My last days in Porto
Photos 21th March 2018. Porto
Nice views over Porto and its colorful houses and tiled orange roofs and the Douro river
Jardim das Virtudes, a beautiful public vertical garden in Porto Downtown
A peaceful space in the city, which gives people the opportunity to rest and recharge their batteries while enjoying spectacular views of the city
Today “Jardim das Virtudes” is a place frequently attended by the
most knowledgeable Porto tourists... This spot definitely worths your visit
The famous Lello e Irmao Bookstore, considered
as one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world...
The bookstore is flanked by shops and fronts the Praça de Lisboa, near to the Porto University Faculty of Sciences building, the Church and Torre de los Clerigos
Carlos Alberto Square with First World War memorial monument, designed by Henrique Moreira in city. Memorial dedicated to the Portuguese soldiers who died in World War I (the second version)
Rua da Cedofeita
In Pingo Doce supermarket. R. Da Cedofeita, 435. My fav cookies filled with vanilla with a good discount... It was impossible to resist the temptation to buy them!
Largo do Priorado (Priorado Square)
Church of São Martinho de Cedofeita (Igreja de Cedofeita), a medieval church in the civil parish of Cedofeita... The Church is a rare architectural example of a single-nave vaulted-ceiling temple, and the unique one in the traditional Entre-Douro-e-Minho Province region of Portugal...
Cedofeita is a former civil parish in the municipality of Porto. Local landmarks include this Church of Cedofeita (dedicated to Saint Martin), the Mouzinho de Albuquerque Plaza, the Oliveira's Fountain, several chapels and modern architecture buildings...
Infante D. Henrique Industrial School located in Alexandre Sá Pinto Square
Behind me there is also a monument: "O Pedreiro" (Stonemason), a bronze statue originally erected in João Chagas Garden, and later transferred to Alexandre Sá Pinto Square, after the Infante D. Henrique School was relocated...
Finally we went to Palácio de Cristal (Crystal Palace) gardens,
the most beautiful gardens in Porto...
Enjoying a relaxing walk
A beautiful gull
Peaceful atmosphere... Porto is a city where time goes a little more slowly and in a different rhythm and certainly it's is part of its charm
White chocolate and Vanilla biscuits from Pingo Doce
In the afternoon... Nice walk along the banks of the Douro River
Close to the Arrábida Bridge
Walking towards the sea...
Fishing boats on the River Douro
More fishing boats on Douro River mouth in Foz do Douro
A big seagull
Photos 22th March 2018. Porto
Happy Porto Hostel. Ana, a nice recepcionist...
The staff and the overall conditions there were excellent!
Colorful narrow streets in in down town of Porto
Statue of laughing men in João Chagas Garden. In 2001, when Porto was named the capital of European culture, Spanish sculptor Juan Muñoz installed the piece, "13 Laughing at Each Other." This sculpture captures the uneasy essence of the paradox of a loud silence: the 13 figures frozen in the moment of uproar while the act of hilarity or ridicule remains forever obscured. A few years before he finished "13 Laughing at Each Other" Juan Muñoz said of his art:
"I sometimes feel that some of my work is about waiting, waiting for something to happen; on the one hand afraid in case it does happen, or even wishing that it had never occurred. It is like keeping a work in that state that we would call desire- keeping it at that level of desire, just holding it there that wish, that uncertainty, keeping the work still just here. Or like watching a door which one day a person might open."
Jardim João Chagas, generally known as Jardim da Cordoaria (Rope-Makers Garden), due to the rope-makers that worked there, dates back to 1924 and is close to Torre dos Clérigos and Hospital Geral de Santo António
Hospital Geral de Santo Antonio (Saint Anthony Hospital)
Traditional tram. The historical tram is a splendid way to discover Porto. The trip is not very long and the speed easy so that you have time to discover the full beauty of Porto
LIVRARIA LELLO & IRMÃO BOOKSHOP
Bookshops are magical places anyway, but this one, Livraria Lello, in the city of Oporto (Porto), is simply breathtaking. If you are staying in Porto you can't miss this temple to culture: a bookshop with an extraordinary historical and architectural value, located at the number 144 of Rua das Carmelitas, in downtown Porto 😍😍😍. Even though I visited it in the month of March, there was a big queue of tourists purchasing a ticket...
