Urban75 Home About Offline BrixtonBuzz Contact

If you could live anywhere in Europe?

danny la rouge said:
I think 11th -16th. So we'll just miss that.
Click to expand...

Have you read this?

4_portugal300.jpg
 
chilango said:
Click to expand...

She has a beautiful voice. The production's a bit on the lavish side for me, but her voice is so amazing I'm going to overlook that. Cheers!

(And for the Porto blog, that's got some good stuff on it as well as the bookshop. I'm really looking forward to this trip now: books, coffee, port, music, and radical politics I'm not as up on as I should be, so background reading to do. Perfect combo!)
 
danny la rouge said:
We're going there for a few days in April. What should we see?
Click to expand...

We did and really enjoyed all of the following:
- trip around Taylor's port lodge in Gaia (other side of the river) with a couple of free samples thrown in - more glasses are quite cheap so we left moderately pissed :D and got the cable car back to the station (Gaia is very steep). There are loads of port lodges but I would recommend Taylor's
- boat trip down the river to see the bridges and great views of old houses etc.
- just wandering around the town and the river front with its market. There are loads of beautiful, shabby or abandoned looking old houses. It's a great city to wander round
- went on the train for a day trip to a coastal town (seem to remember it was Vila do Conde) which was nice for a day out (wandering around looking in the church and sitting in the square with coffee/beer) although a bit foggy!
- if you're vegetarian, or even if you're not, this restaurant in Massarelos is fantastic - not to far from the metro. It was near where we stayed, but if I ever go again I'd happily travel to it Lupin Restaurante Vegetariano - Porto - Contactos
- the main station is worth a look - the main hall is covered in azulejos (blue & white tiles) and it's in the centre of town near cafes where you can get good coffee for a euro.
Loved the place. Hope you enjoy it.
 
Last edited:
chilango when did you live there exactly? I moved there in 2005 till 2011 and wondered if our paths might have crossed.

If I moved back I'd consider living somewhere like Vila Cha because it has a very quiet beach, fishing and is a nice village close to many other places.
 
For modern fado I like Deolinda, this is a bit long but shows the humour and style.



Then there's Rita Redshoes who is a great example of modern Portuguese music. Here she is with another modern musician Legendary Tigerman



My favourite by Rita Redshoes is



Although these are mainly in English, they normally perform in Portuguese.

Look out for FNAC who often have small live music events. Rita Redshoes has performed there just as she was becoming big.

In Santo Tirso, between Porto and Braga, there's an international guitar festival every year, and a rock band competition. Both are over a one month period.
 
oryx said:
We did and really enjoyed all of the following:
- trip around Taylor's port lodge in Gaia (other side of the river) with a couple of free samples thrown in - more glasses are quite cheap so we left moderately pissed :D and got the cable car back to the station (Gaia is very steep). There are loads of port lodges but I would recommend Taylor's
- boat trip down the river to see the bridges and great views of old houses etc.
- just wandering around the town and the river front with its market. There are loads of beautiful, shabby or abandoned looking old houses. It's a great city to wander round
- went on the train for a day trip to a coastal town (seem to remember it was Vila do Conde) which was nice for a day out (wandering around looking in the church and sitting in the square with coffee/beer) although a bit foggy!
- if you're vegetarian, or even if you're not, this restaurant in Massarelos is fantastic - not to far from the metro. It was near where we stayed, but if I ever go again I'd happily travel to it Lupin Restaurante Vegetariano - Porto - Contactos
- the main station is worth a look - the main hall is covered in azulejos (blue & white tiles) and it's in the centre of town near cafes where you can get good coffee for a euro.
Loved the place. Hope you enjoy it.
Click to expand...
Cheers, good recs. and I am a veggi, so that restaurant looks fab!
 
danny la rouge said:
Cheers, good recs. and I am a veggi, so that restaurant looks fab!
Click to expand...
Do you eat fish at all? If so go to Matosinhos where the fish is landed one side of the road and served in the restaurants the other side. Or if you fancy a short drive, go to Vila Cha. The restaurant looks out to sea and is alongside where the small, traditional fishing boats are pulled up onto the beach. The fish is for sale in the local shops in the village as well as, of course, in the restaurant. You are very unlikely to see any non-local people there.
 
