Oporto Douro Marina

So we have spent 6 days in the Douro Marina you get a 20% discount after 2 nights, we probably would have moved on but we arranged to meet Ton and Ingrid who we spent a winter next to on the pontoon in Barcelona.  It was very good to meet up with people you have met before and we had spent time in Turkey with a lot of people they had known when they were there 6 years ago so there was plenty of news to catch up on.  They are on their way back to the Med after spending a winter in Bangor, Ireland and they think we are mad to take the boat to the cold and the rain frankly sometimes so do we!  Now we are waiting for the fog to lift to go north as the northerlies set in again on Sat and we think there may be a weather window to go over to Ireland starting Sunday so we need to get going. It is a total pea souper out there and we have to cross the very busy entrance to Leixoes harbour which as we already know is treacherous in the fog.... 

Instead of a blog here are some pictures of Oporto, we love it here and do not want to leave!

Feeding marina ducks

Smallest police car in the world

on the bridge

Beers with Ton and Ingrid!

Me and Ali had a peerie accident with our mosquito candle it went crazy!

 The marina is situated next to an old fishing village where there are community wash houses and every day the women come out and scrub away and hang their clothes up it is tradition and there are smaller versions of this big wash house up the hill in the lanes too. 

Every restaurant int he fishing village has a bbq the smell is pretty good, most of the houses cook with a bbq out on the street here too.

Walking up the river to the old town about 4km we did it three times the girls are getting fit!

We went on the cable car tot he top of the bridge

The girls found rose petals left over froma wedding ceremony athe church

Scrubbing duty before tOn and Ingrid came

Sunset over the washing area and the marina.