Simplicity of life amid beautiful surroundings.

Our house and small holding are a few miles from Valenca, which is the main market town, very close to the Spanish border. We are located in a tiny village called Rio Torto, Fontoura, surrounded by beautiful countryside. The view from the bedroom windows has been described as "one to die for" (see above)

There are a few buses into Valenca, not frequent, but taxis are cheap. Our main city is Porto, the second largest city to Lisbon. Porto airport is north of the city with a toll motorway link only a few miles to our house. Journey time from Porto is approx 1.15 minutes by car and two hours by train to Valenca and we are only 30 minutes away from Vigo airport in Spain. There is a good cheap frequent train service between Lisbon to Porto and onwards to Valenca, then taxi to home.

We are only 7 minutes drive from Valenca and 8 from the Spanish border. Valenca is a buzzing shopping border town that is divided into two areas, the old and the new. The old provides a shopping experience aimed at the Spanish and the very few tourists and the new for the needs of the locals. Wednesday is market day, I will say no more, it has to be seen to be believed, a great shopping experience.The closest Spanish town to our home is Tui, just across the border. With both countries belonging to the EEC there are no custom formalities.

Hire cars are available at a very modest price from either from Porto or Vigo airports. Easy-car hire is available from Porto. Ryanair now flies twice a day from Stanstead. Wherever Ryanair goes expect Easyjet to follow on its tails. The whole of Northern Portugal is one of the last places left that faces the Atlantic as far north as Norway that has not succumbed to the invasion of tourists and ex-pats from the UK and other countries. Do not expect to find where we live a life style similar to southern Spain or the Algarve otherwise you will be very disappointed.