Quite smitten with Coimbra….

What a lovely day!! Dark and early we headed for the Oriente train station to ride to Coimbra. We were lucky to sit across from a young couple from Rockville, MD and chat the whole way, so the ride went very quickly. We arrived early in Coimbra and went straight to the central plaza, where we stopped for the local pastry and coffee. Shops were already open so we looked around a bit and found one of the small music troupes singing fado. This particular group were all female and attending medical school. They were very good and funny too. If you didn’t see the video earlier on my Facebook page, check it out. Next up, we hired a Tuk Tuk to give us a tour of the city and give our tired legs a break. The driver was training a new guy so we learned a lot. I was very happy to see the Roman aqueduct and the mermaid pool. Along the way, we saw the university store where all the Harry Potter-esque uniforms are sold. We went back but they were closed. We purchased tickets to see the 500 year old library that I was so excited about, with an entry time of 5pm. The library was incredible, as expected. You are not permitted to take photos in the library, so I’m sharing pics of the postcards I purchased. Then, we took the river boat ride which Fran had done previously. It was great for picture taking. One of the highlights of the day was meeting the young law student who was selling decorated pencils to raise money for one their traditions (the ribbon burning ceremony, google it). I must say, this is one of those cities I could live in , much to offer. Enjoy the pictures and stay tuned for tomorrow’s entry.