Receba a Porto!

Me. No camcorder. No knowledge of Portuguese. Very rough idea of what to expect. An adventure for sure...

So, as with my Academic Travel from last semester, I did keep a daily journal (more like a crude list) of the goings-on. My journey began here in Lugano on Thursday night, traveling into Milan for my 6:30am flight the next day. Then into Porto later that morning. After 2 full days, I would catch a morning flight on Sunday back into Milan, roughly doing things back in reverse. And, without further ado, with some comment, my Porto Journal:

Day 0: Thursday, February 14 -
- All Packed
- Mom's Big Valentine's surpise arrived just in time for me to get running. (that I will fill you in on a bit later!)
- Catch bus to train station
- Meet up with girls from school who are en route to Brussels, Belguim via Milan. Share compartment with them on train
- From Milano Centrale Train Station take ghetto sketchy bus to Bergamo Airport
- Tried to sleep in small corner of airport, but then kicked out
- Instead, "slept" in old, cold, concrete terminal along with 100+ others
- "Woke-up" at 4:30 to stand in line for ticket
- Chocolate muffin and water breakfast
- Had entire row to self on plane...slept!

Day 1: Friday, February 15 -
- Landed 8:30am their time
- After initial confusion, found Metro and took 30 minute ride per my research to hotel area
- Realized I forgot to bring Hotel address, but crudely put idea together and asked locals (first instance of "Oh wow...I know 0% Portuguese!")
-Room not ready, but drop bag and purchase bus tour ticket
- Took forever to find stop, but eventually did find it
- Took long tour, checking out what I wanted to venture back to later
- Delicious lunch near river (grilled pork, roasted potatoes, rice)
- Made way back to hotel, checked in, stopped at Corte Igles
- Decent room, actually shower and get ready
- BEST PART OF THE TWO DAYS: AMERICAN TV!!! Oprah, What Not to Wear, Globe Trekker, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
- Head back out into city - small park over looking city, small monastery along river
- See sunset over city and get ideas for next day, shop
- Dinner on river: Cheese Burger and citrus iced tea
- Walk along ghetto area, back across bridge to the metro and back to room
- Get rest and fall in love with Miami Ink

Day 2: Saturday, February 16 -
-Relaxing morning - breakfast at hotel
- Charge batteries for camera and watch What Not to Wear
- Walk down to river bank and wineries
- Stop and shop a little
- Tour Calem Port Winery (tasting and tour...interesting...) AS SEEN ON THE AMAZING RACE!
- AMAZING lunch, grilled pork again (with potatoes and rice...a local thing, I guess)
- Metro into city for a self-guided walking tour
- Got major lost...end up WAY down river
- Find one of the listed stops and tour a church
- More walking, but tired...in need of refreshment...McDonald's Sundae!
- Hit post office
- Found pedestrian only street (shopped, saw Cafe Majestic (AS SEEN ON THE AMAZING RACE!)
- Hussle across river to see if there were any night cruises of the Duoro...apparently there were not.
- Stroll leisurly along both sides of river
- Dinner at small restaurant along river - Turkey with muchrooms...yummo
- Last minute gifts, then funicular - Metro - Hotel
- Pack up, watch some Miami Ink and 30 Rock and then hit the sack

Day 3: Sunday February 17 -
- Up at 5:30am
- Check out and barely get to the Airport on time (delays with metro...)
- Had to pay for checking in a bag (because of some...liquid gifts)
- Crazy confusion with gate (Paris flight was still there but they started to call us...delayed for like 15 minutes, but in the end didn't matter too much
- Horrible take off...
- Apparently strangers hate me...second time with no one in my row!
- Only one on the shuttle from the airport to the train station
- At train station hours before train left, so switched tickets for earlier train, resulting in running to the platform.
- Back to Lugano to recover from my whirlwind Portuguese experience!