Port wine because it came from the town of Port.

Once a 16^th Century Benedictine Monastery, the Sao Bento Railway Station has been in operation since 1901.  The tiles of the station were put in a place a few years later.  Along the top of the walls are scenes that depict the evolution of Porto’s transportation systems.  The blue and white tiles that decorate the walls illustrate the history of the city, including epic battles and important figures from the area’s history.  The artistry is incredible.

The skinniest house in Porto stands between two churches, one built in 1628 for Carmelite nuns and the other for an order of monks in 1768.  A law existed at the time that made it illegal for the two churches to share a wall (probably something to do with separation of the sexes), so rather than simply leave a 3’ wide space between the two they built a house there.  We’re told the house was actually occupied until 1980.  Talk about a tiny house!

Fun fact of the day:  JK Rowling of Harry Potter fame is married to a Portuguese man and lived in Porto for a while.  It is said that this where she got much of her inspiration for the imagery of the Harry Potter series…the uniform the students of Hogwarts wear is the same as the traditional Porto university uniform.  Rowling is also credited with saving a landmark bookstore from bankruptcy.  The story goes that despite being named the 3^rd most beautiful bookstore in the world, the store was scheduled to file bankruptcy the same week Rowling commented in an interview that its bookcase inspired the one in her book.  The bookstore became famous overnight.  Last year its sales topped $3M.  Pretty nice impact, eh?

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