Minho Province Part I: Guimarães, Portugal.

Our stop at the city of Porto, Portugal found us on an excursion bus traveling through Minho Province to visit the northern region cities of Braga and Guimarães. Recognized for its remarkable authenticity, Guimarães’ historic city center earned UNESCO World Heritage status in 2001 as a quintessential example of a medieval town maturing into a modern European city. Our walks along narrow centuries-old streets truly made us feel we were in Europe. It was our first trip to Portugal.

The halls of the Convento de Santo António dos Capuchos could tell many tales of both devotion and social service. Unfortunately, we were not able to hear any of those stories, we were only given a few moments to photograph the beautiful exterior of this building.

Constructed in the 17th century, this serene convent served as a haven for Capuchin friars, its halls were no doubt filled with prayers and quiet contemplation. In 1842, its destiny intertwined with another noble mission: the Santa Casa da Misericórdia do Porto, an institution dedicated to public charity and social assistance. Founded in 1498 by King D. Manuel I and Queen Leonor, the Santa Casa da Misericórdia continues to illuminate the lives of countless Portuguese individuals even today.

A short walk from the convent, a monument came into view. The statue depicts the first king of Portugal. According to Wikipedia, Afonso I, born in Guimarães, also known as Afonso Henriques and nicknamed “The Conqueror” and “The Founder,” was a pivotal figure in Portuguese history. He ruled as the first King of Portugal from 1139 until he died in 1185, playing a crucial role in establishing the country’s independence and laying the foundation for its future growth and prosperity.

Near some imposing buildings, I found this beautiful tree-lined street. I would soon discover that the street forms one side of Largo Martins Sarmento, a charming square located near the convent, a castle thought to be the birthplace of King Alfonso I, and a 14th-century palace. Named after archaeologist Francisco Martins Sarmento, the square offers a glimpse into the city’s rich history and architectural heritage.

Our tour guide led us behind a stand of trees where we could see a majestic fortress perched atop a granite hill. We learned (with a little help from Internet research), about the castle. Constructed in the 10th century, the castle initially served as a defensive outpost against Moorish and Norsemen attacks. Its early incarnation likely resembled a fortified tower, but over centuries, it transformed into the imposing structure that still stands today.

Guimarães Castle witnessed pivotal moments in the formation of Portugal. Within its walls, Afonso Henriques, later known as Portugal’s first king, is believed to have been born. In 1128, he achieved a critical victory here at the Battle of São Mamede, solidifying his independence from León and paving the way for Portuguese sovereignty. Unfortunately for us, due to our heavy schedule of exterior city historical architecture, yet again, we didn’t get to go inside.

Our final stop on the tour of Guimarães brought us to the city center. We walked down the narrow streets and were given a little time to visit some of the shops in the area. We would soon find ourselves back on the tour bus to visit Braga’s Bom Jesus do Monte (Good Jesus of the Mountain), but that’s a story for another time.

My Flickr site features 2K HD versions of the photos. If you would like to see the photographic statistics or simply pixel peep, you can visit my Flickr album here.

John Steiner

Guimarães Portugal.

Our bus trip out of Porto, Portugal brought us to two beautiful and historic cities. We spent some time in the historic city center of Guimarães, the town where the first Portuguese king was born. Afonso Henriques (Afonso I) achieved independence for Portugal from the Moors. He reigned from 1139 until his death in 1185.

Though we saw some of the city through the bus windows, we spent most of our time on the cobbled streets and visited the church in the city center. I am always intrigued by those narrow streets and beautiful old European architecture.

About the photo: Our group had just walked down the street in the image above, and I lagged behind sensing there might be an interesting photo behind us. I turned around to see a gentleman who had just stepped out of a doorway and a couple walking down the street toward me. Though I had my Sony camera at the ready, I thought this might make a good image to share on a Cellpic Sunday. I pulled my Samsung S20U out of my pocket and tried both horizontal and vertical compositions.

When I got home, I loaded the photos into Lightroom for cataloging and immediately sent off the vertical composition to Luminar Neo. I tweaked the exposure and immediately thereafter went to work with Neo’s powerline removal tool. There were a few electrical wires crisscrossing the sky between the two buildings and Neo did a great job removing them. I then went to work with the erase tool to remove the fixtures that held the wires. OK, so I admit to turning the image into an unreal representation of what I captured. It’s art, so sue me. At least I let you know. >grin<

When those tweaks worked to my satisfaction, I adjusted the noise level and exposure, then I made a few more tweaks that I felt necessary. You can view the photo in 2K HD from my Flickr site by simply clicking on the image.

I encourage fellow bloggers to create their own Cellpic Sunday posts. I never have a specific topic for this feature, and the only rules are that the photo must be captured with a cell phone, iPad, or another mobile device… If you have an image from a drone or even a dashcam, that’s acceptable as well. The second rule is to link your challenge response to this post or leave a comment here with a link to your post in the comment. Oh, and, you don’t have to post it on a Sunday.

John Steiner