I have started a new chapter in my live and with it a new blog: http://vanitymanu.blogspot.de/.

So an online friend of mine has a girlfriend (I know! Shocking! :p) and she was going to Porto, Portugal with a friend soon and as I am from Portugal he asked me if I had ever been there.

Have I ever been to Porto? Why yes I have and I know the city VERY well!

I might be a wee bit out of date but most of the good/great places are the same and I have come to know some of the new places as well. So I made a little list that turned out to be a very long and intensive description (with Google map links) of good places to visit, essential places to visit and how to get there. And because she is going with a girl friend the best shopping places too! I even told them what foods to try and where to get them!

As I did put in effort (I'm such a great person!) I decided to post it on the blog to help other people and to have opinions and comments of places you feel a tourist shouldn't miss! So here it is:

Porto - all in walking distance from each other
(I advise you to make a plan so as to not have to go back and forth or in Porto's case up and down the hill)

São Bento: train station 
http://goo.gl/maps/ZbFl2

Trindade (http://goo.gl/maps/R85kD) - Metro Station

Torre dos Clérigos: 
http://goo.gl/maps/jM9U2

Jardim da Cordoaria:
http://goo.gl/maps/hIE9z

Courthouse building:
http://goo.gl/maps/Gv5n5

Livraria Lello & Irmão (Library):
http://goo.gl/maps/6ylWa

Aliados (Avenue with city hall at the top, loads of old buildings at either side, there is a Macdonals on the
right side of the street which is in a very old building that used to be a bank, I recommend to go look inside even if you don't eat there):
http://goo.gl/maps/OZ6qu

Praça Dom João I:
http://goo.gl/maps/vlVPe

Rua Santa Catarina (shopping street and more old buildings, shopping mall):
http://goo.gl/maps/6hHIQ

Palácio da Bolsa (Palace):
http://goo.gl/maps/wD3hC

Ponte Dom Luiz I (Famous bridge):
http://goo.gl/maps/2qDgf

Cathedral (Sé) (there is a funicular near the bridge on Porto's side of the river Douro that will go up to the Sé if you are already downtown):
http://goo.gl/maps/ZGZTr

Cais de Gaia (there is a boat ride you can catch here that will take you through the five bridges of the river, there are always two or three people advertising this and also you can catch the telepheric (?) to the upper tray of the bridge):
http://goo.gl/maps/k904D
(there is also the bus 901, 906 at Trindade that stop there)

Jardins do Palácio de Cristal (Gardens of the Crystal Palace but now it's called Rosa Mota Pavillion - very beautiful, has a restaurant):
http://goo.gl/maps/tjPZr

Casa da Música:
http://goo.gl/maps/emI1R (catch any of the trams (ask someone the direction to be sure but the side that does not got to Estádio do Dragão is the one you want to be on) at Trindade (http://goo.gl/maps/R85kD)
- get off at Casa da Música

Jardim da Boavista:
http://goo.gl/maps/Gc14V (go to http://goo.gl/maps/rrboe - small shopping mall)

Loads of cafés, restaurants, shops:
http://goo.gl/maps/3paf1


Shopping Malls (biggest in Portugal):

NorteShopping   - catch any of the trams (ask someone the direction to be sure but the side that does not got to Estádio do Dragão is the one you want to be on) at Trindade (http://goo.gl/maps/R85kD)
- get off at Sete Bicas (http://goo.gl/maps/zz54q - you can see Norteshopping on the map) and walk a bit (5min)

Arrábida Shopping (http://goo.gl/maps/fzXnm)
 - catch the 903, 902 bus at Casa da Música metro station (mentioned above)

Gaiashopping (http://goo.gl/maps/A59My) the previous 903 and 907 (also at Casa da Música) will stop there Dolce Vita Porto (http://goo.gl/maps/y7f6L and you can see the football stadium - Estádio do Dragão)
 - any metro going in the direction Estádio do Dragão

Parque Nascente (http://goo.gl/maps/0AIoQ) use GPS to go by car


Eating traditional:
http://goo.gl/maps/V6Kmi - anything in that area should be good and Portuguese.
http://goo.gl/maps/PyhGa - anything on the right side area should be good and Portuguese.
I suggest you try Francesinha, Cachorro Especial, Carne de Porco à Alentejana or Bacalhau (whatever is on the menu as there are many dishes).

