Praça da Liberdade (Liberty Square), Porto (must see)

Down in Porto’s Baixa district, just off the south side of the grand Avenue of the Allies, you arrive at Liberty Square—a wide, open space that feels like the city decided to take a deep breath and hold it. Today it’s a central meeting point, but back in 1718, this was a bold piece of urban planning, then known simply as New Square.

Not long after, in 1788, things took a more monastic turn. The religious order of Saint Eligius—patron saint of, among others, veterinarians, horses, and metalworkers—built a convent right here on the southern edge. To make room, they removed part of the old medieval city wall. In its place rose a solid neoclassical structure, which still stands today as the Cardosas Palace—a solid reminder that even defensive walls can give way to more refined ambitions.

Then, in 1866, the square gained its central figure: a monument to Peter IV of Portugal. And he was not a man for small titles, no. In Portugal, he ruled as Peter IV; in Brazil, he was Emperor Peter I. Two crowns, one person—and a strong commitment to liberal ideals on both sides of the Atlantic... Perched on horseback at the center of the square, the monarch holds the constitution he fought to defend during the Liberal Wars, as if to remind everyone passing by that freedom, in his case, came with paperwork.

The square took on its present form in 1916, when the elegant Avenue of the Allies was extended northward, reshaping the space and giving it a more modern, ceremonial feel. Today, the surroundings are a mix of banks, hotels, offices, and restaurants, creating a steady rhythm of daily life. Yet, despite the movement, the statue of Peter IV remains the focal point—calm, elevated, and impossible to ignore.

Take a moment here. Look around. This is where Porto balances its past and present—one eye on history, the other on whatever comes next...