Wednesday April 2, 2025
Porto, Portugal from Luis I Bridge
Our day begins early with luggage outside our door at 7am followed by a buffet breakfast at the dining room of the Hotel Santa Maria in Fatima. We are on the bus by 7:45. Leo begins each day we leave one location for another with a headcount and a few questions. "Did you check your room to make sure you did not forget anything? Do you have your passports? Do you have your whisper sets? Yes? Okay good."
This morning as we leave Fatima the temperature is 53 degrees with a thin layer of fog. But this will lift as we travel along the highway past farmhouses, vineyards, and long stands of pine and eucalyptus on our 2 1/2 hour drive to Porto, Portugal.
My mind races trying to identify the trees as they pass swiftly by my window. The maritime pine, native to Portugal, reminds me of home and the Monterey pine. Interspersed I see the stone pine, which is where we get our pine nuts, is also native to Portugal, but also a reminder of home. Before I nod off I spy a Norfolk Island pine...
A half hour out of Porto, Leo calmly brings us all back to consciousness with a gentle "Good morning Pilgrims." Then proceeds to enlighten us with a few interesting particulars about our next stop, the town of Porto.
Located along the Douro River, Porto is the second largest
city in Portugal, after Lisbon. The country of Portugal actually owes its name to Porto,
which was originally called Portus Cale.
Portus is the Latin word for Port, and Cale refers to the settlement of
Celtic people who lived there. Over the years Portus Cale evolved into the name Portugal from which the country took its name.
Another piece of trivia Leo informs us is that the Portuenses (the people of Porto) are nicknamed tripeiros or
tripe people. This refers to the time in the early 1400's when higher quality cuts of meat were sent with Prince Henry the Navigator on his expeditions leaving only off-cuts such as
tripe for the people to eat. "Do you like tripe," Leo asks? Hmm, not really. Well apparently tripe is an
important cultural food to Porto, and Leo feels we should try it. I leave this up to my fellow pilgrims.
Ribera area of Porto UNESCO site (Wikipedia Commons License)
The historic old town, where we will be
stopping shortly to visit the Porto Cathedral and the Luis I Bridge, was declared
a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1996. But, Leo opines, the story of Porto isn't complete without Port wine. This typically sweet red wine, usually served with dessert, is made here along the Douro River. And though other port-style wines are produced outside Portugal, only wines from Portugal area allowed to be labelled "port." Leo suggests we try the Port wine with the tripe. Maybe? The boat pictured below is a rabelos. Frequently seen along the Douro River as it carries barrels of Port wine to the Gaia for storage and aging.
Rabelos carrying port wine (Wikipedia Commons GNU Free License)
With that background, our bus pulls into Porto at 10:30 and we pick up a local tour guide for a 1 hour bus tour starting from the Monument to the Heroes of the Peninsular War at Avenida de Boavista.
Monument to the Heroes of the Peninsular War
(Wikipedia Creative Commons License)
Portugal, Spain, and England united against Napoleon who invaded the Iberian Peninsula during the Peninsular War from 1808 to 1814. The monument, shown in the picture above, commemorates the joint victory of the Portuguese and their allied forces as well as the men and women of Portugal who fought in these battles.
Casa de Musica
We pass by the Casa de Musica, a nine-floor high asymmetrical polyhedron covered in cement. It was designed by architect Rem Koolhass to mark the year 2001 when the city of Porto was designated the European Capital of Culture. Casa de Musica opened in 2005 as the first building in Portugal aimed from its conception dedicated exclusively to music. This 1,300 seat theatre is home to the National Orchestra of Porto.
Our driver now heads toward the waterfront for a view of a large multi-layer net sculpture drifting and gliding with the wind over the Cidada Salvador Plaza. Installed in 2005, this artistic piece called She Changes by Janet Echelman was designed to reflect Port's seafaring heritage.
She Changes (Wikipedia Creative Commons License)
Continuing along Av. do Brasil we travel through the wealthy neighborhood of Foz do Douro. The name means mouth of the Douro, which is where this neighborhood lies looking out toward the Atlantic Ocean.
On the right is the Fort São João Baptista da Foz. It was built in the late 1500’s to defend the city
from French pirates. Fearing an invasion
by Spain the fort was reinforced and expanded in the mid 1600’s. By 1694 it was
considered a major stronghold in the Portuguese Kingdom and the key to the defense
of Porto. In 1759 the fort functioned as
a prison for political prisoners and housed over 200 Jesuit priests who were temporarily expelled from European countries. The fort was also used for defense against the
French during the Peninsular War in 1808 and the Portuguese Civil War in the
1830’s. Today it is the home of the National Defense Institute.
We turn inland and continue along the Douro River past the Ponte da Arrabida bridge. This separates the two parts of Porto, the old town and the (new) Nova de Gaia. Old Porto located in the Ribeira neighborhood of the city is the historic medieval heart of Porto and a World Heritage UNESCO site. It features narrow streets with colorful buildings, the Porto Cathedral, and terraced homes overlooking the Douro River. Across the river the Nova de Gaia or New Porto features modern architecture and is known for its Port wine cellars.
