Porto and Fado

Last Tuesday we got together with Jess and Julian, our vising friends from England, for a three-hour Porto tour from our real estate agent, tour guide, and all-around great guy Bernardo.  We started at the awesome tiled São Bento train station, then he drove us across the Douro river to the Mosteiro da Serra do Pilar hilltop monastery in Gaia for a breathtaking view of Porto and the Duoro river at evening.  Then we drove back to Porto and all around the city's most scenic spots and viewpoints.  Bernardo was full of enthusiasm, information, history, and facts, and we came away with an even greater appreciation of this beautiful city.  He even treated us all to a bottle of one of our favorite vinho verde wines, which we enjoyed at a lively viewpoint packed with happy locals in the Foz do Douro neighborhood overlooking the mouth of the Douro and the ocean.

Tiles at São Bento train station	This is a train station?
Detail of some São Bento tiles	The Douro river, Porto, and Gaia at night
One of the six bridges across the Douro	Vila Nova de Gaia and houses in Porto

Bernardo had also arranged for us to visit a neighborhood restaurant nearby named Luca for some local food and a fado performance.  Fado is a traditional Portuguese song style.  It represents the feeling of saudade, which doesn't have an exact English translation but means a longing for things of the past, a kind of nostalgia.  It first appeared with the sailors of the 16th and 17th century as they longed for home on their long voyages, but a couple of star singers brought it to international prominence in the 20th century.  The melodies are sweet and poignant.  The singer is accompanied by a classical guitar and a Portuguese guitar, which is a little like a large six-string mandolin.  Here is an example which seems to be pretty good judging by the Portuguese comments.  They use a string bass in the video instead of the classical guitar.

Our singer was a man, but a woman stepped in for him later in the show.  He and the crowd had a great rapport, and we wish we could have understood the jokes he was making.  The restaurant was mostly locals but they had set aside a few tables for visitors like us.  At the start of the performance a waitress introduced the band in Portuguese, speaking to the locals in the house, but then she turned to the visitors and said in English that she hoped we enjoyed the performance and that it would become part of our own saudade someday.

The audience was very attentive and respectful to the musicians.  Dinner was only served between sets so there would be no eating during the performance.  The audience sang along quietly at times, gently swaying to the music.  The musicians were completely relaxed and casual, they looked like they just came in from the street.  They were all fabulous, especially the singer with his rich soulful voice.

Dinner was good, with a very attentive waiter keeping our wine glasses filled.  Gerrit had Bacalhau à Brás, one of his favorites, but the others had roast beef.  The beef was odd: very thin, barely cooked, and covered in a cream sauce.  Not exactly the way Mom made it, but maybe the way Portuguese moms do.

We left about 11:30, unable to keep our eyes open much longer, but we heard the band starting another set as we left.  We caught an Uber for a quick and flawless ride home.

(As usual, you can click on any photo to enlarge it, scroll through them all, and click in the black area outside a photo when you're done.)

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