Porto for The Solo Traveller: a Friday-to-Monday weekend

The free viewpoint over the rooftops to the river, found through an unmarked gate; nobody minds a person alone with a bottle of water here.

Cross at street level with the traffic, then climb the Gaia stairs to the monastery terrace of Serra do Pilar for the view back.

Stand-up pork sandwiches and a beer, no reservation, no fuss, and a counter where eating alone is the normal way.

Six flat kilometres along the quay and the Atlantic esplanade, with the fishermen at Cantareira and the lighthouse at the end.

Watch the auction floor, then buy sardines to be grilled at one of the street braziers on Rua Heróis de França outside.

A counter seat at the tapas bar under the station; order the tuna tataki and whatever the owner recommends.

An hour north to the cradle of Portugal: castle, ducal palace, medieval square, back by mid-afternoon on the urban train.

Sunday musicians along the pedestrian street; sit on the church steps of the Misericórdia and listen for as long as you like.

A solo seat at the seafood bar: barnacles, clams and a glass of Alvarinho, with the regulars for company.

Be first up the 225 steps for the empty top and the long morning shadows across the Baixa roofs.

Take the cable car down the Gaia hillside past the lodges for a final sweep of the river, then walk the quay back.

Grab a plate of grilled sardines and bread at a counter inside the market before the airport metro across the road.