Livraria Lello

This place is amazing - it has to be seen to be believed, and I totally get how this place helped inspire JK Rowling with the development of Harry Potter. The staff are really helpful, it is very crowded, and everyone is trying to get that Instagram shot, but it is worth the crowds. They have a great selection of books, and there is a really cool exhibition there at the moment which is 400 small plaster head busts of some famous people and some local Porto identities on display among the books. I purchased a book by Camilo Castelo Branco called ”Love of Perdition”, a famous Portuguese Romeo and Juliet story. It was written by Camilo after he and his lover were imprisoned in the Old Prison for “copulating with a married women” - the women was Ana Plácido, who he ended up marrying once her wealthy and much older husband passed away.Read more