Bats

It would be so great if travel books and websites didn't hype the so-so stuff (gondola ride in Aviera! ovos moles!) and dug right into what was most interesting: bats! Apparently officials back in the day introduced a colony of bats into the Biblioteca Joanina, the opulent library at the University of Coimbra, to eat the bugs that would have eaten the books. The guide said that there are no more bugs, but the bats still live there, coming and going every night.

We left Porto this morning, visited Aviero, and made it to Coimbra for a late lunch and a meander through the narrow streets up to and around the  university. The rain seems to be our steady companion now.