Domo Obrigado, Mr. Ra-BOTO

This is the center of Porto. Their architecture here is beautiful! We've really enjoyed this city and of course hiked hills

This is Porto from the other side of the river. The building at the top of the hill looks like a castle, but it's actually a cathedral.Porto is home to Port wines and the long boats you see in the river are from all the different wineries in the region.

We took a day trip to an area north of Porto called Braga. It's called the Rome of Portugal because of all of it's cathedrals. This is the most famous of all of them. It's called Bom Jesus. Behind all the white are about 6,000 stairs, and the secret part is...to get to the white, you have to walk up about 6,000 more. It was quite the day of climbing!!

This is Bom Jesus closer up. By the time I got to this point I would have knocked an old woman down if she stood between me and a Orange Push Up!!! Luckily, there were some genius people at the top who were selling all kinds of ice cream! It was well deserved. Earned in fact!!

If anyone sees these pants wandering on their own in either Alabama or Arkansas,they've apprently jumped ship and made their way back across the Atlantic. Please take pity on them and give them refuge in your wash machine. I can't really throw stones, my bra might hitch a ride in his pocket. We'll be by in October to pick them up.

I know that those really aren't the words to the famous 80's song. "Obrigado" is thank you in Portugese and everytime someone says it I have a hard time not busting out with  "Mr. Ra-BOTO" right after.

I'm doing it, I'm crying "Uncle!" Portugal is not for the weak! This country will chew your feet and legs up and spit them out while laughing. These are some hearty people, I've got to give it to 'em. There are 70 year old women with some hot legs walking these streets!! We arrived in Porto on Wednesday and of course we tromped around the city before the evening set it. It's a small city and much easier to get around. As soon as we arrived here we felt very at ease with the city and the people here are very welcoming to tourist. They are hard workers but they have it right, even McDonald's doesn't start serving breakfast around here until 8:30! So different from the states. For those of you who do not know, Porto is home to most of the port wines found around the world. These companies have been making port wines since the 1500's. If you see one of the companies that's only from the late 1700's, it's practically a baby around these parts. The grapes are actually grown east of here, closer to Spain where they are protected from the winds of the ocean in a more stable climate and brought here to age. We have really enjoyed our visit here and have had another calf and bun building stop.

The food isn't our favorite here, so I have to admit that I've eaten more McDonald's here this week than I have had in a year in the states. Ragan found one of his favorites here last night!! We followed our noses to this wonderful smelling restaurant in an alley and there in the window is one of his favorites. Tripe. For those of you who don't know Ragan all that well, he's a very adventerous eater and tripe isn't exactly on the top of most people's "foods to try" in their lifetime list. Ragan orders the tripe soup and it arrives in moments swiming with white beans and an incredible smelling broth! He offered me a sample and beause I could in no way recognize what this dish was, I passed. Tripe = Intestines. That's right. As I looked down with my very empty stomach I see a chunk of intestines and the flora texture on them. I almost lost it right then and there. It's hard to look at a food and think to yourself, you are about to digest somethig that used to digest. It's just not right. He was happy as could be, and I made my way to McDonald's in hopes I could regain my appetite after having my eyes visually accosted. You'd think at some point I would get used to him eating this stuff, but it never gets easy.

We spend one more day in Porto or making a short excursion to the outskirts before we make our way out tomorrow on a night train to Madrid. I'm coming home Motherland...I'm coming home!! She feels my presence already, I just know it!!