At night I suggest:
http://goo.gl/maps/ft70C - there are some clubs there
http://goo.gl/maps/V6Kmi - get drinks and ice-cream
http://goo.gl/maps/B2cAZ - Caipicompany (Drinks - really good and around 3€ for Caipirinha - highly recommended, I go there all the time)

We moved to the lovely city of Heidelberg in Germany this summer and have been here almost one month (will be on the 20th). My fiancée's work is going smoothly and soon I hope to progress in my own career.


After some very long web searches, translations and overall failed attempts we managed to become tenants of a lovely lady in a beautiful apartment in Leiman, with much appreciated and necessary help from my friend Tanja.

After some negotiating we will move in as soon as September and will begin the age old tradition of having little money left and close to nothing furniture in exchange of a place to call our own. At the same time we will own our first kitchen as we will buy it upon entering the new place.

So many things in my life lead to all of this coming together in a smooth transition:

1) My work contract ended in April soon after Pedro landed the job at EMBL.

2) I have a long time online friend, Tanja, that (even though our WoW adventures are now few close to none we kept in touch through Facebook and Skype and remained friends for many years) happens to live close to Heidelberg and was able to help us out whenever needed.

3) Pedro landed the job (that would financially sustain us both) just in time for us to convince his parents that getting married (at all) within the next year was a good idea (after much debate, crying and lunacy which one day in the far future I might forgive).

4) Life gave us what we wanted. A chance at a life together without financial hardship, a wedding and feasible plans to have children. Also in Germany we got away from having to raise the kids catholic (baptism, first communion, etc.) which was going to fuel many future discussions.

5) One of our best friends is here doing her PhD.


So was it hard to pack up, leave friends and family behind and move to an entirely different* country?

No. When you have to choose between having nothing and having something there is no real choice and Friends and Family are always as close as you want them to be.

*even though we are still in Europe, Portugal and Germany are extremely different culturally.

Stephen Fry dismantles the Roman Catholic Church, from the Intelligence Squared debate - YouTube:



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As gordinhas e as outras - Por Margarida Rebelo Pinto

Para ler o texto na integra: http://sol.sapo.pt/inicio/Opiniao/interior.aspx?content_id=250&opiniao=Opini%EF%BF%BDo#.UDjYQH5HU6i.facebook


Uma crítica muito bem construída, mas muitíssimo bem construída à parvoíce retrógrada da senhora.

BLOGUE DO MANEL - TUDO DO AVESSO:

No caso dos espermatozóides da mosca-da-fruta, estes microtúbulos formam um flagelo com dois milímetros, o que é 40 vezes maior do que o humano. A equipa, que inclui também cientistas do Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica, em Oeiras, descobriu que o início da formação do flagelo acontece numa fase muito primária do desenvolvimento dos espermatozóides e está intimamente ligado à proteína cuja produção é comandada pelo gene BLD10.

O flagelo "tem um centro que coordena o movimento, para que este seja correcto", explica a investigadora. Esse centro é formado por dois microtúbulos, que por sua vez estão rodeados por outros nove que fazem uma circunferência. Com experiências feitas por Zita Carvalho Santos e imagens de microscopia electrónica obtidas por Pedro Machado, a equipa percebeu que é a proteína do gene BLD10 que permite o crescimento e a estabilização do primeiro microtúbulo central e, depois, num segundo momento, permite o crescimento do segundo microtúbulo. 

