the Travel Enthusiast
- 06 Mar
Adam in Amazing Places | NO COMMENTSThe Sweet Aroma of the City of Porto
The very beautiful Porto
The prosperity of the city is augmented by it’s wine making culture.
In Porto you can see every architecture style, from the oldest Romanesque churches to the Art Nouveau of the Majestic Cafe. The second largest city in Portugal did not have the access to the wealth of colonization, however, local leaders has brought important contributions to the city’s beauty.
Less than 6 km from the river Douro’s opening point, the Romans established a commercial settlement at the right side of the bank which was named by them “Portus Cale”, a port which became the seed of Portugal’s affluence. The city expanded step by step to both sides of the river bank, becoming under Visigothic rule an Archbishop diocese. After 300 years of Moorish rule, Porto had been the capital of Portugal.
The construction of the Medieval city was very hard. The 5 story buildings required granite terases to be built. In the 12th century the highest of them was the cathedral, with its twin towers, it dominated and surroundings like a medieval fortress. The initial architecture style was Romansque, the Gothic style appearing and influencing later. The Oldest Church in Porto, being Romanesque style, is the Sao Martinho de Cedofeita. It was completed much earlier than planned and expected. It’s name, Cedo Feita (promptly finished) comes from the workers.
Porto ©José Moutinho
An English Recipe
The construction of the city itself was financed by the flourishing commerce of wines from the superior basins of the river Douro. Red Wines were popular even in the Roman period, being appreciated later by the United Kingdom.
In 1860 a British businessman mixed a usual red wine with little distilled alcohol, making an aperitif called Porto, which brought huge popularity to the English market . The recipe was eventually modified and the sales increased. In time, German, English, and Dutch entrepreneurs started building huge cellars at the southern neighborhood of Vila Nova de Gaia, from where, in days without wind, a sweet scent spread above the river and through the old city.
- Flights
- Hotels
- Packages
- Cars
- Cruises
travel search by Travelgrove (get this widget)Nowadays a textile industry has developed. The western part of the old town is an example of a modernist urbanization with commercial and residence districts being separated by avenues, squares and parks. French architect Gustav Eiffel participated in building the bridges over the river Douro.
The bridge Dom Luis I was built in 1886, being a wonderful construction. It has 67 meters above the water, connects the center of the city with the wine commercial district. Porto’s success can be attributed its citizens’ spiritual and free thinking attitude. Not being pleased by the aristocratic leadership, the citizens forbade nobility establishment in the city, thus causing tension and hostility against authorities. The Napoleonic troops were brutally rejected in 1808.
In 1891 the city of Porto revolted against the Monarchy and later were in dictatorship by Salazar.
European City of Culture
The 300.000 citizens of Porto do not understand why their wine is more well known worldwide then their beautiful city. This has changed slightly, however, at least in European plan, in 1994, when the city became a European Capital of Culture. These people are visiting the cities numerous old structures, one of them being the tomb of Henry the Navigator (1394-1460), who although has never been on an expedition personally, he financed essentially on the progress of geographic discoveries, encouraging the construction of more controllable and maneuverable commercial ships .
Many tourists enjoy the picturesque zones of the city, those with narrow streets or it’s surroundings of the Ribeira square and feel the aroma of Porto. Anyway, at the Solar Vinho do Porto institution, you can try more than 200 types of wine.
You might also like
© Copyright 2004 - 2024 Travelgrove, Inc.