Arrabida Bridge
Our bus tour will end in the Ribeira neighborhood at the San Bento Metro Station on Av Dom Afonso Henriques.
From here we walk less than a 1/4 mile through narrow streets to the Church of Santa Clara for Holy Mass.
Arriving at the entrance to the church of Santa Clara
Saint Clare welcomes pilgrims
Construction on this convent church was completed in 1457 and a community of Poor Clare nuns moved in. Between 1730 and
1732 the interior of the church was covered with gilded woodwork.
Main altar with Saint Francis to the left and Saint Clare to the right
In 1834 at the conclusion of the Portuguese Civil War, Minister and Secretary of the Kingdom of Portugal, Joaquim Antonio de
Aguiar decreed the elimination of all convents, monasteries, colleges, hospices, religious houses, and orders. He did however, out of the kindness of his heart, allow cloistered
nuns to live out their life in their convent before closure. The last nun who lived in the Church of Santa Clara died
in 1900 and the convent was closed.
Restoration of the Church of
Santa Clara took place between 2014 to 2021. In 2021 it was reopened for visiting, worship, and Mass which is celebrated every Tuesday and Saturday. 206 Tours arranged for Fr. Thom to celebrate Mass for us privately.
Fr. Thom in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament in the Tabernacle
Fr. Thom Celebrating Holy Mass
Master carver Miguel Francisco de Silva did all the gilding in the 1730s. Nearly every square inch, including the ceiling is covered with carved and gilded woodwork. The architectural style is a mixture of Rococo and Baroque.
How did the relationship between the Portuguese monarchy and the Church get so bad that religious houses like the convent of Santa Clara would be closed? Well it is a story as old as time, the story of two brothers who could not get along, Pedro and Miguel.
When King John VI of Portugal died in 1826 a dispute over royal succession was opened between two of his sons, Pedro and Miguel.
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Known as the Portuguese Civil War or the War of the Two Brothers, this dispute carried on between 1828 and 1834. King Pedro IV leader of the liberal progressive constitutionalist was Emperor of Brazil and the king’s oldest son. Younger brother Miguel contended that Pedro had forfeited his claim to the throne by declaring Brazil independent. With neither Brazil or Portugal wanting to unify the monarchy this became a problem.
In 1826 Pedro proposed a Constitutional Charter for Portugal in an attempt to unite the traditionalists and the liberals. The traditionalist party as well as the Catholic Church were not satisfied with this and backed Miguel as the successor to the throne of his father. The town of Porto, the center of the Portuguese progressives, declared their loyalty to Pedro IV. King Miguel I initially suppressed these rebellions, but by 1834 after six years of civil war, he formally renounced all claims to the throne of Portugal. Pedro swooped in, restored the Constitutional Charter, confiscated the property of all who had served under King Miguel I, closed all religious houses, and expelled the priests.
After Mass we had two hours on our own in Porto. We joined fellow pilgrims Patty and Charles for lunch a the Batalha Cafe (Praça da Batalha 32 4000-100 Porto, Portugal) a short 5 minute walk from the church.
Batalha Cafe
Our goal in the short two hours we had was to enjoy lunch, walk the Ponte Luis I bridge and tour the Porto Cathedral. A lot to undertake when Mike is limited by his crutches. Still we managed to do this and arrive at our bus meeting spot ahead of everyone else!
After lunch we walked with fellow pilgrims Patty and Charles to the Ponte Luis I Bridge over the Douro River for some incredible views.
Construction was finished on the Luis I bridge in 1886. Linking
the Ribeira neighborhood with the Nova de Gaia, the bridge has two levels. The upper for pedestrians and the Metro and
the lower level for cars and buses. The wind whips over this bridge in what appears
to us almost hurricane speed. So,
hold onto your hat and your phone!
Metro approaching
Views from both sides of the bridge. Always watch for the metro as it approaches silently from both directions.
From the bridge we have a short walk to the Porto Cathedral, where we toured on our own before meeting the rest of the group to continue on to Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
The Cathedral sits on top of a hill and offers stunning views of the Old Town. Below are pictures of the main entrance to the Cathedral.
The cathedral was built during the 12th and 13th century and contains both Romanesque and Gothic period architecture.
High Altar of the Porto Cathedral
Decorated with azulejo tiles depicting scenes from the Bible, the Gothic-style cloister was built during the reign of King John I of Portugal (1385-1433) and is located inside the Porto Cathedral.
Cloister of Porto Cathedral
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Pilgrims waiting for our bus at the Porto Cathedral
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Time for a rest on the bus as we travel 3 hours to our next overnight stop, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
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All photos or videos by L.A. Momboisse unless otherwise noted
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