Wednesday, June 13, 2007



LELLO & IRMAO BOOKSHOP,
144 Carmelitas Street, Oporto.

I have a slender volume about this remarkable bookshop which carries the following inscription on the inside front cover:

7 October, 1999
Purchased for Graham Beattie as an inspiration for him to visit Porto some day and visit this amazing bookshop.
It should definitely be on the world itinerary of bookshops to visit when Beattie & King organize their inaugural world tours of the world’s best bookshops and vineyards……..

And it is signed by well-known Christchurch bookseller Philip King.

Philip & I have never managed to find the time when we were both free to attempt such a world tour although both of us have independently visited many fine bookstores around the world over the past three decades, and been to some pretty damn fine vineyards too!

The book about Lello & Irmao Bookshop has been kept on my desk ever since Philip gave it to me to keep reminding me that one day I must visit as it clearly made a big impact on him.

Well the time has come.

Tomorrow, Thursday 14 June Annie and I fly out – Auckland/Bangkok/Paris/Oporto – it will probably take around 36 hours door-to-door but the tiredness and jet-lag will soon be forgotten if Oporto proves to be as beautiful as I have been led to believe and this bookshop is as wonderful as Philip promises.

So it may be a day or two before the European postings appear here on beattiesbookblog but when it does it will most likely be a report about a certain bookshop in Oporto, Portugal.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh that bookshop! I stumbled across it quite by chance, had never heard of it, in 2000 when I was in Porto, travelling by myself. I couldn't belive it - tears came to my eyes I swear! It is simply heavenly.

Anonymous said...

I also have to add that I knew nothing about Oporto when I went there - I didn't even know if i was going to stay there. I had a rail pass and had just jumped on a train and travelled up teh country. I think by train is the way to approach it - you come around a corner and suddnle there is the city on the other side of the river from you, with houses stacked up, looking like they might slide into the water. the colours and textures were breath-taking. So when the train pulled in I jumped off, looked in my guide book and found my way to a hotel called the Grand Hotel de Paris (from memory). I'm sure in 1904 it was the grandest hotel in town, but it seemd as though nothing had changed since then! Wonderfully shabby and characterful and unfortunately no air conditioning as it was in the late 30s. thta night Portugal beat Romania in the World Cup and there was quite a party in the street. Great, great memories. Have a good time!