Settling In

Can't believe we've been here a week!  We’re settling in and getting familiar with the neighborhood. Our apartment is in a great location! We're two blocks from Rua de Santa Catarina which is a large pedestrian shopping street, a block from the metro and there’s a Minipreço (7-11 meets grocery store) in the building. Originally the plan was to get a place from AirBnB but in Portugal if you book for more than 27 nights, you have to pay the full amount when you reserve a place. I noticed the place we liked was managed by a rental company so I dug around online and found their contact info and booked with them directly. Not only would they allow us to just pay a deposit, we avoided a lot of the AirBnB fees and they are providing weekly housekeeping services! 

 

 

The buildings in Porto do not have trash
shoots so residents bring their trash to
strategically place dumpsters around town.

A year ago when I was here, they were building the new Mercado do Bolhão and this street was full of cars.  Now it is a great covered market and the street is for pedestrians.  There is so much construction in Porto these days as it has become a popular destination to come when they retire or just want a change of pace.

Every 5 feet there seems to be a bakery or nata shop so we’ve decided it is our duty to try them all and do a comparison! We’ve tried a different place each day so far. While I do love a good pastel de nata (which usually ends up being pastéis…meaning more than one nata), I do like a bakery because you can have a choice of a nata or one of the other amazing pastries in Portugal!

Not to leave out gelato, we’ve also tried a couple different gelatarias! Amorino has always been one of my favorites as they make your come look like such a pretty flower!

We spend a good bit of time just wandering around Porto and doing a little sightseeing.  As I’m working during some of our time here, we spend time exploring in the mornings and early afternoons and then I work from 2pm - 10pm on the days I’m not taking PTO. While I’m working, LuLu sees what kind of trouble she can find!  Here are just some random photos around town.

Dress Well & Cheap Here

Sao Bento Train Station

  

Not loving the new color of the Fonte dos Leões.  The photo above on the left is the new paint job and the one on the right is the one I took a year ago.  

The Francesinha is a Portuguese sandwich that originated in Porto.  It is basically a heart attack on a plate as it consists of roast, steak, ham and sausage topped with melted cheese and a sauce of tomato and beer (sometimes an egg too) and served with fries! One day when we stopped in for lunch and they had mini Francesinhas I ordered one so LuLu could see one.  LuLu can’t resist a good hot dog and when she saw they had a special hot dog on the menu she ordered it...turns out it was basically a hot dog that also had ham and topped with the Francesinha sauce. Saw the painting on the right that shows all the layers of the Francesinha.

In my past visits to Porto, I’ve never been inside the Igreja do Carmo (even when I lived literally around the corner last summer!) so LuLu and I popped in for a visit.  It is a beautiful little church on the inside and covered with gorgeous tiles on the outside. Many of the altar pieces represent the Via Delorosa of Jesus (the path he took on Good Friday).

It is rumored that while living in Porto, JK Rowling was inspired to write the Harry Potter books by the bookstore, Livraria Lello.  She disputes the rumor but judging by the lines to get in (some times in excess of 2 hours!), fans believe it to be true. Elaine is a member and as part of her membership she can skip the line and bring in one guest. She and LuLu went in for a little look around while I enjoyed some people watching. 

The Peninsula War took place 1807-1814 on the Iberian Peninsula when France tried to conquer Portugal.  Spain and England came to Portugal's defense and together they defeated the French. Here are a few pics from the Monument to the Heroes of the Peninsula War (aka Rotunda da Boavista).

When Elaine decided to move to Porto, she knew it was her responsibility to learn the local language and started Portuguese lessons online and then when she moved here, she started working with Lara, her Portuguese tutor.  She's been here a little over a year and it is amazing how well she speaks and understands Portuguese!  We thought it would be fun for LuLu to take a lesson with Lara so back to school she went and she's been practicing her new language as we make our way around town!  Later that day, Lara texted Elaine and said "Ela é absoluta amorosa!!! Eu adorei a Lulu" which translates to "She is absolutely lovely!!! I love LuLu".  LuLu continues to go international as she won the hearts of folks in Vietnam and Cambodia in December!!

The Dom Luis I Bridge connects Porto to Vila Nova de Gaia (aka Gaia) across the River Duoro.  When I first visited Porto 5 years ago, you took your life in your hands to walk the bridge as it was shared with cars, buses and metro.  A couple years ago, the bridge was renovated and the top deck is for pedestrians and metro only while the lower level is for buses, cars and those brave pedestrians.  The views from the bridge are amazing!  It is only a 20 minutes walk from our place...and downhill!

A year ago, this is the bus stop where I arrived from Lisbon.  Back then it was basically a concrete lot.  Today it is a proper bus stop.  Just another sign of the growth here in Porto.  While it is nice to see some of the improvements, I hope it does not take away the charge of Porto as has been the case in my own hometown.

More to come as we continue to explore Porto.  Até à próxima (until next time)!

And We're Off!

Early last year, I decided I wanted to start taking a month every year to live some place different.  As many of you know, I am a big fan of travel and all the things you learn about how other people live, other cultures, other places and yourself.  July is historically a time when my client does not host meetings and I am in the planning phase for the fall and winter so it is the perfect time to work extra remotely.  I am extremely fortunate to have a career that feeds my passion and equally blessed to work for a company that promotes self-care and supports me in my endeavors. 

Porto, Portugal is one of my favorite cities and the two weeks I spent there last year were just not enough so this year, I'll be working and playing here for a month.  LuLu has never been to Portugal so I thought it would be fun to show her around and also see the city for the first time through her eyes.  A little over a year ago, my friend Elaine moved to Porto and LuLu has been her PA back in Charleston so it was also the perfect time for LuLu to see her Portuguese daughter.

