Day 2
This day was marked for us to roam around our beloved sites for our crucial projects for the final year in architecture. The itinerary for the day was such that we observe the great Portuguese architecture. Well, whatever we can observe while walking towards our hypothetical sites.
0800 hrs
It seemed laziness had caught up with all my bones and it was really difficult to wake up in the morning. I guess the idea in getting settled down in a new city was making me tired already. I could imagine all the ruthlessness that was coming our way in the coming days.
It was time for breakfast now, I could only see cereals. It seemed I had dived into a river of cereals and milk in which a loaf of bread was the only survivor.
0953 hrs
Me and a friend of mine leave the hostel early enough to meet with the rest of the gang... ummm!!! group mates. All of us had travelled from Liverpool to grab a bite of the areas that we were supposed to develop and then design architecture master pieces on them.
We both were the last ones to join others at Cafe Ceuta which was right in the middle of Travessa Do Carregal as far as I know.
1035 hrs
We are all set to leave now. We walked through paved streets. Some were broad but most of them very narrow. We walked through some of the posh areas but then most of the houses were in a very poor condition. It was raining and was gloomy but the bright colours and the glazed tiles made these houses look arrogantly shimmering.
It was not the nicest of the areas of Porto that we were roaming around but then the red pitched roof houses with ornamental tiles at their exterior made the environment quite attractive. Well to be honest, no offense but tiles that are designed of such caliber are usually used in toilets in my home country. Well since I have said that architecture varies from region to region in the world. A material that can have significant value in one place might not have the same in the other.
While walking on the northern bank of River Douro I came across some amazing views that could be photographed. However, since the since was hiding behind the clouds that day therefore it was not the best time for it.
The whole area seemed to be neglected by everyone except for the owners of it but then was not this the buffer zone for the UNESCO Historic Centre of Porto. This meant in order to save the heritage zone this area was not to have major development schemes.
These were surely the reasons why UNESCO was to include Porto in its World Heritage list in 1996. This classification also extends to the left bank, taking in the Ponte de D. Luis, the city's emblematic iron bridge, built by a disciple of the famous Eiffel, the Mosteiro da Serra do Pilar and the wine lodges that line the river bank in Gaia, where that great ambassador of the city's name, Port Wine, is left to age before being sent to all corners of the world, bringing great pleasure to all those who drink it.
And when I am talking about Gaia, the southern bank of Douro, this area is mainly used to store the port wine. Sometimes people mistakenly consider it as Porto as well, probably because of the laying out of the houses and road/street networks.
That is the Mosteiro da Serra do Pilar (Serra do Pilar Monastery) at the Gaia side that you can walk through a bridge.
About that bridge I will narrate in my next issue. The second day does not just finish here. It is just that I am feeling sleepy now.
Cheers
If you want to see more photographs simply follow this link: Facebook
This day was marked for us to roam around our beloved sites for our crucial projects for the final year in architecture. The itinerary for the day was such that we observe the great Portuguese architecture. Well, whatever we can observe while walking towards our hypothetical sites.
0800 hrs
It seemed laziness had caught up with all my bones and it was really difficult to wake up in the morning. I guess the idea in getting settled down in a new city was making me tired already. I could imagine all the ruthlessness that was coming our way in the coming days.
It was time for breakfast now, I could only see cereals. It seemed I had dived into a river of cereals and milk in which a loaf of bread was the only survivor.
0953 hrs
Me and a friend of mine leave the hostel early enough to meet with the rest of the gang... ummm!!! group mates. All of us had travelled from Liverpool to grab a bite of the areas that we were supposed to develop and then design architecture master pieces on them.
We both were the last ones to join others at Cafe Ceuta which was right in the middle of Travessa Do Carregal as far as I know.
1035 hrs
We are all set to leave now. We walked through paved streets. Some were broad but most of them very narrow. We walked through some of the posh areas but then most of the houses were in a very poor condition. It was raining and was gloomy but the bright colours and the glazed tiles made these houses look arrogantly shimmering.
And something amazing that I hit my eye on...
That is the sculpture of the Portuguese rooster... famously Cock of Barcelos in Portugal. I always thought that this rooster had significance because of Nando's but there I realized that it was actually a symbol that had some sort of a relation with the Portuguese culture.
While walking on the northern bank of River Douro I came across some amazing views that could be photographed. However, since the since was hiding behind the clouds that day therefore it was not the best time for it.
These were surely the reasons why UNESCO was to include Porto in its World Heritage list in 1996. This classification also extends to the left bank, taking in the Ponte de D. Luis, the city's emblematic iron bridge, built by a disciple of the famous Eiffel, the Mosteiro da Serra do Pilar and the wine lodges that line the river bank in Gaia, where that great ambassador of the city's name, Port Wine, is left to age before being sent to all corners of the world, bringing great pleasure to all those who drink it.
And when I am talking about Gaia, the southern bank of Douro, this area is mainly used to store the port wine. Sometimes people mistakenly consider it as Porto as well, probably because of the laying out of the houses and road/street networks.
About that bridge I will narrate in my next issue. The second day does not just finish here. It is just that I am feeling sleepy now.
Cheers
If you want to see more photographs simply follow this link: Facebook
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