Gouveia Canico

... the right direction (which we still managed to screw up). As we crossed the bridge to the Port Chateaus it started pouring rain (Thank you Chris for making me bring my coat) and we were soaked by the time we got there. Thankfully we have both become pretty immune to the rain.

The first Chateau we visited was Sandeman. They are a very old Chateau and are famous for their trademark character “The Don” who appears on all their bottles and ...

... than I originally would have.

After a day in Povoa, I made my way back to Porto to gather my things and do my laundry before heading back to the airport to catch a plane for London (not Ryanair this time).

All in all Porto was a good place to unwind from the constant circus that was Barcelona and Madrid. I was able to meet some really great people at the hostel, and I really enjoyed the quiet feel that the city gives off.

Maybe I'll retire in Porto.

Порту - без сомне 85;ия, один из самых (если не самый) colorful and characterful город 86;в Европ 99;.

Стра ;нно, что он ...

Лечу в Порто. Полет – всего 55 минут, а если учест 00; очере 76;ную для меня смену часов 86;й зо ...

It really is a shame we already booked our flight to France from Porto. We could have easily stayed an extra week in Portugal, there is so much to see here. But we did pretty good with our 2 days in Porto. It's right on the river and the ocean, and on one side of the river are tons of cute, old tiled homes, that look across to the other side of the bank where all of the old Port ...

We arrived without incident after a short and pleasant journey. Odd campsite mainly permanent encampments! Most of them looked like they had been there for many years. We were entertained by families arriving over the weekend to pack up for the winter. They cleared out all the rubbish that they had accumulated over the summer. They then covered their caravan.awning and covered area with tarpaulin and tied it down and put stones ...

... they were hardcore). Good thing we opted for the boogie boards because once in the water, the waves were massive and the undertow was insanely strong. Our hostel was amazing and the owner was chill and helped us map out some cool surf and kite spots along the coast.

http://picasaweb.google.c om/Jonny.D.Lawrence/20091007Aveiro?auth key=Gv1sRgCOOE_tn74bSSKA&feat=direc tlink

The next day we hit the road to Porto which was a substantial drive of about 5-6 hours. Luckily this is the day the weather decided to turn, so the bad weather was endured from the comfort of the car. We arrived late to Porto and checked into our less then elegant hostel. Our meal was no better. We ...

... where an odd ceremony began with 2 guitar players and a singer performing traditional songs infront of the 1000 odd students. There were also about 300 older students standing around in their uniforms, which consisted of pretty standard garb, but also a black cape like thing which they draped around themselves front and back. We asked some of them and it sounded like it was worn quite regularily and not just on formal occasions. One of the reasons we ...

... that carries new cars around (I don't know if they have a specific name) had had an accident and lots it's payload in the middle of this bridge 150m above the water, pretty hairy I'd imagine!!! It fits with what you hear about the roads in Portugal though, portugal is supposed to have the worst road fatality rate in Europe. Anyway, I guess I'd better get back out there touristing it up and hopefully I'll some more interesting stuff to fill you in on in a couple of days.