Porto and Goodbye to Portugal

We have all fallen in love with Porto and Ella is already talking about returning.  This morning we walked down through the windy paved streets to the river, observing the locals going about their daily business.  Builders in New Zealand would be horrified by the lack of health and safety precautions on building sites.
The old town looks stunning as you view it from the river, with homes built on the steep hillside, and the terracotta roofs merging together.  We walked across the tram and foot bridge to view the town from the opposite side and it was suitably stunning.  We were even entertained by a 'cowder' of black and white cats sunning themselves above the river.  I am sure that they were full on unsavoury diseases, but they were seriously cute.
We lunched with the locals at the Christina Cafe, where nobody spoke English, thankfully we were rescued by a lovely lady who was able to understand our request.  The rest of our time was spent wandering the streets and musing about how great it would be to visit again.
I am writing this o the Stanstead Express rapidly making our way back to London.  Thankfully the fuel crisis did not delay our flights and the English authorities let us back in.  The customs officer who processed Ella's entry travelled through NZ six years ago and is a Crusaders fan  She did try to put him right, but considering how badly the Highlanders are doing this year, I'm not sure how successful that was.
Some thoughts on Portugal:

• The countryside is lush and the coastline was stunning.
• The drivers are aggressive and ignore speed limits - the country has the highest road toll, per head of population, in Europe.
• The people were polite and helpful but not particularly friendly.
• There was a laid back feel, even when waiting in the queue for petrol, in the midst of a crisis.
• Genuine Portuguese custard tarts are delicious.
• The roading infrastructure is amazing, we could learn so much about moving people around efficiently.
• The buildings were stunning, from the castles to the houses, with there colourful paint work or  beautiful ceramic tiles.
• Listening to Google maps try to pronounce the road names will provided hours of fun and relieve the pressure of a stressed driver.
• David swears a lot when driving in Europe.  (Not true....)
• Beware, Google will try and kill you - don't listen to it when it tells you to drive down one way streets the wrong way, or to the top of mountains!