News Porto.

There's plenty to be heartened by in Porto these days. The city's urban setting is coloured with street markets all across town to enliven spirits and offer joyful moments. Some stands are already set to welcome visitors, and other stalls will feature special editions throughout the weekend. Porto's gardens and squares offer handcraft, design product, clothing items, props, vintage products and antiques.

The show "The Three Little Pigs", based on "The Nursery Rhymes of England" (1886), by James Halliwell-Phillipps takes to the stage this Friday, 17th August at the Theatre of Belomonte, to mark the 30th anniversary of Porto Puppet Theatre.

Minigolf Champions' League will take place in Porto from 4 to 6 October, in Passeio Alegre, Foz. The club teams who achieved the highest place of the podium of the National Team Championship in each national federation, as well as the cupholders of the previous year, qualify for this event.

House Museum Guerra Junqueiro promotes this Saturday at 11 am a visit to the exhibition "Encontros", which includes visual artwork by the Nobel Prize in Literature Günter Grass (1927-2015). There will be a workshop after the tour. Both initiatives are free, with mandatory previous application.

Urban Market, a space for total relax and entertainment, as tradition in Porto, is set to kick off tomorrow with a novelty: a picnic! Join in for a joyful day!

It is worthwhile visiting one of the best kept green spaces in Porto. Take your time to stroll and admire the nature that inhabits the heart of the city. Six acres of green and peace that will be home to the City's History Museum, later this year, which will be literally built "down to the ground". The abandoned water reservoir will work as an exhibition and cultural space, and the old Tea House will also be restored!

August is also holiday movie season at Museu Soares dos Reis (MNSR), with a mini cinema cycle. This is an outdoor programme and it will be held from 16th to 30th August. Entrance is free.

Porto was host to the 9th International Symposium of Urban Sketchers, which gathered 800 participants from 50 different nationalities, from 18th to 21st July. This event was targeted to sketchers of all levels, experience, and backgrounds, and its main goal is to celebrate and practice the art of on-location sketching in the city of Porto.

Summer also means festivities and pilgrimage and Porto is no exception. The feast of Saint Bartholomew enlivens Foz do Douro from June till September. The traditional parade of paper costumes, scheduled this year for 26th August is one of the highlights of Saint Bartholomew festivity and the Market in Molhe is a must-go.

Porto was chosen over Paris and Barcelona to host the most important Textile Congress in 2019, confirming the status of "case study" of the Portuguese Industry, to which the international arena is paying close attention. The organisers of the event stated the dates: 20 to 22 October.