LISBON April
28-29 -- Jim and Danette flew from FL and Deb Anderson flew from MN and met in
Newark, NJ and continued flight to Lisbon, Portugal. We stayed at Home Hostel. We walked around the castle, saw inside some
churches, and walked the varied neighborhoods.
It is a hilly area to walk. April
30 -- We did a walking tour around the Alfama area. We went to the Belem district which was one
of the main “launch pads” for the Portugal’s Age of Discovery. We walked around the Chaido and Bairro Alto
area. This area was vibrant with
wonderful architecture, street cafes, and shopping. Deb and I went to a restaurant which had
wonderful food and we listened to the FADO music. “Fado is a form of music characterized by mournful
tunes and lyrics, often about the sea or the life of the poor, and infused with
a characteristic sentiment of resignation, fatefulness and melancholia.”
PORTO May 1 – We took the train from Lisbon to Porto. We walked the city which has beautiful tile
on the buildings. May 2 – As part of the
Camino de Santiago a person needs to get stamps along the way as proof that you
have walked, or biked, the path. We each
had a Credencial del Peregino book and stamps could be from people in a church,
café, hostel, etc. where they stamped the credencial and dated the stamp. Today we got our first two stamps. We ate traditional meal for lunch. The food throughout the trip was great,
plentiful, and the bread and wine is outstanding. The views of Porto are great from the hills
down to the Douro River. The churches
are marvelous with their gold leaf and marble.
We walked across the bridge where the port wine is made and stopped at
the port lodges and sampled white and red tawny, vintage, and a 1961 Cohemia port.
CAMINO DE SANTIAGO WALK http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Way_of_St._James Deb Anderson, my friend since college days, had a
goal to do the Camino. Jim and I
decided
to join her on this adventure. The Way
of St. James was a trip we will never forget.
Jim rode a bike, due to a foot issue, and Deb and I walked. We completed in nine days of walking, biking
for Jim, 240+- km (150+- miles), for an average of 16.5+- miles per
day. We walked for seven days, took one
day off, and then walked two more days for total of ten. Along the way each felt collectively or
individually days of faith, cultural experience, endurance, fellowship, camaraderie, international meetings, stamina, peace
with nature, helping others, encouragement, patience, and letting go. During our trip we met people from all over
the world(Belgium, Germany, Finland, Portugal, Mexico, Denmark, Austria,
Sweden, Ecuador, England, Nova Scotia, Ukraine, Tahiti, Netherlands, Poland,
Spain, Bolivia, Switzerland, Ireland, city of Quebec, and one American) and
some were on their first pilgrimage while others had done five or more.
May 3 to 12 – (DAY
1) We left Porto and walked (Jim biked) to Vilarinho (7 hrs, 16 miles). We started in the city, moving to industrial,
then through small villages and pasture land.
We met six pilgrims along the walk, and another couple at where we
slept. We stayed in a home where they
had rooms in the back, and they had a pool and outside tables to sit. 
(DAY 2) Vilarinho
to Barcelos (17 miles). We went through
rural areas, up and down hills, saw nice homes with big yards, and farming
areas. It was a long day today and our
feet were tired. Barcelos had a festival
going on with music, food vendors, wonderful lights throughout city, and
fireworks.
(DAY 3) Barcelos
to Ponte de Lima (20 miles). This was a
rural area with hills. Today Deb and I
had to text Jim about mile 17 and asked him to bike to meet us and help us
carry some of our weight. He was great
to assist, and Deb and I were then able to make the distance. We stayed in our first Albergue. These are hostels for pilgrims. Some had beds for 15 and others had beds for
50+, all were dorm style rooms, and we used our sleeping bags. Most opened around 3 p.m. and you needed to
be out by 9 a.m.
(DAY 4) Ponte de
Lima to Rubiaes (11miles). We walked to
a height of 405 meters (1200 ft). It was
a tough day as Jim had to take items off his bike, carry up the hill, and then
go back down and carry his bike. We
climbed a large area of boulders. Deb
and I met a group of six Portuguese men at a café and they invited us to
dinner. Jim, Deb, and I joined them for
dinner. We all ate, drank, and our
Portuguese men all sang multiple songs.
The restaurant was filled with other pilgrims. Our Alberque room had 28 bunk beds and there
was overflow with a few extra mattresses set up on the floor. That night there was a chorus of snorers!
(DAY 5) Rubiaes
to Tui, Spain (12 miles+-). During our
trip we had good temperatures. In the
morning, temperatures were in the mid 50’s but then would get to mid 60’s. We had some drizzle but it never rained
hard. We met father and son, aunt and
niece, and old and young. People were
friendly along the way and all were eager to help or point the direction in
case we looked lost. The way is marked
with yellow arrows (or scallop shell) on the road, side of a building, or on a
post. Today was a rural walk and the
trails would have been streams if it was raining heavily. We stopped along the way and walked around
Valenca, which is an old walled city.
