Destroying Prejudices

I was finally able to drag my husband down to Portugal, specifically to Porto, my favorite foreign city. He had been under the impression, generated by dumb stereotypes, that Portugal was a poor country with no initiative, which produced cheap goods. He still had the images from boyhood of people who would go down to northern Portugal to the feiras, the open air markets, to buy cheap linens and housewares that were badly made and inexpensive. That was because from the oil crisis of the mid seventies, to around ten years later, the years of my husband's boyhood, Portugal confronted an economic downturn. Since the mid eighties till this last world recession, Portugal has grown exponentially. Now, it is beginning to recover, as well, much better than Spain, which still pursues the austerity delusion. 

As a result, Porto is now being recuperated. Old gems of buildings are being reconstructed or recuperated. The first time I visited, in March, 2013, it seemed a sad city. Beautiful stately homes were crumbling, some still in use, others left for the pigeons to fight over. There were many beggars in the streets and little movement in the stores. Now, the beggars are much fewer, the buildings are beginning to shine again, and the streets are filled with shoppers, local and foreign. My husband was gladly surprised by this, and mentioned that the recession might have been a good thing. It had helped to avoid urban speculation, and the destruction of beauty and history. I just hope that the uptick in the restoration won't unseat local residents in favor of tourists and make Porto a showcase rather than a living city. 

So, my husband and I strolled through the city's center. Except for almost an hour at lunch, we walked for over six hours. And Porto is not flat. We went uphill and downhill, up stairs, and down ramps. In the end, my husband cried uncle. While I was tired, I was still up for some more wandering, but he definitely wasn't. When we left, we made a pit stop at a supermarket. He stayed in the car while I went inside. When I came back out, he was snoring in the passenger seat. 

The opinion of travelling opening up horizons and dispelling preconceived beliefs is absolutely true. When my husband and I went to France, he realized he liked the country, contrary to what he had expected. Yesterday, he realized that what he had believed about Portugal was not true. I only wish I had the money to travel often! I wish, too, that the most prejudiced people would travel. They would discover their silly beliefs to be quite unfounded.