Sweet wine, imperialism and our stowaway dog

We came, we saw, and we conquered a rainy week in Portugal. We started this week with our first flight since landing in Europe - flying from Budapest to Portugal. The flight was terrifying...not because of turbulence, but because we had to literally HIDE our dog from the airline! I screwed up and forgot to book him on the flight, so after he and I both took a Xanax, I stuffed him in my briefcase and boarded took two legs (Budapest - London and London - Porto) without getting caught.

We stayed most of the week in Porto, a port city in the north of the country. Porto is known for producing explorers like Columbus and Magellan, and Port wine. We had no idea it was also known for raining in the fall. A LOT. When it wasn't pouring, we viewed stunning blue painted facades (called Azulejos), old churches, tiny cobblestoned streets and chestnuts roasting on every corner.

I've got to be honest, I didn't really vibe with Porto. I do not see myself returning here. It wasn't just the rain...there just isn't much to it. Maybe it was all the boasting about "discovering" the world, or the fact that the wine was too expensive and not great. But two things I would recommend if you are in the country:

1) Parque de Serralves. Its a huge property with an old Art Deco mansion that has been converted in to an indoor and outdoor modern art museum.

2) Nazare - We drove 90 minutes south to watch 20+ foot waves crashing on the beach. And the town was adorable. Wish we had more time there (and sunny would be nice)

View from our apartment was spectacular!

Given that our dog was an international criminal, we were pretty happy to leave at the end of the week. Thankfully, he was allowed on the plane.