Left Nantes city around 1230 on an airport bus for the 30 minutes ride through industrial parks to the Nantes-Atlantique airport. Didn’t need to be out there that early but wanted to be sure of finding the right terminal etc. As it turned out it’s not a big airport with mainly budget airlines like Ryan Air and EasyJet flying in & out.
We went through the French passport control smoothly and into the EasyJet lounge to await boarding …. They called us all through the gate to then line up to await the plane, which taxied into the gate about 10 minutes after we were all checked for boarding. Very strange but apparently common for EasyJet – pity the families with babies or elderly. We watched the passengers amble off our flight & then it was a mad rush our end to board & be away on time … in the end a 10 min late departure.
On arriving at Porto airport I used my Irish passport to enter and Caroline was, of course, on her NZ one. She was stopped as they noticed that she’d been in Europe for more than 90 days – what a ‘to do’ as she tried to explain the 1972 bilateral agreement which allows NZers to spend 90 days in Germany then 90 days elsewhere in the Schengen nations of Europe. For about 10 minutes we thought they were going to put her on a plane back to France!! The passport chap relented finally & we were able to join a relieved Rosa awaiting us at the welcome gate.
Rosa took us on a tour of her city before taking us home for the evening meal. The day had been overcast & rain still the threatened so we didn’t stay out of the car long when taking photos of the Atlantic crashing over the sea walls where the Duoro River meets the sea or of sculptures. Although I have visited Porto twice I had little recollection of the city’s shape or size …. I remembered the conversations in cafes on the waterfront and visiting the port wine houses on the Gaia side. Mind you our last visit was 20 years ago and much has changed as EU money has helped renew areas and with the building of highways, bridges and flyovers.
We visited Rosa’s mother before dinner; it was delightful to see her after so many years but her aged knees & hands cause her pain. She spoke of the loss of her husband (translated by Rosa) and of her beloved children. She is currently looking after her son’s large dog, which is not an easy ask of an 81+ year old!! The area around her house is markedly changed with the farmland that once surrounded them now covered in apartment blocks – she even overlooks an unfinished flyover – though the old farmhouse across the road remains as do the walls defining the home garden. Rosa’s parents once leased part of their house for a wee store but that is long closed. The garden out the back is still productive with an old plum tree dominating the site.
Rosa’s apartment block is relatively new. Her 2 bedroom place is beautifully furnished and overlooks a large grassed area and the entrance to public swimming pool. Caroline & I were treated like royalty, hosted as we were in her ensuite bedroom while she took the bed in her study. Rosa, being a teacher of English at a local high school, has an extensive range of books and videos alongside a superb music collection. It was a pleasure to browse and listen to the different collections.
Portuguese eat late i.e. after 8.30pm so we thoroughly enjoyed the meal she had prepared for us of mushrooms, salad, couscous, cheese and bread followed by her apple and raspberry crumble (her specialty).
After a great night’s sleep we began a full day of sight-seeing lead by Rosa, and later accompanied by her friend Luisa also a teacher of English. It rained for a bit at the start of our walk but held off for the rest of the day – meant I had to carry a brolly all day but best to be on the dry side …..!!
We visited churches, the main train station, parks, shops and waterfront, taking a 50 minute river trip with many other weekend tourists to view the city as it needs to be viewed, particularly the 6 magnificent bridges over the Duoro. The churches of Porto are vastly different types in style and ambience to those we have visited in France; they are darker with elaborate altars often encrusted in gold with many more religious icons. The exteriors are plainer, the stone used almost concrete-like and stained by the grime of hundreds of years of city life. Many also have extensive tile work on the outside while the São Bento train station is known for its wonderful rendition of Porto life & history in tiles. (that’s one thing I do remember from 20 years ago)
Chatted to a couple of English chaps about to walk the Camino from Porto to Santiago de Compostella they were interesting to talk to about politics …. Both British & NZ, as well as a few comments on the recent French elections.
We experienced lunch at vegetarian restaurant (da terra) where one pays a set price for all you can eat buffet mains (soup + main) but extra for drinks and dessert. Very nice food but my goodness it was busy - non stop from 1145 until 1530, many of the people being tourists seeking good vege food. That’s one thing Porto has over France – just about every café/restaurant offers a vegetarian option.