I felt in love with this fabulous bookshop and the totally unique spectacle of an amazing interior architecture that inspired the Harry Potter's library
Livraria Lello & Irmão was established by the brothers José and António Lello on its present site in central Porto in 1906. The building's spectacular façade and interior were designed by Francisco Xavier Esteves (1864-1944)
Within the bookshop the most photographed attraction is the winding crimson staircase in the center of the store, which leads to a mezzanine floor and then to the top story with an 8 meter stained-glass skylight...
The first thing one detects when one enters is the contrast of wood with the stunning detailed glass ceiling – an authentically spectacular sight. The colossal stained-glass skylight bears the latin insignia, “decus in Labore” or “dignity in work”, the motto of the company created by the Lello brothers
The ceiling and stairs
Thanks to the imposing beauty of the Livraria Lello and the success of Harry Potter, the bookshop has been drawing increasing numbers of visitors since the early 21st century... This library was frequented by J. K. Rowling because she was teaching English in Porto and the bookstore (especially the stairs) was an inspiration for her stories. Besides, rumor has it that the garbs Harry Potter and his colleagues are wearing at school (Hogwarts) were inspired by the costumes of the University students in Porto (all in black)
Words can actually not describe the beauty of this building...
The book selection has been refreshed, with Harry Potter novels occupying a prominent place. About half of the books sold in the shop are in foreign languages: English, German, French, Spanish and Italian. The selection includes translations of Portuguese authors such as Fernando Pessoa and Jose Saramago, with Harry Potter's adventures also available in all the five languages...
The Divine Comedy by Dante
The Elephant's Journey by Saramago. Vintage classics 💗💓😍
The art nouveau style facade
1881 saw the founding of Sociedade José Pinto Sousa Lello & Irmão, which was later called Livraria Lello & Irmão (1919). The neo gothic building erected in 1906 was planned by the engineer Xavier Esteves. Inside the building attention should be paid to the painted plaster imitating wood, the stairs leading to the upper floor - one of the first reinforced concrete structures in Oporto - as well as the large stained glass windows in the ceiling wich bears the bookshop's monogram and motto Decus in Labore
It's important to remember that we all have magic inside us. JK Rowling
This is something you definitely have to see when you're visiting Porto. You'll be amazed
Casa Oriental and A Principal da Borracha. Casa Oriental is the grocery right next to Clérigos Tower, in downtown Porto. All the produce you’re expecting to find in a grocery, will be there. Plus Portuguese wines and liqueurs and codfish. This grocery started as a place where you could find products from the Orient (hence the name Casa Oriental, meaning Oriental House). It was founded in 1910 and you can still find traces of the façade paintings...
Inside the hostel...
Livraria lello ticket
Visit guide, ticket and Saramago's book
Photos 23th March 2018. Porto
Walking along the river in the Alfândega area...
Typical Portuguese houses in Porto Downtown...
Stroll back close to the Luis I Bridge and you
will find a profusion of restaurants that line the riverside...
A nice seagull...
Looking towards camera
Colorful houses near Douro River
The Wine Barrels - Guided wine tastings
My last hours in Oporto...
The latest pictures
Pics with Diana, Rui, Anna... from Happy Porto Hostel
The universal flood started before going to the airport and the transfer service arrived very late... I almost lost my flight! It was very stressful... I very much dislike rushing or feeling pressed for time so I had a hard time at first
Departures
Finally I reached the airport... Time for relax!
Already at the airport of Manises (Valencia)
My return home... My sweet Dante was waiting for me, of course!
Souvenirs
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