Porto Part II.
After a bit of a sicky day 1, I was feeling way better and really really enjoyed our Saturday in Gaia, exploring the beautiful waterfront. Sunday was meant to be our beach day! We were all SUPER looking forward to day of sun & sand especially since summery sunny days in Germany have been few and far between [at least during the weeks/ends that we've actually be in town!]. We started off at a cafe, called Tavi, with a gorgeous view of the ocean, in a nice area called Foz.
Tavi served up freshly squeezed juices, pastries, coffees and light breakfast sandwiches. It was the perfect start to the day.
From there, we walked along the water to the beach. We do a lot of walking on vacations...and Jason somehow always tricks me into agreeing to walk further than I'd like...but it is a great way to see the sights. A lot of Porto's beaches are rocky/ridgy. In a beautiful way. But for a beach day, we wanted more of a typical sandy beach. Praia de Motasinhos is the perfect spot.
This was actually the SAME beach we went to last year, on our first trip to Europe, first trip to Porto - can read more and see more pics from that trip here. It was Asher's first time at the beach and it was really special to compare the photos of him then, versus now. Same beach, same baby, 1 year later.
When we first got to the beach it was a bit windy, but we brought a pop-up beach tent for Asher to hang out in. He was able to be shielded from sun/wind, but still play in the sand. He had fun digging around. He LOVED watching the beach waves, but water was way too chilly to splash around in.
I just love this picture. It's just like pure daddy-baby joy on their faces!
We hung out for as long as we could, but the wind just got windier and it was time to go. So we packed up and I struggled to fold that pop-up tent in the massive gusts of winds...and headed out. It ended up being a lot of work for such a quick trip. But at least we tried!
We went back to the hotel for showers/baths & a nap. And, not gonna lie, we ate McDonalds for lunch LOL! Not exactly what we had planned for the day, but we made up for it at dinner...
There is another beach/warf/shipyard area of Matosinohs where the street is just LINED with fresh fish restaurants. Where the fish is literally caught hours before it's eaten. The fish is grilled right outside in front of the restaurants. Most Portuguese restaurants close for a bit in the afternoon and reopen for dinner, with most opening around 7 or 8. We were able to get in to one right as it opened at 7. We dined at a restaurant that Jason had actually been to and loved during a previous work trip, called Casa Serrão.
You guys. We had a truly fantastic experience. The food was fresh, delicious and made/served with so much love. It was a truly authentic experience. There was literally just one person in the entire restaurant that spoke English - and he was one of the chefs- so they just kept sending him out to help our waiter to help us order. It was quite the sight, so I had to document it.
We ordered some starters and enjoyed them all, below you'll see Portuguese sausage, octopus in green sauce, codfish fritters, the traditional Portuguese Caldo Verde (green soup) & of course local Douro valley wine. YUM YUM YUM YUM.
For dinner we ordered the Sea Bass. They even brought it to our table to show/approve of before grilling.
While we snacked on appetizers & waited on dinner. Asher turned on the charm. He made friends with literally every person in the restaurant and must understand Portuguese because he was chatting away with the owners and servers of the restaurant. It was hilarious and adorable.
oh, and just a little light dinner reading...
So, our fresh, grilled sea bass arrived and was sliced/deboned right at our table. It was to die for delicious. I'd re-eat this dinner over & over again, if I could!
If you're wondering what that cute little baby of ours ate...the answer is EVERYTHING. He had helpings of EVERYTHING. He even tried squid on this trip and had more than one bite. Aren't babies so funny...? He ate sea bass, octopus & squid, but some days all he'll put in his mouth are canned green beans & slices of cheese.
Jason and I were both pretty picky as kids, but as adults have come to love foods that we never would have tried early in our lives. Hopefully exposing him to all of these different foods and flavors this early on will help him to keep being an adventurous little foodie!
So as we were enjoying this delicious food, we got to talking about how when you go out to dinner with your baby, you actually don't get to do a lot of talking. LOL. Asher is a really happy, baby, but he's work nonetheless! So, Jason and I are looking forward to my mom's (AKA Nanny Gigis) trip to Europe in September because we know we'll at least get some vacay time sans baby because mamas & daddies need some one on one time too :)
So that's that! Next up on our travel agenda... LAKE COMO! George & Amal Clooney, here we come.
Embrace the Wilde,
lindsey
