The district of Porto corresponds to the core of the traditional province of Douro Litoral. It borders at north with the district of Braga, at east, with the district of Vila Real, at South, with the district of Viseu and with the district of Aveiro, and at West by the Atlantic Ocean. Its area is 2395 km ², with a resident population in 2006, of 1,867,986 people.
Along the coast of the district, there are several holiday resorts like the Espinho Beach, ports as Matosinhos, known by its gastronomy based on seafood and its small beaches surrounded by cliffs or the traditional fishing centers, as Póvoa de Varzim.
Inside, there is the quite charm of Amarante, with its seventeenth-century houses overlooking the Tâmega River and famous for its sweets of eggs known as "Papos de Anjo.". Right next to Porto, it´s possible to visit the lodges where the Port wine, in Vila Nova de Gaia, is blended and aged and where it´s possible to taste the different varieties, or, also it can be opted for a cruise by the Douro River.
In the all district, there are villages with prosperous aspect, since that the industry and the commerce develops in the region, but also, it´s possible to travel along many calm roads with wonderful views over the Douro River or enjoy a rugged coastline and still wild..
The capital of the district is the city of Porto, the second biggest city of Portugal, with a privileged location near the mouth of the Douro River and with an architectural heritage of exceptional value, being one of the oldest cities in Europe, having been born and developed during the Middle Ages, from the image North of the Douro River.
The city of Porto is in the origin of the Portugal´s name, since very early, it was designated by Portus Cale. The name of the Portucalense County, which originated the formation of Portugal, in 1143, derives from the toponym Portucale, with which one, from the ninth century it designated a city near the mouth of the Douro River, designated by Portus Cale, "Porto de Cale ", which is thought to be an hybrid name formed by a Latin term (Portus, meaning" port ") and a Greek (kalós, meaning" beautiful "), something as " Porto Belo ".
One of the most significant aspects of Porto is the historic center, with its landscaping framework, the result of harmony of its urbanistic structure, which constitutes a set of rare beauty. In 1996, the historic center of Porto, was considered as a World Heritage by UNESCO, because its unique characteristics.
Porto is also known by the Port Wine, produced exclusively in the demarcated region of the Douro River (Established in 1756, during the reign of D. José, by the then Secretary of State of the Kingdom, Marquês de Pombal) that extends along the River Douro Valley, being aged and exported in the city of Porto, which gave him the name. The wine owes its characteristics to the quality of their grapes, as well as the agro-climatic characteristics of the region.
There are different types of Port Wine, being that some ages in wooden casks and others in the bottle. The first, are usually the result of blends between crops from different years, in order to maintain the vitality of the wine and giving continuity to the style and to the brand. As general rule, do not bear in the label the date or the birth year. The second ones, usually comes from a crop.
The principal production center of the Port wine, is located in the city of Vila Nova de Gaia, where were installed the first Porto wine warehouses, in the seventeenth century. In the center of the city, there are warehouses of the most known brands, with over 50 companies, housed in buildings of characteristic red roofs.
