Day 4 – Tuesday (08/23/2022)

Day to visit Ponte de Lima and Viana do Castelo! 🙂

We had a simple breakfast and then walked around the garden of our farm, House of Santa Comba , taking the opportunity to enjoy all the animals there. It's amazing how children go crazy over any animal!! It even makes you want to live on a farm.

(This day trip was part of a 9-day trip through the Center and North of Portugal. To learn more about this trip, read the article 9 days through the Center and North of Portugal)

Bridge of Lima

We left there and after 1 hour in the car, we arrived at Bridge of Lima. What a cute city! We parked the car in the Areal Parking Lot, which is huge and located on the banks of the Lima River, and went exploring on foot, struggling with the heat. We walked around the cute streets until we reached the Medieval Bridge and then went back to the car, as we were already hungry and wanted to have lunch somewhere. Viana do Castelo.

Having lunch in Viana do Castelo

We then drove for half an hour to Viana, looking for restaurants on TripAdvisor as we drove, and ended up booking a table at Deadly Sin, whose specialty is meat. We were able to sit on a little balcony overlooking the river, we were very well attended and we loved all the dishes we ordered. We also took our time there to escape the heat a little…lol

Strolling around Viana do Castelo

We left the car in the parking lot below the restaurant and went to explore the city on foot. I also thought it was really cute! The historic center had many pedestrian-only streets and was full of small, standardized houses, which I love. We walked around slowly and in the middle of the tour, we got in line for the famous Natario Confectionery to try the most delicious Bolas de Berlim in Portugal, according to some. The line was around the block, even with the 30-degree heat, but it was worth the wait. At 4:30 pm they opened the doors and everyone went in and then left with their boxes filled with these sweets that look like our Brazilian Sonhos.

We entered the Cathedral of Viana do Castelo, from the 15th century, and then we took the car to go to the Sanctuary of Santa Luzia, the city's calling card. I know that many people drool over it, and I confess that I was also impressed when I was there, but when I found out that it was a 20th century neo-Byzantine temple, that is, without any historical value, and a replica of the Sacre Coeur in Paris, the charm wore off a little. They could have done something original there, couldn't they? Anyway... the good thing is that the view from up there is beautiful and unique! Here are some photos:

On the way to our farm, we stopped at the market to buy some salads, breads and cold cuts for dinner in the room. What a busy day!

All posts from this trip

If you want to know more about this 9-day trip through the Center and North of Portugal, see the posts below:

• An afternoon in Leiria
• 1 day in Costa Nova and Aveiro
• 1 day between Aveiro and Barcelos
• Getting to know Ponte de Lima and Viana do Castelo in 1 day
• Our 1-day itinerary in Braga
• 1 day in Guimarães, the birthplace of Portugal
• 1 day in the Entre-os-Rios region, in the Douro
• Getting to know Águeda and the famous Bairrada roast suckling pig
• Stopping in Nazaré on the way to Cascais