At the on-set, our trip was pretty simple...Charleston to JFK to Amsterdam to Lisbon and then a train to Porto.  Well normally the travel gods are with me but this time they decided to have a little fun with us.  Our layover at JFK ended up being almost 11 hours as KLM delayed our flight to Amsterdam.  Not a bit deal as we could easily change our train to Porto and I was able to get a room at a cool hotel in Lisbon for the night since we arrived too late to take a train.  While they re-routed our bodies as we were definitely going to miss our connection to Lisbon, they neglected to re-route our luggage.  If you don't have Apple Air Tags, get them!  Thanks to them, we didn't have to wait in baggage claim to find out our luggage didn't arrive and we could go straight to Ground Force to file a claim.

A long layover doesn't have to be boring thanks to the folks at the Delta Sky Club!

A couple more houses for my collection!  On KLM international legs, they give you a replica of a traditional Dutch house made of Dutch Delft.  They have 103 different houses (they're numbered so I keep a list in my phone to make sure I don't get a duplicate) so you can collect all of 103 of them.  I was talking with one of our flight attendants and saying I always look forward to them bringing the houses around at the end of the flight.  Well she noticed they had one of the coveted #103 (rarely are they offered) and when I woke up, it was sitting on my table!  Yet another reason I do love KLM...they have such amazing service.

After a great night's sleep (in spite of our lay flat seats, we only slept about 3 hours on the flight...got our second wind during the 11 hour layover so we were pretty wide awake on the flight), we took the train to Porto.  As an added bonus to our luggage not arriving with us, we didn't have to schlep it on the train or on the metro once we got to Porto.

We enjoyed the picnic breakfast our hotel packed for us.  When we return to Lisbon at the end of our trip, we're staying at 138 Liberdade Hotel so it worked out great we could stay there on our unexpected overnight in Lisbon. During check-in, I asked Jao what time we should leave for our 8AM train and he said 7:30A which meant we would miss breakfast service.  Without missing a beat, he immediately said "since you will miss breakfast, would you like us to pack a picnic breakfast for you"?  Talk about service!  I spend A LOT of time in hotels and never in my travels have I had such proactive service!

After meeting Elaine at the train station and dropping our backpacks off, we set out to do a little exploring before heading to the airport to get our wandering luggage.  Fortunately after a similar experience last year with my flight to Lisbon and stay in Porto, I knew the Ground Force routine at the Porto Airport!  I was excited for LuLu to experience the insanity of the Land of Lost Luggage as last year there were easily 1,000 bags in this giant room but imagine my surprise to see less than 100 bags there this year.  The good news is it only took us about 5 minutes to find our bags where as last year, it was easily 20 minutes after I was taken to the room and told "find".

With bags unpacked, groceries purchased and apartment in order, we were ready for another good night's sleep. Tomorrow we begin to explore!

A Few Days in the Promise Land (aka Texas)

I don't often get to spend time in the city before or after a program but on those rare occassions when I do, I try to take advantage of it. This trip it worked out for LuLu to come along and since it meant visiting a state she's never visited and the added bonus of seeing family she said "have suitcase, will travel".  How perfect was it that it was also Mother's Day Weekend...Happy Mother's Day LuLu!  

We got to San Antonio a couple days early and did a little sightseeing.  When I was here for our planning visit in January, the DMC (destination management company...area experts that help make my life so much easier) took us to The Historic Pearl as of our activities was a cooking competition at the Culinary Institute of America.  We didn't have a lot of time to explore the area so decided to check it out.  There are some cute shops and lots of restaurants...everything at The Pearl is local so it was refreshing to not see chains.

Saturday morning we Googled "best brunches in San Antonio" and one of top picks was The Hayden.  I love a good Jewish diner so off we went and WOW is all I can say!  We both ordered the Fried Chicken and Latke Waffle and it was probably one of the best brunches we've ever had!  The chicken was encrusted with matzo meal and the waffle was made from potatoes and to top it all off was bourbon apples and apple syrup with a dollop of sour cream.  Not only was the food delicious...the service was exceptional.  If you're ever in the area, definitley go by The Hayden.

With our bellies full, we headed down to the Riverwalk to take a little boat ride and check out The Alamo.  The DMC told us the best thing to do was park at the Hyatt Regency and then head out their back door to the Riverwalk.  You can book your ticket online or just go the the Go Rio store front on the river which is what we did.  The tickets aren't timed so you just buy them and wait for the next boat...they run about every 15-20 minutes.

Snagged a pic of LuLu taking a break
back at the hotel after giving her a tour

After a little fun, it was time for me to work for the next week.  So while I worked, LuLu spent some time at the spa, relaxed and of course made friends.  I had clients and customers coming up saying they met my mom!  When my program was over, we headed up to Waco to check out the Fixer Up spots and go out to Hico to see our cousins.

On the way out to Hico to see Betty and James, we saw this fella.  I seriously thought he was going to charge me because the second I got out of the car, he stood up.  Turns out he was just possing for the tourist!

James and Betty took us to Hard Eight BBQ Pit for lunch and basically a tray o' meat.  Gotta love a place where you can get anything you want dipped in garlic butter to boot!

Betty & James told us we'd pass Chip & Jo's farm on the way back so we had to do a slow roll and snag a picture.  We did learn on our tour the day before about all the things they've done for Waco. They've definitely changed the narrative of the city from the 1993 incident.

After a little work and a little play, it was time to head back home.  Once again, LuLu really does enjoy her time in the Sky Club.  We'll be home for a little while and then we're off on our next adventure...Portugal!