Michael Portillo Article for Medlife Magazine on Porto, Summer 2004.

Porto is a city of hills and vistas. The bishop's palace and the mediaeval cathedral dominate the deep gorge formed by the Douro River as it nears the Atlantic Ocean. Picturesque narrow houses festooned with washing cling to the rocky cliff. You see Porto best from a boat passing beneath the six towering bridges that link the city to Vila Nova de Gaia on the south bank. The silhouettes of baroque churches punctuate the skyline. Tourists scramble about the boat firing off their cameras as the beautiful buildings appear to shift their relative positions throwing up new postcard views. Back ashore, climb the 225 steps up the tower of the Clérigos church and you find yourself well above the cathedral, looking out on a chaotic cityscape of red-tiled roofs, the breeze blowing stiffly from the nearby ocean.

If you want to go higher still, one of Portugal's best restaurants is located on the thirteenth floor of an apartment block in a newer part of town. From your table you can see that away from the river Porto has extensive tree-lined suburbs with beautiful villas. Portucale (at Rua Allegria 598) is such a reassuringly expensive eatery that I dared to sample Porto's typical dish of tripe, served with white beans and rice, while my wife tucked into kid marinaded in both red and port wine. Both were excellent.

Port is produced further up the Douro valley. The casks were traditionally brought down river to mature in lodges in Vila Nova. The boats they used are much in evidence today. These barcos rabelos are powered by sail, oars and a gondola-style paddle at the rear. You can see them race in the St John's regatta in late June. Many of the port lodges bear famous British brand names, and all offer a tour and tasting.

Old port is heady stuff but is the perfect companion to Portugal's finest cheese, Serra. It's made from ewes' milk and is runny at room temperature, salty tasting yet refreshing. You will also be offered Vinho Verde, a young white wine with a green tinge and a hint of effervescence, for everyday drinking and great on hot days. But for me it was an education to discover the high quality of many of the white, red and sparkling wines of the Douro on offer in Porto's restaurants.

Places to eat fish abound. Near the river close to the superb double deck iron bridge two of us ate baked sardines with vegetables and tomato salad with half a bottle of wine, a piece of cake and coffee all for €25. More costly is Dom Tonho located where the city wall skirts the river. It specialises in sea bass or sea bream baked in salt. Lovely fishy appetisers are on the table when you arrive.

For toasted sandwiches, the art deco Majestic Café (in the shopping street Rua de Santa Catarina) is fun with its mirrors, pillars and over-the-top putti. Across the street the dining room of the old Grande Hotel do Porto is in similar style and serves an inexpensive buffet.

I wouldn't usually feel titivated by visiting a former stock exchange. But since trade, largely in wine, is at the heart of Porto's history I made for the Palácio da Bolsa, whose trading floor was once a monastery cloister, in a building that now houses the Chamber of Commerce. In truth the tour of the council chambers seemed a bit earnest - that is until we ended up in the Arabian Room. It's a brilliantly colourful nineteenth century extravaganza designed on a theme of Arab motifs. Its wonderful acoustics make it ideal for concerts. You can hire the room and that set me fantasising about what a truly memorable party you could throw there.

From near the Bolsa take an antique tram along the waterfront past the neoclassical Customs House towards the ocean, and get out to tour a fine collection of vintage tramcars at the Museu do Carro Eléctrico. If you feel energetic you can strike uphill into the gardens surrounding the crystal palace (once modelled on London's). There are more good views, a charming nineteenth century mansion (the Museu Romântico) and beneath that there's an elegant place called Solar do Vinho do Porto where you can enjoy a comparative port tasting free from pressure to buy any particular brand.

The houses in the old town look like they have been squeezed in a vice to make them tall and thin. They have attractive ironwork balconies and woodwork painted in strong primary colours. Some are faced in very pretty tiles. But many homes are in poor repair, and a pox of satellite dishes has disfigured their facades. Scaffolding on many of the churches adds to the city's rather forlorn air. Parts of Eastern Europe, even of Venice, have the same feel. Now I began to fantasise about doing up one of the several wrecked mansions overlooking the Douro.

In Porto you'll be tempted to extravagance on wine and food. If so, consider that every euro you spend will enrich the town and assist the restoration of a splendidly historic city. But I wonder whether you really need such an excuse.