Porto vs La Rochelle

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Porto or Oporto (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈpoɾtu] (listen)) is the second-largest city in Portugal and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city is small compared to its metropolitan area, with a population of 237,559 people. Porto's metropolitan area has an estimated 1.7 million people (2019) in an area of 2,395 km2 (925 sq mi), making it the second-largest urban area in Portugal. It is recognized as a global city with a Gamma + rating from the Globalization and World Cities Research Network.Located along the Douro River estuary in northern Portugal, Porto is one of the oldest European centres, and its core was proclaimed a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1996, as "Historic Centre of Porto, Luiz I Bridge and Monastery of Serra do Pilar". The historic area is also a National Monument of Portugal. The western part of its urban area extends to the coastline of the Atlantic Ocean.

Its settlement dates back many centuries, when it was an outpost of the Roman Empire. Its combined Celtic-Latin name, Portus Cale, has been referred to as the origin of the name Portugal, based on transliteration and oral evolution from Latin. In Portuguese, the name of the city includes a definite article: o Porto ("the port" or "the harbor"), which is where its English name "Oporto" comes from.Port wine, one of Portugal's most famous exports, is named after Porto, since the metropolitan area, and in particular the cellars of Vila Nova de Gaia, were responsible for the packaging, transport, and export of fortified wine. In 2014 and 2017, Porto was elected The Best European Destination by the Best European Destinations Agency. Porto is on the Portuguese Way path of the Camino de Santiago. Porto is also the home of one of the country's most successful football clubs, FC Porto.

Source: Wikipedia

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La Rochelle (; French: [la ʁɔʃɛl]; Poitevin-Saintongese: La Rochéle) is a city in southwestern France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. With 75,735 inhabitants in 2017, La Rochelle is the most populated commune in the department and ranks fifth in the New Aquitaine region after Bordeaux, the regional capital, Limoges, Poitiers and Pau. Its inhabitants are called "les Rochelaises" and "les Rochelais". Situated on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean the city is connected to the Île de Ré by a 2.9-kilometre (1.8-mile) bridge completed on 19 May 1988. Its harbour opens into a protected strait, the Pertuis d'Antioche since the Middle-Ages. It is in fact a "Door océane" by the presence of its three ports (of fishing, trade and yachting). City of strong commercial tradition, its port was active from its origins and knew an important development during the classic period, then in the contemporary period thanks to the port site of La Pallice which is the only deep water port of the French Atlantic coast and hoists it henceforth to the sixth national rank.

The city traces its origins back to the Gallo-Roman period attested by the remains of important salt marshes and villas. The Dukes of Aquitaine granted it a charter of free port in 1130. The opening of the English market following the second marriage of Eleanor of Aquitaine in 1152, the presence of the Knights Templar and the Knights of Saint John of Jerusalem, quickly made this small town the largest port on the Atlantic.To this day city still possesses a rich historical, including its Saint-Nicholas tower, and urban heritage. The capital of Aunis has become the most important coastal city between the Loire and Gironde estuaries. Its urban activities are multiple and strongly differentiated. A city with port and industrial functions that are still important, it has a predominantly administrative and tertiary sector that is reinforced by its university and a rapidly developing tourism industry. In the recent years, the city has consistently been ranked among France's most liveable cities

Source: Wikipedia