Day 3: Marinhos to Cerreca

All is well.Day 3 is in the bag. We covered 29 kilometers today but we had to accept a ride for the last 6 as it was 34 C at 1pm and that temp became too dangerous for me to continue. After all,at 75 I shouldn’t even be here doing this walk. Be careful what you wish for. Come to Porto they said. Do the Camino they said. Temperatures are moderate here they said. There are no hills on this walk they said. They said, they said. Well they lied. It has been in the low 30s since I got here. That is in the low 90s for the metric challenged. And today we had some serious hills. But it has been great. Meeting people from all over the world. This afternoon after our swim I met an elderly Aussie lady about the same age as me. Good for her. I thought. Whatever she said I could relate to.

There is Albergue etiquette for those who are not aware. If some of your 50 Albergue colleagues decide that they want to start the day at oh dark 30 that is fine but you do not wake up those of us who want to start at a normal daylight time. This morning a whole lot of pilgrims left very early waking the rest of us up. YOU EFFIN LEAVE IN SILENCE AND IN THE DARK you Albergue ass……

Life is tough. Right? But good too.

The walk was great. Some serious hills but we handled them. Our routine is simple: up and at em at 7am. Do 2 hours or 10 km then find a place to have a coffee. Then another 2 hours or 10 km and stop for lunch. Then another 2 hours or 10 km and begin looking for an Albergue. Gerry is very particular when it comes to that. But I,m not cheap he continues to remind me. Yes but you are Gerry. No I am not. Frugal yes but never cheap. Ok I said. It is yours round he says to me yet again.

Me and my Pilgrims buddies.

I am not a fan of Celine Dion but there is no denying her talent. When she first started out she said she would never sing for an English audience. Being French Canadian that statement had consequences. Then reality struck and she became an English superstar. Funny that. Here is her biggest hit:

 

Day Two: Verzim to Marinhos

Got off at about 7am. Sun just came out. Long night but many of the Pilgrims left at 530am. Too early and very dark. You can’t see anything. We waited until it got light out. Gerry and I are definitely the oldest here. By a longshot. Most of the Pilgrims we have met are Germans and are women. Very few men on this Camino. And it is very busy.

One women was from Siberia. Wow. I have never met anyone from Siberia. She was very nice but her walking partner never said a word. His name was Nicholas. Russian roulette. She had a very heavy accent and reminded me of Natasha from the Mad Magazine. I asked her her name and she said: my name is Natasha. Niet I said and ja she said. Seriously. Then there was Jacob, a young software engineer from Munchen and Lia from Dusseldorf.

I wonder why so many women are doing the Camino. Is there a reason? What are they thinking when they walk? Should I quit my job?. Should I drop my boyfriend? Should I get a divorce? Can I get my hair done in the next town? What about my nails? What or why am I doing this? And suffering so much? Meanwhile the men are thinking: will the bar be open at the next Albergue? Will the beer be cold? Any sports on? What? Why?  Only a sexist would say or think stuff like that.

By the way bai, the shadow is with us.

Gerry went in for a swim. Not me. Too many rocks and very 🥶.

It,ll warm yer cockles he said. Only if you can find them I said.

All for now. Read ya tomorrow.

Another great Canadian band that doesn’t get the attention it deserves.

Late today but spotty internet.

Day 1: Porto to Padua de Verzim

We decided to forego the route from the Pilgrim’s office by the Cathedral and opted for the more scenic route along the Douro River to the lighthouse and then north up the coast to Villa Conda. Scenic is a relative term as it was busy with traffic even though we had the bright blue Atlantic Ocean on our left side. On our right was industrial parks, main thoroughfares and lots of traffic. And it was steaming hot out. Hot as a hothouse in a humid muggy Ontario August.

Before I left home I researched the weather for the route. Great temps they said. Mid 20s they said. Great walking weather they said. Well they lied. Since I arrived 4 days ago it has been in the low 30s it was 92 F last night at 2000 (8pm). And who are they anyway. Not a cloud in the sky for my 5th day here.

A few more pics of Porto. There was this street musician playing the Dylan tune Knocking on Heaven,s Door. How appropriate by the Cathedral I thought. Or was this an omen. Yikes.

It was 94F at that moment. Anyway, Porto will soon be a distant memory. Great place.

Clear and hot. Verzim is a tourist resort. Surfing 🌊 centre here for the Portuguese people.

Funny. Nothing open here. Seems that Monday is a day of rest. It was a challenge but Gerry and I found a cafe open. Bock,s beer. Very refreshing. Met a Portuguese man here who has lived in Toronto for 50 years. He spends 6 months in Portugal every year . Nice. Gerry and I put our feet in the ocean. Very cold and dangerous surf. All for now. Read ya tomorrow.

Another great Canadian band.

 

 

 

Porto Day 4

They call this Trajt. It is something akin to University hazing or frosh week they are all university students. They go out across Porto in their Harry Potter like costumes and sing and dance and act to raise money for many causes. They do not get pissed like they do at University in Canada.

Indeed, there is a famous library or book store here in Porto. Legend has it that the Harry Potter author wrote here. I don’t believe it. Don’t know about you but I avoided libraries like the plague when I was a child. I sure as hell am not going to line up for hours to get into one here.

This is another Porto tradition.

Street entertainment. And of course there is:

The nectar of the Camino God. Why do you do the Camino bai?

It’s the 🍻 bai. And the food. And the people and it’s a great way to lose weight bai.

Just to prove I am really here.

Why is my mouth open? Getting ready for another draught of beer. Doh!

A wise Portuguese pilgrim once told me, do not order the largest beer glass you can find bai – like those Canadians do. No, no, no. Order the smallest glass. The beer stays cold that way. So true. I can attest to that.

Cheers

Another Canadian icon. Shania Twain. Haven’t heard from her lately. Mutt Lang dropped her?????WTF over.

 

 

 

Porto: Day 3

Day three in Porto. Almost over the jet lag. One more day of rest and then off I’ll be. This is my fourth Camino. You would think by now I would know better. September is not a good time to do these things. I did Vezelay in 44 C heat. 10 days above 38 C. Not nice. Frances was up in the 30s. Le Puy as well. I think October would be the best month. Europe is hot, hot, hot in the summer months. And that is not with the humidex!

Today it is 32C.

I will be ready to go. I meet my walking buddy tomorrow. He is a good friend from Belfast. The great thing about him is that he has a heavy accent so I can’t understand him most of the time. We did the Camino Frances together. We linked up in Roncesvalles Spain. Great craic over many a cerveza. Met many people. When asked about why are you doing a Camino he would fluff off the high faultin, existential meaning of that with a simple answer: well it’s a great way to lose weight bai. And you know-what? It is.

Went to mass again at 11 am. What a place. Sitting in the pew of history. Centuries old. Beautiful gothic architecture. One can get blown away looking at the marvellous lines of the church. The acoustics are unreal. When the choir sings it is heavenly. I guess that is the point. I am so glad to be a Christian when I hear that music.

Explored Porto some more. Went to the beach and lighthouse.

Legend has it that this delectable heart attack on a plate was invented by a heartbroken Portuguese chef. He left for Paris and worked there for 10 years. He was very homesick so he came up with this artery cruncher of a dish made with all the ingredients from Portugal. He brought it back to Portugal and introduced it to an unsuspecting public. It is very filling.

Neil Young is a world renowned Canadian artist. I personally don’t like his politics. He has lived in the US since 1969, yet comes to Canada with his anti American rhetoric and climate change BS. Just stick to the music and stop pontificating. Lynard Skinner had a great comeback to this song called Sweet Home Alabama.