Rua de Belomonte in Porto isn't one of the main downtown streets you will read about in guide books - in fact I don't think there is a single tourist related business on the whole street, which is unusual for Porto these days. Instead it is something of an oasis of calm and a throwback to when Porto was Portugal's slightly grimy, hardest-working city. To me this is classic Porto - a little run down, but there are plenty of flourishes from the ornate tiles, cast iron balconies and ornate windows to show there certainly was (and still is) wealth here.
It's well worth walking to the end of Rua de Belomonte as you will arrive in Largo São João Novo. This feels something of surprise when you are greeted with the facade of a rather large church to one side and the Palácio de São João Novo to the other.
