Lamego

Heading back downstream today. So we have to go through all the locks again, only this time in the other direction. 

We stopped this morning at Lamego, which is where the first king of Portugal,  Alfonso,  came from in 1137. Alfonso built the local cathedral,  but the only part of the original  12th century  structure that remains is the bell tower. 

The main attraction is the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Remedies,  which sits at one end of town at the top of a hill with a huge number of steps leading up to it.  I can only assume that these were some sort of penance for the pilgrims,  who certainly would have needed a remedy for their knees by the time they'd  climbed all the way to the top.  We went up in a bus, but walked back down the steps and that was tough enough.

The rest of the day was spent sailing back to Porto and the weather was lovely,  so we spent a lot of time on the sundeck enjoying the view.  Tomorrow is our last da6 onboard,  but we have another 3 days in a hotel  in Porto 

Mateus Palace

Today we visited Mateus Palace.  Apparently  I've  been  mispronouncing it for years as the locals pronounce it Matoosh.   

Contrary to what you might expect, Mateus Rose wine is not made here, in fact it's made in a totally different region of Portugal.   The guy who invented the wine (Fernando  Guedes) was a friend of the nobleman who owned the Palace and asked if he could use a picture of the palace on the label of his wine and was allowed to do so.  Years later when the wine had become such a successful brand, the nobleman suggested that perhaps he should be paid something  for the use of the iconic building  on the label, but Guedes refused. So the were not friends after that.  

The Palace is surrounded by some very beautiful gardens.

In the evening we visited another  Quinta, where we had a lovely  meal and sampled more port and other wines.

The Golden City

Today we had a full day excursion into Spain to visit the city of Salamanca.   As well as being one of the oldest University cities in Europe,  Salamanca is known as the golden city because of the sandstone that was used to construct  most of the older buildings.   This stone contains iron, as it ages and the iron oxidizes,  it turns a golden colour. 

We started with a walking tour of some of Plaza Mayor and the historic University buildings. 

During lunch, just off Plaza Mayor, we were treated to a flamenco show. 

After lunch we had free time to explore and Becky and I  went inside the cathedral.  Unlike most cities,  Salamanca sort of has 2 cathedrals: an old one and a younger one, that are joined together.  Basically,  the town grew too large for the old cathedral,  but rather than knocking it down and starting again, they just built the new cathedral onto the front of the old one.  The contrast between the insides of the two is very marked.

Outside, part of the sandstone carving near the entrance had to be replaced in 1992 because of wear and tear.   Instead of the usual leaves and animals, they chose to carve an astronaut. 

Castello Rodrigo

Our morning was spent cruising the river and traversing even more locks.

This far up river the Douro marks the border between Portugal and Spain.   So we docked in Spain and the took our bus back over the bridge into Portugal for our afternoon excursion to Castello Rodrigo.

Castello Rodrigo is a medieval village at the top of a hill which has been a point of contention between Spain and Portugal throughout its history.  A great keep called the Moura Palace overlooks the town.  In 1640, when Portugal regained its independence from Spain the castle was burned by an angry mob and was never rebuilt.

The local crafts reflect the region's importance as a producer of cork and you can buy anything from bags to umbrellas made out of cork.

Lots of Locks

We set sail from Porto at 6.30am.  The early morning fog was very atmospheric. 

We traversed 3 locks today. This one at Carrapatelo, is the deepest lock in Europe. 

In the late afternoon we docked at Pinhao and visited a Quinta to taste some port. I'm sure this is the first of many such stops. 

The Douro is a very beautiful river in a deep valley. Probably the most attractive river I've ever cruised on.

All aboard

Met up with Becky at Heathrow  yesterday morning and we took a car to Gatwick,  where we were meeting our other sister, Deborah,  and her husband.  We stayed in a hotel at Gatwick Airport overnight and flew on to Portugal this morning. 

As this is the first trip all 3 sisters have done together since we were children, we are wearing our signature "sisters" baseball hats.

The weather here in Porto is beautiful and the ship is docked in a very picturesque place on the river.  

After our safety briefing and dinner we went out on deck to admire the view at night.

Tomorrow we set sail for Pinhao.

Off to sample some port

Heading off to Heathrow tomorrow and on from there to Portugal for a river cruise on the Douro.  After that I'll be  spending a week  in Edinburgh.  Stay tuned here for more of my travel adventures.