Day 33 - Wednesday 24th May 2023

Another beautiful sunny morning in this beautiful part of the world.

Our excursion this morning was to the town of Aveiro which is about an hour away. We were due to leave at 8:30 and all was going to plan until our bus tried to leave the parking area and found it was blocked by a double-decker bus unloading all its passengers.

Filipe, the tour director, was our guide. Last night at the port talk he told us that the journey to Aveiro would take about an hour and there was nothing to see along the way - unlike the views we've had previously on the windy roads climbing up the sides of the Duoro valley.

So I decided not to put my camera around my neck to take photos along the way. This was a mistake. Although the views were not as great as previous trips, there are always things to see such as farmlands, houses and villages. There are also eucalyptus forests in this area.

Most of the way we travelled on motorways and we reached the town at about 9:35.

The main purpose for visiting this town was to go on a boat ride in the canals. They spilt us into two groups of about 20 people to fit on the vessels for the 40 minute ride.

The canals here in Aveiro are artificial canals with concrete sides. Apparently tourist sites refer to this town as the Venice of Portugal. However Filipe insisted that it was nothing like Venice. Take your pick.

Some of the houses along the canal had character but most of the way it looked like a construction site. It certainly did not have the atmosphere or appeal of Venice. It was something to talk about but nothing special. Certainly not the highlight of our river cruise.

When we got off the canal boats at about 11am, we had free time to explore the town until 12 noon. The girls went shopping while Chris and I found an outdoor table for coffee in the plaza.

The associated cafe was very impressive. Not only was it clean and modern, but they were preparing lunch using two small pigs and other meat.

On the way back to the ship, I took photos of various interesting places. One thing I missed was a group of storks which had constructed nests on the top of a series of poles near the motorway.

I was surprised by the size of the toll plazas on the motorways. There were more than a dozen booths - leaving me wondering whether they still accept cash on their motorways. Certainly our bus didn't stop and so I assumed that the bus paid electronically.

Another surprising thing on the motorway was that they sometimes have different speed limits for different lanes. For example, the speed limit for one lane might be 90, the one next to it 70 and a different speed for the next.

I found out about a week later that blue speed signs within a white circle indicate minimum speeds  - not maximums. So there were different minimums for different lanes. You had to go faster in passing lanes.

By the time we reached Porto, the blue sky had been replaced by dark clouds.

Yet another delicious lunch on board with a very rich chocolate cake at the end together with a glass of red wine and a port.

Just before 5pm, the four of us went out for a walk along the river again. Normally we walk about 100m and then head up the hill but this time we walked past the buildings right next to the river. There is a narrow terrace, less than 2m wide, that is lined with tables and chairs - just wide enough for one couple at a time.

Everywhere you look there are great photo opportunities - especially on such a beautiful warm evening in spring.

The plaza further on was very busy with pedestrians. The open-air cafes were very popular and buskers were entertaining the crowds. It was an ideal place to be on a warm sunny spring day.

Suzy spotted a water taxi that takes people across the river and so we thought this would be ideal for tomorrow morning's outing.

The large yacht was still there are so I got more photos of it. I've now got photos of it from every angle.

On the way back to the ship we decided to go along a narrow cobblestone street behind the buildings that front onto the river. It was mainly deserted.

At the end of the laneway, we saw a plaque telling us about the last building saying that it was constructed in the 14th century. This building is now occupied by a McDonalds restaurant. Earlier today, Filipe had told us that McDonalds hadn't set up in Portugal until the political situation had stabilised after the end of the dictatorship.

The tourist tram was parked near the McDonalds outlet.

Back onboard the ship, it was time to start packing for tomorrow's departure.

In the port talk at 6:30, Filipe, the tour director, including a very long talk about a university professor that he admires. We'd been warned that he tends to give long talks.

During dinner, we sat with another Canadian couple and when we went upstairs to the lounge after dinner, we sat with yet another Canadian couple. Another opportunity to get to know our fellow travellers.