Oporto

On the day my dad had business to attend to, I took the morning train (0800) to Oporto. Oporto is about two and half hours north of Lisbon. This time I was more able to enjoy the ride up, and I was impressed with what I saw of outside-the-city Portugal.

Not to much to say on Oporto. This of course doesn't mean that it was poor by any means. I had a good time exploring the city, though there is not an incredible amount for the tourist. Walking along the water front, on both sides (the city is split by a river) was nice, and I was able to find a couple of elevated spots that offered great views of the city. I also found my favorite piece of graffiti of the trip in Oporto. A lot of graffiti is just mindless drivel that looks like trash, but some are pretty creative and funny. Someone had painted a picture of Bob Marley smoking a joint, and above that wrote: "Nah, let me spliff". Good for a laugh. The photo I took will follow.

One other thing. I probably shouldn't own up to this but, confession time. I free-rode a little bit, well, a lot in Oporto. The city has an ultra-modern subway/tram system. A little too modern. There are no turn-styles. There is just a scanner where you validate your ticket. It is run completely on the honor system. Well, the frugal traveler (I probably shouldn't use that term, that's the name of a New York Times travel columnist. Please don't sue NYT, I love your paper) here wasn't very honorable. It was 1.50 euros a ticket and, come on, we are looking to save money here. My apologies to the city of Oporto.

I didn't leave the city until dusk. I hopped the train back to Lisbon and enjoyed my copy of "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest" the whole ride back.

Luckily I timed my day trip right. The next day, a Wednesday, there was a general transportation strike.