Porto part 1 - In the rain

I will have to break up a post about Porto into two because there are so many photos. A friend told me that Porto is one of their favourite cities for architecture which surprised me but then when I started selecting which photos to include in the post about Porto I realised that I had so many to choose from so now I have to agree with them. My way of dividing them is going to be by weather because my first day in Porto was so unlike my second day. 

To begin with, let me just say that Portugal has a rainy season and Porto is one of the wettest cities in southern Europe. It is not just the occasional shower but drenching rain with galeforce winds that turn umbrellas into something that resembles a hood or kite depending on the angle of the umbrella. I was not to be deterred and I walked around the city but focused more on indoor architecture and Porto did not disappoint. The Sao Bento railway station with it's yellow ceiling and stunning tilework was wonderful (and dry!) and the Majestic cafe was impressive with the added bonus of having a Portuguese tart in Portugal (called a pastel de nata). I walked around the streets but realised that I needed to change my plans because I was spending more time looking down to avoid slipping. One of the places that I wanted to see was the Casa de Musica and I got there in time for an English speaking tour. The building was designed by a Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas and while it was designed to look like a meteorite (complete with the outdoor space looking like waves), there is also an obvious connection with the outside city. I could do an entire post about what I learned from the architecture and I really want to but I will hold myself back. Needless to say, it was well worth the visit and not just because it protected me from the elements for a couple of hours! The last three photos are from the Casa de Musica.