“The Boston Global” article about Porto

The Boston Globe journalist Christopher Muther has published an article about his visit to Porto. He planned to stay just one day, he ended up staying 4 nights.

“What I found … was a series of charming old stone buildings, church squares, and open-air markets. There’s a river that glistens as it snakes through a city that clings precariously to cliffs and a night-life scene that rivals any European hot spot on a summer night.”

“I’m not one to take pictures of my food at restaurants. I usually feel that food is meant to be digested and not shared on Facebook. But I took out my camera, the good one no less, and photographed my steak tartare and the beautiful presentation of the truffle-style alheira (a meat and flour-based sausage) on a bed of toasted bread, bacon, and almonds.”

Porto’s “Ribeira”

Read the article at:

http://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/travel/2013/11/09/porto-sophisticated-new-edge/Qo25mGhnY4HaRTUzdKGpJM/story.html

 

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Madeira: more photos (4)

This is my 4th post with Photos taken in Madeira, feel free to check and comment. And don’t forget to add this island in the Atlantic Ocean to your “must-go destinations” 😉 .

 

Cable Car at Funchal

Another street in Funchal

The view from the Eastern side

Another side of the island

The ocean and the Island

Abrupt Landscape

Photos taken in 2009

Melgaço: Solar do Alvarinho

“Solar do Alvarinho” is a building in the old historical town of Melgaço – Portugal dedicated to the advertising, development and sale of Alvarinho wine. (Marked as a Cup in the map)

Alvarinho Soalheiro

Alvarinho is considered by many to be the noblest of the Portuguese white wines and is for sure the “Vinho Verde” which reaches the higher alcoholic graduations.

This wine has spread to other regions in the planet but the real Alvarinho production is limited to the sub-region “Monção and Melgaço” in northern Portugal. And it’s only made from Alvarinho grapes.

The building was among the centuries a town hall, a courthouse and a library. The top floor features a tasting room where you can try and compare the brands for FREE. Following the guidance of the employee I tasted the 2010 “Soalheiro” and a new addition to the Alvarinho family: Organic Farming – “Quinta das Alvaianas”.

At the ground floor there’s the bar/cafeteria and the shop where besides the wine you can also find other local traditional products like the “chouriço” or the “presunto”.

Wine&Spirits magazine describes “Follies Alvarinho 2009” like this:

“Rating: 92/100 – As reviewed by Wine & Spirits Magazine on 08/09. While the aroma is flinty and a little undeveloped, the flavors already show layers of fruit, from Mandarin orange and lime to white peach and an anise-like fennel note. The contrast between smoky richness and freshness makes this a luscious wine to enjoy in late summer with lobster and corn on the cob, both off the grill.”

Solar do Alvarinho

Alvarinho for sale

Solar do Alvarinho store

Old courthouse room

Tasting room

Alvarinho Soalheiro

Alvaianas Alvarinho

For more information about Melgaço please check the other posts in this category.

Photos taken in January 2011.

Around the webs: Melgaço in Youtube

Melgaço is one of those unknown destinations in Portugal with plenty to offer as you can check on my previous post.

Sign on the Spanish side of the Bridge

I’ve found some interesting videos on Youtube that add a different angle.

Video 1 – Aerial view

This video shows an aerial view of the Minho River and Melgaço.

It begins with the River and the international bridge between Spain and Portugal.

At 0:42 you can see the rural Hotel “Quinta do Reguengo”

At 1:09 it shows the Sports Complex

You can get a good view of the town with the castle tower standing out at 2:30

Video 2 – Bridge Jumping

I’ve talked about the practice of extreme sports in Melgaço in my “Melgaço Radical” post.

Here’s a video of some people jumping from the International bridge if you’re feeling brave today.

Video 3 – RC helicopter films the Monte de Prado Hotel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7IXtENrSHc

This video shows the “Monte de Prado” Hotel located in the Sports Complex and near the river.

Madeira: more photos (2)

Please click the photos for aditional information and higher resolution images.

Madeira Liquors

Funchal (Cable Car)

Agriculture on a wall

Roads across the mountains

Waterfall

Another road in the mountains

Flowers for sale

Note: For more information about Madeira Island please check my first post about Madeira: HERE

Melgaço

Where is it?

Melgaço is the northern municipality (“concelho”) of Portugal. It’s located on the portuguese bank of the Minho River which acts as a natural border separating Portugal from Galicia – Spain. Check it on Google Maps

How to get there?

The closest international airports are Oporto (Portugal) (approximately 150km/99,4miles away by car) and Vigo (Spain) (approximately 70Km/44,5miles by car).

From Oporto:

By Car – renting a car is probably the best option. It’s the fastest way to travel (should take less than 2 hours) and it will also provide you with your own transportation to explore Melgaço. There are 2 motorways towards the north, taking the A3 from Oporto to Valença is the shortest and more comfortable way but requires a payment of 7.85€ (cheaper for motorcycles, more expensive for vans, trucks, etc…). Helpful links: Oporto-Melgaço Google Maps; Avis Rent-a-Car

By Bus – Buses to Melgaço leave from near the Trindade Metro Station – Oporto but the trip takes usually more than 3hours, honestly it’s boring! Helpful Links: AV Minho Bus (timetable in portuguese – first one Melgaço->Porto; second one Porto->Melgaço)

By train – Train is a bit faster than the bus but it will only take you to Valença, from there you’ll have to get some other transportation to travel the remaining 40Km/25miles to Melgaço. Helpful link: CP

Reasons to visit:

I hope I’ll show you myself countless reasons but here are some interesting ones:

• The landscape – The wide area of Melgaço has a large number of different environments: the mountain cutting Minho River with rapids and small islands; the Alvarinho Wine fields; the wind electric generators on the top of the mountains; the boulder covered peaks near Castro Laboreiro; part of the Peneda-Gerês National Park …

• The gastronomy – the traditional dishes you should try include the various kinds of “Chouriço”, the “Presunto”, the “Caldo Verde”, the Minho River Trout, Roasted lamb (usually requires booking because the recipe involves hours of preparation) or if you’re interested on something uncommon you could try one of the many Lamprey recipes (“Arroz de Lampreia” or “Lampreia Seca” for example).

• The wine – Melgaço is included in the  Alvarinho (also known as Albariño) production zone and has a  museum-like building  dedicated to all the brands in the municipality, a wine tasting tourist route and an annual party dedicated to its tasting.

• A calm and relaxing place with much to offer but usually unknown to tourists.

• Adventure and nature – explore trails either walking (example) or in a mountain bike; Rafting; Paintball and others activities (contact geral@draftzone.pt for more info)

• The sports center – especially for football teams (soccer). It was one of the official Euro 2004 training centers. LINK

Gallery:

Tower castle

Statue in the town entrance

Main field – Sports Center

Garden entrace

Cinema Museum

Solar do Alvarinho

Interesting links: Visit Portugal.com