Finally Porto in all its beauty

So, after 703 kms and 39 days, here I am finally in Porto, this wonderful city so full of history, old dilapidated colourful buildings and hills. Spent the day strolling around, sitting in cafes, and resting in parks. My legs and joints are thanking me and getting ready for the final 10 days to Santiago di compostela.
As I walk through portugal I see the huge role of the church with pious images on houses and roads named after cardinals and Priests. A film I saw recently tells the story of Portugal's grand days in the 14th century where they ruled the sea with their fast caravelle ships and had a Monopoly on the in-human slave trade using the island of Santiago (of all names) in the Cabo Verde archipelago as a trading center for slaves. This island was used until the end of the seventies for slaves and later for political prisoners of the Salazar dictatorship.
As I sat in the chapel of Igreja dos Clérigos looking at the piety of this place built by the rich of the country in the 16th century I tried to imagine these people in their faith while slaves worked all around them under terrible conditions.
In some way this has not changed. Just two days ago a scandal unraveled uncovering thousands of foreigners living under inhuman conditions (nearly like slaves) working the greenhouses of Odemira to produce cheapest fruit and vegetables for Northern Europe.もっと詳しく