dessiato said:
Do you eat fish at all? If so go to Matosinhos where the fish is landed one side of the road and served in the restaurants the other side. Or if you fancy a short drive, go to Vila Cha. The restaurant looks out to sea and is alongside where the small, traditional fishing boats are pulled up onto the beach. The fish is for sale in the local shops in the village as well as, of course, in the restaurant. You are very unlikely to see any non-local people there.
Click to expand...
I don't, but my girls all do, so I'll be happy to drink Port while they tuck in!

I'm really getting the inside gen here! Thanks folks.
 
dessiato said:
chilango when did you live there exactly? I moved there in 2005 till 2011 and wondered if our paths might have crossed.

If I moved back I'd consider living somewhere like Vila Cha because it has a very quiet beach, fishing and is a nice village close to many other places.
Click to expand...

2001.
 
For food in Porto, as with anywhere, try to go just off the beaten track to get the best at low price.

But do go to McDonald's in Praça de Liberdade, don't eat there of course, but the building us fabulous. Almost directly opposite is another restaurant worth visiting. It's one of the best in Porto. Close to that is a great place for coffee and cakes. Then on the main street there's another worth visiting, I can't remember the name but it's a popular tourist choice.

So many places...I'm a little homesick for Porto now.
 
danny la rouge said:
I don't, but my girls all do, so I'll be happy to drink Port while they tuck in!

I'm really getting the inside gen here! Thanks folks.
Click to expand...
Try the local Vino Verde. It's very good, light and refreshing.

For port try some of the smaller houses. Some are so much better than the big ones.

I'll have to spend some time back in Porto. Maybe in the summer when it's too hot here.
 
IMG_1463.JPG IMG_1462.JPG

So, the reason this air bnb was so much cheaper than anywhere else is that it's in a rundown area and the alleys around it seem to be the place people gather to do various drugs. The noise outside the window went on all night. We're calling the people at the entrance of our close 'the doowop group'.

However it's very central and this is a beautiful city. We arrived late evening and had a wander. Spoke to a couple of middle aged French guys (in French as they didn't have much English and we had no useful Portuguese) sitting outside a cafe. They said lots of locals speak French. They were visiting too, but seemed to be regular visitors, and were laughing about me being vegetarian.

Anyway once the daughters awake we'll be heading off to Cafe Majestic for a custard tart.
 
danny la rouge said:
View attachment 104200 View attachment 104198

So, the reason this air bnb was so much cheaper than anywhere else is that it's in a rundown area and the alleys around it seem to be the place people gather to do various drugs. The noise outside the window went on all night. We're calling the people at the entrance of our close 'the doowop group'.

However it's very central and this is a beautiful city. We arrived late evening and had a wander. Spoke to a couple of middle aged French guys (in French as they didn't have much English and we had no useful Portuguese) sitting outside a cafe. They said lots of locals speak French. They were visiting too, but seemed to be regular visitors, and were laughing about me being vegetarian.

Anyway once the daughters awake we'll be heading off to Cafe Majestic for a custard tart.
Click to expand...
Liked for Always Sunny reference, and the rundown beauty in the pics, and for the custard tarts, obviously.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Thora
Where would you take your family if you had £5k (ish) to spend?
2 3
Replies
86
Views
2K
Bahnhof Strasse
Bahnhof Strasse
Numbers
Claiming on travel insurance if holiday cut short due to death.
Replies
4
Views
378
Rebelda
Rebelda
N
Any recommendations for online Portuguese (European) course?
Replies
5
Views
262
Riklet
Riklet
flypanam
Anywhere but Paris
Replies
24
Views
872
Red Cat
R
Cloo
Will airports say on their website if getting through them is extra-slow?
Replies
20
Views
672
kalmatthew
K
Back
Top Bottom