Caroline & I visited the Clerigos tower – a busy touristy place from which one gets a great view of Porto; it also houses a huge collection of icons of bloodied Christ!!!I felt rather overwhelmed by the images & had to leave the museum bit! Loved the wee park across from it which is actually the green roof of a parking building. We then wandered on past the Palacio da justica (built in the 1930s during the time of the dictatorship), through an art gallery shop & into the terraced gardens behind. Had to be out of there before the 7pm closing time so it was a quick look over roof tops & across the river. As we left the park we spied some graffiti art that linked Porto to NZ using the Portuguese rooster symbol and the NZ fernleaf; not something we expect to see but it did raise a celebratory hurrah from us all!!
We wandered the streets a bit more, exploring the nooks & crannies of this old city taking in a Nata café (See spottedbylocals) so Caroline (well, all of us really) could partake of a genuine Portuguese custard tart before going to eat at yet another buffet vege restaurant. - Cultura dos Sabores: Natural Gourmet Vegetarian. The place only started to get busy as we left at 8.45pm to make our way to the theatre where we were to see a dance-circus performance (beginning at 9.30pm!) at the Coliseu theatre. THe performance was called Celui qui tombe (Same as this at Barbican). We tried to get coffee or drinks at another bar/café on the way but all were packed with people enjoying a night out …… many of them weekend tourists from elsewhere in Europe.
The show was in an art deco style theatre – very simple lines with strong colours & plenty of room (art deco, streamline modern)– which could accommodate 3500 patrons. The night we attended it seemed like every dance studio was there with their students otherwise there was a real mix of people attending. Anyway, the show held us spellbound with a well justified standing ovation at the end. I think it is definitely something New Zealanders would appreciate seeing at one of our art festivals. In short, the 3 male/3 female performers dance/balance on a suspended stage – for one part held aloft by ropes but later placed on a pivot & spun so you can imagine how the performers have to move to maintain their balance & remain on the stage. It was a real test of collaboration, trust, strength and skill. Quite stunning!
It was midnight by the time we left so we walked back through the buzzing streets to the car & headed home for a welcome sleep after a supper of chocolate éclairs. What a day! Bella Porto!!
Sunday saw us up late for a leisurely day exploring the art of Porto. Rosa took us firstly to see a couple of architectural symbols of modern Porto – the Edificio Vodafone & the Casa da Musica where inside various type of performances happen throughout the week while outside skaters & ball players enjoy the rolling stone landscape of the grounds.
We returned to Rosa’s place after that as we were tired & Rosa needed to contact her friend. While Caroline snoozed I listened to some music from Rosa’s extensive collection (Noiserv – David Santos, Paulo Mesquita) & watched part of a DVD on the music of Kimmo Pohjonen, a Finnish accordion player. Luisa had invited us for dinner so we travelled across to Maia city to enjoy an evening of eating delicious vege food (locally made vege patties, roasted aubergine & salad) followed by an amazing chocolate cake for which Caroline got the recipe. Luisa’s 17 year old son, Alex dined with us & shared his study hopes following graduating from high school later this year. He also had some strong opinions on European politics & Portuguese youth – the concept of Europe is important to him as is global collectivism while being proudly Portuguese. He spoke excellent English which is unsurprising seeing his mother & godmother both teach English! The wine we shared at the table was a old Portuguese red and our after dinner port was one made by a friend of Luisa’s parents …. very smooth & a great end to a wonderful evening of good company and food shared.
Back to Rosa’s by 11pm-ish as she had school the next day & we had a flight to catch. Rosa dropped us at the local train station around 8am the next morning so we could make our way into the centre, post our postcards, buy a couple of souvenirs and eat another Nata each before walking up to the metro to catching the tram to the airport in plenty of time for our 1230 flight.
This time Caroline had no trouble from the Portuguese immigration as she whizzed through – whew! Mooched around the duty free etc shops to pass the time until EasyJet corralled us into a holding lounge so we could watch our plane arrive & passengers alight before we boarded. A relatively quick turn around all things considered with only 10 minutes lost.
Arrived back in Nantes at 4pm – French immigration just glanced at Caroline’s passport with the officer bidding her a good holiday so no problems there & my Irish one didn’t raise a flicker of interest. Caught the bus into town to meet Mia, my Swedish friend (living in Norway) who had flown down to visit with us for a couple of days. Yay for friendships far & near!
[More photos to come once I get them off C's phone - particularly of me & Rosa]
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