"Quando a proteína não está lá, não se forma nem o primeiro, nem o segundo microtúbulo", diz Mónica Bettencourt Dias, explicando que estas duas peças são centrais parao movimento dos espermatozóides. "Um flagelo [sem as duas estruturas da zona central] é como uma roda sem eixo." No IGC, a equipa vai agora tentar perceber como é que esta proteína funciona exactamente.

Ainda não se estudaram os homens inférteis com uma mutação na variante humana deste gene. "É importante perceber isto."



BLD10/CEP135 Is a Microtubule-Associated Protein that Controls the Formation of the Flagellum Central Microtubule Pair



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Source: http://www.truthaboutabs.com/hard-body-nutrition.html

• Walnuts, pecans, almonds - delicious and great sources of healthy fats.  Try to get raw nuts if possible as the roasting process can oxidize some of the polyunsaturated fats in some types of nuts making those damaged fats slightly more inflammatory.  Overall, nuts are still healthy even if they are roasted, but raw nuts are optimal. 
• Cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, and yogurt (grass-fed and organic if possible) - I like to mix cottage or ricotta cheese and yogurt together with chopped nuts and berries for a great mid-morning or mid-afternoon meal.
• Chia seeds and/or hemp seeds - I add these highly nutritious seeds to yogurt, smoothies, or salads for a great nutty taste and loads of omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins and minerals. Don't use pre-ground versions of these seeds as the omega-3 polyunsaturated fats are highly unstable and prone to oxidation, creating high levels of free radicals if you use pre-ground seeds.  No grinding is necessary to properly digest these seeds. 
• Whole eggs - one of natures richest sources of nutrients (and remember, they increase your GOOD cholesterol so stop fearing them).
• Salsa - I try to get creative and try some of the exotic varieties of salsas.
• Avocados - love them...plus a great source of healthy fats, fiber, and other nutrients. Try adding them to wraps, salads, or sandwiches.
• Butter - don't believe the naysayers; butter adds great flavor to anything and CAN be part of a healthy diet... just keep the quantity small because it is calorie dense... and NEVER use margarine, unless you want to assure yourself a heart attack.  Most important -- choose organic butter only, since pesticides and other harmful chemicals accumulate in the fat of the milk which is used for butter, so choosing organic helps avoid this problem.  Also, choose grass-fed (pastured) butter if you can find it as it will contain higher levels of healthful omega-3 fats and the fat-burning conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). 
• Nut butters - Plain old peanut butter has gotten a little old for me, so I get creative and mix together almond butter with pecan butter, or even cashew butter with macadamia butter...delicious and unbeatable nutrition!  Using a variety of nut butters gives you a broader range of vitamins and minerals and other micronutrients, and gives you variety instead of boring old peanut butter all the time.
• Leaf lettuce and spinach along with shredded carrots - for salads with dinner.

• Raw honey - better than processed honey... higher quantities of beneficial nutrients and enzymes. Honey has even been proven in studies to improve glucose metabolism (your efficiency in processing carbohydrates).  I use a small teaspoon every morning in my teas.  Yes, I know that even honey is pure sugar, but at least it has some nutritional benefits... and let's be real, a teaspoon of healthier raw honey is only 5 grams of carbs... certainly nothing to worry about, and a better choice than refined sugar.

• Cans of black or kidney beans - I like to add a couple scoops to my Mexican dishes for the fiber and high nutrition content. Also, beans are surprisingly one of the best sources of youth enhancing antioxidants!  Did you know that black beans and kidney beans have more antioxidants than blueberries...it's true!
• Dark chocolate (as dark as possible - ideally more than 70-75% cocoa content) - This is one of my treats that satisfies my sweet tooth, plus provides loads of antioxidants at the same time. It's still calorie dense, so I keep it to just 1-2 small squares after a meal... but that is enough to do the trick, so I don't feel like I need to go out and get cake and ice cream to satisfy my dessert urges.

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