A Trip to Porto

The weekend of 6th February, we went to Porto, Portugal with some other families in our church. We've been working through a series on mission on Sunday mornings, so the church organized several trips to visit churches around the Iberian peninsula to encourage the leaders of those churches and see how they do things. We went with our pastor & his wife, Richard & Riekje, & their kids, as well as with friends Rob & Chris, and Hilary. Jason's dad, Rich, arrived from the US for a visit on the day we left, so he also jumped at the chance to visit a new place. We went to visit a church called Riverside Porto that meets in the home of Bill & Tina. (Here is Katie & Ethan, 6)

We started off on Friday afternoon facing weather reports of snow and who knows what as we crossed the mountains to get into Portugal. But fortunately, we only saw a little bit of snow that did not impede our journey! We did purchase chains ahead of time just in case :-), but were very glad we did not have to use them. We enjoyed a wonderful meal at Bill & Tina's house of pork loin and roasted potatoes.

Saturday was the 1st sunny day they had had in Porto in weeks and we thoroughly enjoyed it. It could not have been more beautiful! This has been an especially cold winter here in Madrid, so we were so happy to soak up the sun & warmth there. We started out the day at the beach, enjoying our 1st glimpse of the Atlantic Ocean from the other side! It was rather strangely moving to look across that water to imagine home on the other side :-) The kids played in the sand collecting sea shells (this is Katie & Ethan again) and admiring the fishing gear and boats that were all over the beach. (in the boat is Ethan, Caleb, 8, Jordan, 3, & Katie) Then we enjoyed a coffee in the sun followed by an outdoor lunch (did I mention how glad we were that it was warm? :-) ) One thing I've really missed this winter is eating outside with friends, so it was great to have a small taste of what is coming soon as the weather warms up. At lunch I enjoyed a typical Portuguese dish that is a fried sandwich full of different kinds of meats, then covered with sauce. Yum.


After lunch we headed off to the old part of Porto and the port wine lodges :-). The city of Porto gave its name to port, as well as to the country of Portugal and the language Portuguese. We toured a port lodge and learned how port is made and enjoyed a port tasting as well. The city is really pretty, next to the river Duoro that is filled with the boats they used to transport the port down the river. The river is also spanned by several really pretty bridges.

Saturday happened to be Bill's 60th birthday, so we were able to take him & Tina out to dinner to celebrate. We enjoyed getting to know them more as well as to hear about their ministry and some of the challenges they face in Porto. Their church is also an international, English-speaking church like Mountain View. It has been really growing and is stretching the bounds of their meeting space in their home. They are seeking God's wisdom as they look to the future of the church. They meet on Sunday nights and always share a meal together after church, so it provides some unique needs in a meeting area. Bill is also looking to work less time at his current job so that he can devote more time to the church. We enjoyed more typical Portuguese dishes like duck w/ rice, cod w/ cream (that they typically serve for their wedding meals - called bacaloa con nata), and another kind of yummy cod with bread crumbs.

A funny thing that happened at dinner - we kept forgetting and speaking Spanish to people - specially saying Gracias instead of Obregado. I told the waiter (in Spanish) that I was sorry but we live in Madrid so we are used to Spanish. He very wryly said (in Spanish) "Well, that's very interesting but you are in Portugal" :-) At least he was having fun with it :-)

Sunday we spent with our host family at their home. We stayed with a delightful family, Gilberto & Paula. We really enjoyed getting to know them and being in a real Portuguese home. It really made the experience richer and we were so grateful for their hospitality to total strangers. Katie enjoyed playing with their daughter, Martinya, who is just a little younger than Katie. (they are there together at left) They cooked us a wonderful meal Sunday and we spent the day getting to know them. They told us a lot about the history of Portugal - for such a small country, Portugal used to be one of the world powers along with Britain, France, and Spain when they were carving up the world for their colonies. Bartholomeu Dias & Vasco da Gama are just 2 of the famous Portuguese explorers.

Sunday night we had a time of prayer for Bill & Tina and then helped with their worship service. Several of the members of our group helped in their service. Jason even got to share some from the front :-). Richard preached on how finishing well is the most important part of a mission, and though we are not yet finishing :-), he had Jason share on how God led us to Spain and how we have seized the opportunities we have seen here. Katie was trying to get in on leading worship - maybe in a few more years :-)

OK - my post is acting like it's about to vanish on me, so I'd better publish it, done or not...