Diann and I loved strolling along the river each evening. I loved how each Port Lodge had a section of the river to display replicas of the rabelo boats. These boats were the kind used to transport the wine in barrels down the douro river during 1700’s up until the 1950’s to the Port Lodges in Vila Nova de Gaia . Here is a link to show how it was done . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MV7ZlLoXWG8 . A little side note here, my grandmother had an aunt who was a Barqueira, the name for someone who worked on these transport boats. Today these Port Lodges are like wineries. They offer up tastings and tours. Many of the Lodges are perched high on the hills and have a spectacular view of the river and Porto. Top Lodge names are Cálem, Croft, Graham, Sandman and Taylor. On our last night in Vila Nova de Gaia, we made our way along the river. We watched the sunset and admired the boats along the rivers’ edge. It was then that I noticed the boats in the picture below. Talk about chills.. The little blue boat has the name Jose Moreira(my father’s name) on it and the barrels on the rabelo boat have Taylor on them. Wow! perfect way for me to say ” tanto tempo por agora Porto (So long for now Porto). parte do meu coração vai ficar aqui (part of my heart will stay here) .
Laura e José 