A wedding and a week in Porto

We have just returned from celebrating my eldest son’s wedding in Porto. It was the most joyous occasion, and I had the privilege and pleasure of walking my son down the ‘aisle.’

My son’s wife is Brazilian, and weddings are massive in Brazil. The wedding perfectly blended British and Brazilian culture. It is no understatement to say that Brazilians love to party – we danced until two in the morning, although the ‘youngsters’ continued long after us! And the food, where do I start?! I could write a whole post on the delicious and varied cuisine, including a five-course sit-down dinner.

Along with gaining a daughter, we have acquired an extensive Brazilian family. The evening before the wedding, family members from both sides enjoyed a wonderful dinner at a beachside restaurant. This occasion broke the ice, and I was able to use some of my limited Portuguese!

As for Porto, I was delighted to spend a week there as my previous weekend visit (see below) had been a taster of everything on offer.

A petite pause in Porto

We rented an Airbnb, except the night after the wedding when the immediate family stayed at the venue. Six of us, friends and family, were in an excellently located house in Vila Nova De Gaia, a city in its own right. It is separated from Porto by the Douro River, and it takes just five minutes to walk across the famous Dom Luís I Bridge.

It is easy to travel around Porto. Along with walking – and we walked a lot – we travelled by the following modes of transport:

• trams
• metro
• hop on – hop off bus
• cable car
• Rabelo boat
• funicular

In my next Porto post, I will go into more detail about the places we visited. If you have already been fortunate enough to visit Porto, did you love it as much as I did? I’d be interested to know.