(DAY 6) Tui to
Mos (14 miles+-). Jim had a nice bike
ride today as it was fairly even terrain and our Albergue was in a nice small
village. We walked by nice streams, over
footbridges, saw sheep in the fields, walked by vineyards, saw a quarry, walked
an industrial area, and had an excellent lunch at a restaurant filled with
locals. 
(DAY 7) Mos to
Pontevedra (19 miles +-). We noticed
that the marking for the way were not as good in Spain as they had been in
Portugal. Portugal had clear markings
and frequent, while Spain were worn and not always easily recognized. By now, Jim’s biking was going great on his
bike and he was able to get to a location early to set up for when Deb and I
arrived. Today was not an exception as
he found a nice hotel room for us with a view of the church and plaza area. Deb and I became more confident in our
ability to go the distance and mentally we were up to the challenge, but we
were ready for a day off.
(DAY 8) Pontevedra (0 miles!). We walked around the old town area, lounged
around the room, and went in the evening to a jam session in an art building as
there was a festival for a saint of the arts.
(DAY 9) Pontevedra to Valga, Spain (20 miles+). Jim biked a little further today. He got moving and rode to Padron then
realized he had went too far so he rode back!
It was cool today so it was Deb’s best walk day and roads were fairly
level.
(DAY 10) Valga to
Santiago (20 miles +). Today was filled
with emotion as we completed our pilgrimage and ended up at the cathedral in
Santiago, Spain. The outside and inside
of the cathedral is very impressive. We
walked to the office where we got our certificate for completing the Camino de
Santiago. It was a joyful time. As we were standing outside we happened to
see again a couple that we had met on the first night of our pilgrimage, so we
went to drink some beer and share stories of our experiences.
May 13,
Monday. The three of us walked around
the church and Deb and I got on our knees and went up to the touch stone column
of St James in thanks for bringing us on this journey, as tens of thousands
have done before us. At noon there is a
mass for pilgrims. A nun sang, the
priest spoke in words we could not understand, and at the end the altar men
pull a large rope and swing an incense burner (bota fumeiro) across the
altar. In the old days, pilgrims would
stay in the upper part of the church and it could get very smelly! We spent the remainder of the day walking
around the old town area.
TOURING May 14-25
To finish off our pilgrimage experience in
Spain, we took the bus to “the end of the world” which was believed to be the
furthest western point in continental Europe.
Proven later to be Cabo da Roca, Portugal, which we did see by bus later in the trip. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Finisterre 
We took a bus
ride for 11 hours to Aveiro, Portugal.
The city has canals and nicely painted canal boats. We then took the train to Fatima.
We saw the old Basilica and the new church which seats 9000. The artist who did Jesus shows Christ with
the face of “cultural world diversity” in the nose, eyes, and face. We went to the 9:30 p.m. mass where they
prayed the rosary and followed by a candle light procession. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Lady_of_F%C3%A1tima .
We took a day trip to Alcobaca, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcoba%C3%A7a_Monastery, and Batalha, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batalha_Monastery, to see the monasteries. 
We moved south to
Obidos which is a beautiful old
walled city. Our hostel was great in
that we had a fireplace in the room and the house was filled with beautiful
artwork. Monday, May 20, was Jim’s
birthday. We took a bus and then train
to Sintra. Both Obidos and Sintra are places in the book
“A Thousand Places to See Before You Die”.
We toured the Palacio Nacional de Sintra (of Moorish origin and enlarged
in 15th century) and the Palacio Nacional de Pena. Pena was commissioned in 1840 to be built as
a castle from the ruins of a 16th century monastery. Pena was fabulous with wonderful grounds to
walk around and there were specimen trees and plants from all over the world.
After leaving
Sintra we stopped in the beach city of Cascais
and walked around. From Cascais, we took
the train along the coast to Lisbon. Our last stay was at a hostel within the
train station. The night we arrived they had a jazz night with piano player,
guitar player, and singer. We visited
the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum, Parque das Nacoes (sight of Expo 98 The World
Exhibition), and the Museu da Marioneta.
May 25,Saturday,
we flew back to America as a renewed person with the “Spirit of the Camino”. Live in
the moment, welcome each day – its pleasures and its challenges, make others
feel welcome, share, feel the spirit of those who have gone before you, imagine
those who will follow you, appreciate those who walk with you today.
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| Our hiking boots along with bronze boot at "end of the world". |
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