Howard and Debbie Windsor

Day Trip - Douro Valley

On Tuesday we did a tour of the Douro Valley, famous for the production of Port wines. On the way to the Valley, we visited the beautiful village of Amarante.

In the Douro Valley, we visited 2 wineries, viewed the different approaches to port and wine production and had numerous opportunities to taste various types of port and wine. We also took the opportunity to do a river cruise - an interesting way to view the river, the valley and see the spectacular scenery.

This was a small tour, so we also got to meet some great people from allover the globe in the process.

Druro Valley - as seen from boat tour

Santiago Compostela, Spain;

We came to Santiago to see the Cathedral and the end of the El Camino. The streets throng with pilgrims with their walking sticks and backpacks. There are people from everywhere, here to do the pilgrimage. People pour over the Cathedral and pray at the relics of St.James. On Friday evening the Cathedral is packed with people to witness the burning of incense. There are obviously people here for many reasons. Many of them are here because of their faith. But many are here for the challenge of the walk. Whether or not you do the El Camino, it is still inspiring to see the pilgrims and the Cathedral.

Santiago to Viana Castelo

We had bus tickets for the full journey to Viana do Castelo but decided to switch to the train partway because of a long change time in Valenca. In the process we discovered that because of our recent, significant birthdays, the train was half price - one of the many benefits of ageing.

Viana do Castelo

Our apartment is on an estate (Quinta de Valverde), located on the highest point of this community. We enjoyed the hike to and from the estate to the historic centre twice each day. The town is rather quiet this time of year and finding a restaurant open in the evening was a challenge. It was also a challenge to spend more than 10 euros for a full meal with wine, for two.

The setting of our apartment, overlooking the town and the ocean, was spectacular and we enjoyed having breakfast each morning on the veranda taking in this view. The estate also has a number of bird sanctuaries. When we read the reviews of this place, we were surprised that people were complaining of the noises made by the birds. We soon discovered that these were not the songbirds we expected, but roosters, hens, swans, ducks, etc. and they could be quite noisy in the daytime. Overall, we loved this place and will return for a longer stay next time.

We toured the historic centre of Viana do Castelo and came upon one of the most beautiful churches we have ever seen (and that includes Rome). The interior was a combination of blue hand painted tiles and gold on wood carvings. We also made our way to the very highest point in the town by way of the longest funicular in Europe. Can't say we loved that trip. We made our way back on foot, down one of the longest and steepest paths in Europe (not formally charted - just our observation).

We walked about 10k to an incredibly scenic beach on the Atlantic, with white sand and a very high surf - quite popular for watersports with the locals. We took a five minute ferry ride back - we were the only passengers so the service was great.