Our next article is dedicated to some interesting facts about Porto that you might not have known.
- Name
- The name Porto comes from “portus cale” meaning a “warm port”. That’s why the country became known as Portuscale/Portucale/Portugal.
- Another nickname of Porto you might have heard is “Invicta”. It comes from the motto “Antiga (Ancient), Mui Nobre (Very Noble), Sempre Leal (Always Loyal) e Invicta (and Undefeated) Cidade do Porto” and refers to the 19th Century Portuguese civil war when Porto was never conquered.
- Further, you might wonder why Porto is sometimes called “Porto” and other times “Oporto”. The name “Oporto” is simply an anglicized version of the Portuguese name “Porto”. In Portuguese, the name of the city includes a definite article: o Porto (“the port” or “the harbor”), which is where its English name “Oporto” comes from. Btw, the airport code of Porto “OPO” also reinforces the “international Oporto club”. 😀
- J. K. Rowling
- J. K. Rowling, the famous author of Harry Potter books, lived in Porto between 1991 and 1993 to teach the English language. During this time, she developed the ideas for the entire seven-book series and many claim that she got inspired in Livraria Lello. J. K. Rowling posted this on Twitter: “For instance, I never visited this bookshop in Oporto. Never even knew of its existence! It’s beautiful and I wish I *had* visited it, but it has nothing to do with Hogwarts!”
- Bridges
- There are overall 6 bridges in Porto over the Douro river. The seventh bridge should be constructed by 2025 and its name was chosen as “Ponte da Ferreirinha” by a public vote (I voted for a different name 🙂 ). To read about other bridges we refer to our article, but we would like to point out one interesting fact about the iconic Ponte Luís I also here. Some claim it was designed by Gustave Eiffel, but in fact, Ponte Luís I was designed by his disciple Théophile Seyrig. The bridge that was attributed to Gustave Eiffel in Porto is another one – Ponte de Dona Maria Pia and it truly resembles Ponte Luís I.
- Francesinha
- The famous Porto’s dish, francesinha, was introduced by an emigrant Daniel Silva while living in France. It is claimed it was firstly prepared in Porto at restaurant A Regaleira, that is still opened. Many claim that Daniel Silva got inspired by French dish Croque Monsieur. It rather seems that the inspiration comes from Croque Madame (on the picture), having an egg on the top. 🙂
- São João festival
- São João festival, taking place during the night from 23 to 24 June each year, is one of the most popular festivals in the country. However, it is not classic music festival (as its name might suggest) but traditional street celebration of Saint John the Baptist, although not being the official patron of the city (the patron saint of Porto is Our Lady of Vendôme). For the traditions during São João festival we refer to our article.
- European Best Destination
- Porto was elected as European Best Destination first time in 2012, then in 2014 and 2017. In 2022, it was chosen as Best City Destination in Europe by the prestigious World Travel Awards known also as “Tourism Oscars”. Citizens of each city every year hope at least for being nominated for such awards, not talking about winning them. In 2023 Porto won Europe’s Leading City Break Destination award and in 2024 Europe’s Leading Seaside Metropolitan Destination.
