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Day 4: To Porto

Crossing the Bridge into Porto

 Today we got up at 7:00AM, had breakfast and packed up our stuff to start the journey to Porto.  The first thing we had to do was check out of the hotel, then call an Uber to take us to the rental car place.  Just a small shout out to the staff of the hotel for being able to accommodate receiving an Amazon package for me. I was able to order a camera battery charger off amazon and have it delivered to the hotel, the staff checked the address to ensure it was correct and received the package for me. Great service in that regard.  Now back to the trip. 

We picked up the rental car from AVIS around 9:30 AM.  They gave us a little Citron hatchback which is about the right size for driving around Portugal and its cities, while still handling all our luggage.   We did get the extra insurance, just for piece of mind.   From there we exited the city of Lisbon and got on their version of a freeway.   Our first stop was Nazare where we saw the Nossa Senhora da Nazare church/convent and a sea cliff overlook.  We didn’t go to beach, but the beach is where they hold a lot of world surf competitions because the waves can reach 90 feet in height.  We also grabbed a quick lunch in Nazare, at a Burger King.  Every time we go to grab food for lunch there seems to be a herd of middle/high schoolers also doing the same thing.  Teenagers can be utterly annoying in large numbers.  

Overlook

Ourside of the Church

After lunch we headed to Alcobaca to see the first Gothic Church and Monastery in Portugal. The monastery was nice, and very cool inside, thanks to the thick stone walls and high ceilings filtering the heat from the day.  Just so you know the temperatures have been in the upper 80s and low 90s so far during the trip, resulting in us not doing as much sight seeing as we would normally do.  It is just too much between the sun and the heat.   After visiting the church and monastery we got back on the freeway towards Porto.  

View of the Monastery Courtyard

Nave of the Church

Outside of the Church

We arrived in Porto a little after 4:30PM. Thankfully, traffic wasn’t too bad, and we were able to find the recommended parking place since the hotel doesn’t have parking.    After checking in and getting to our room, which had a gift of a slice of cake and a small bottle of port, we unpacked and picked a place for dinner. 

Gift in our room

 It is one of our trip traditions to see how other countries interpret Mexican food, so we found a “Mexican” restaurant that was 2 minute walk away.   Jim had a burrito and I had a salad.  Consensus it was close to American Mexican restaurant food with a few peculiarities like oranges and arugula on the salad, plain white rice served with the burrito, and the beans lacked a Mexican flavor.  Overall, we rate the restaurant a 3.5 out of 5 stars.   From there it was back to the hotel.

Salad at the restaurant

Tomorrow, we start the day with a walking tour. 

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