Bem vindo ao Porto!

Well, here we are in Portugal. We arrived in Porto on Saturday and must admit that we were taken a little off guard. We had gotten spoiled to small-town Spain. All of a sudden we found ourselves navigating steep one-way streets and a new hustle and bustle. While the original expectation had been for a culture and infrastructure much like its Iberian neighbor, Portugal seems to be quite different. It is possible to see, shortly after crossing the border, that this country lags behind the rest of Western Europe in economic terms. We´re adjusting now and we are going to focus on taking it easy for the next few days.

Our first day in Portugal was spent immersed in Brazilian Portuguese. We met two Brazilian men on the bus from Spain who had also walked the road to Santiago. One was doing the trip before he started med-school in New York and the other owned a computer business back home. The latter was staying overnight in Porto and became our companion for the evening (he spoke very little English). We walked the new city together and got to be lazy, enjoying the services of our native-speaking tour guide.

When we first set out the city seemed unnaturally quiet and subdued. This was because everyone was watching the Portuguese national football team in the match that would advance them into the next round of the World Cup. This is the first time in over 40 years that Portugal will make a showing in a later round. After the game the streets were flooded with people in the national colors, cars were honking, and everyone was celebrating. The energy was astounding!

Later in the evening, we were also pleasantly surprised to find that a local festival was being celebrated, complete with a parade of residents in costume for the occasion. Street vendors lined the path and created a festive atmosphere. At the end of the night we dined at an Irish pub with live music, and shared a few drinks with our new friend. It was definitely an international experience!

The next day we enjoyed lesiurely strolls through the streets and a Port wine tour/tasting. We found, to our surprise, that we actually enjoy a good Port wine.

We hope to check-in and add some pictures soon. Look forward to news of Lisbon...Love, J&M.