April 18th. Porto! You Can’t Tell a Book (or a Hostel or a Restaurant) by its Cover.

Porto immediately impresses as a place that no matter how many days you are here, it is not enough. In our case we have allotted only 2 days as we are intent on beginning the Camino. As with Lisbon, perhaps another time.

We are staying at The Poets Inn of Porto, another “upscale” hostel. 45 euros a night buys us a remarkably spacious room that oozes with charm… breakfast is included! The bland exterior camouflages this hidden gem.

We settled in late in the afternoon and chose naps before settling out to explore the neighborhood, central city, and seek dinner. This is a compact city, folded into the hills that challenge ones legs and sense of direction.

The restaurant we chose was located in an alley, hidden from the more tourist oriented establishments on the nearby square. It was recommended by our host, yet the exterior still commanded a leap of faith for us to enter. Our reward was the finest meal of this journey to date, bar none! Christine had a fall-off-the-bone pork shank, and I was wowed by a grilled octopus. The trimmings would have outshone most fine dining entrees, but ours main courses were so exceptional that they retained their status at “top billing”. A rich and complex red Duoro wine became the exclamation point of the meal. By the way, can you guess the original function of the “chandelier”???

Tomorrow we explore the city, get our credentials stamped at the Cathedral for our Camino departure, sip port wine, and look into each other’s eyes.

Peace Everyone. Pete

(Answer: The drum to a wash machine)