Tag Archives: ribeira

Photographs: Architecture, Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Portugal, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Narrow Street and Steps, Porto

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Narrow Street and Steps, Porto
A woman stands below steps ascending a narrow street in Porto, Portugal

Narrow Street and Steps, Porto. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

A woman stands below steps ascending a narrow street in Porto, Portugal

On our first walk in Porto we headed straight for the historic Ribeira district. This neighborhood rises steeply from the banks of the Duoro River and is filled with extremely narrow and twisty streets on the impressively inclined hillside. Yes, it is a popular tourist destination, but with good reason. In places the streets are so narrow that I was reminded of wandering Utah slot canyons, with soft light filtering down from above.

Later on our visit we branched out a bit more — though to be honest we barely scratched the surface of the place during our stay. We love to walk when we visit cities, and there were plenty of opportunities for that in Porto. On this day we took a long and semi-random looping walk that took us past busy downtown areas, to hilltop views of the Duoro, and through more neighborhoods — like this one where we stopped to photograph the steep and narrow walkways near the end of the day.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Night, Photographs: Portugal, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Porto Street, Night

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Porto Street, Night
Two men walk down a narrow Porto street at night.

Porto Street, Night. © Copyright 2023 G Dan Mitchell.

Two men walk down a narrow Porto street at night.

Porto is a fascinating and complex city and there is a lot to see there. But I think that we found the Ribeira District to be the most interesting part. This is the area of narrow, winding streets on the steep hillside above the Duoro River. It is, of course, popular with tourists, especially right above the shoreline of the river. But a short walk from the most busy areas, especially at the right hour of the day, and the crowds can diminish and the ambiance of the district takes over.

We walk a lot when we visit cities, and on this day we made a big loop that took us up this narrow, cobblestone street. We passed through at what seems like an ideal time in terms of light — it was dark enough that the artificial light illuminated and colored the scene, but there was still a bit of ambient light to reveal details outside the light and produce blue-tinted shadows.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Twitter | Flickr | Facebook | Email

Links to Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Information.

Scroll down to leave a comment or question. (Click this post’s title first if you are viewing on the home page.)

All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.