Camino Portugese

We are leaving at our earliest time yet, pre dawn as we leave the still silent Auberge. Trying to "outrun" the promised rain. Which had been forecast daily but not yet materialised. It's fresh, and clear in this early hushed time, and we are rewarded with a brilliant sunrise all the more special for being unexpected.

We're taking a deviation from the more common trail, to follow a riverside path called the Ecovia. Its a pedestrian and bike path that parallels the River Minho. It promises to be prettier, and more importantly today, flatter, than the trail that follows the hillside villages. Brad is still hobbling a bit with pretty bad shin splints from the "lost" day, so we'll try to coast this 20km day.

The path is virtually deserted at this hour, as we wind steadily along. A brief rain squall passes, it's intense, but short. The occasional dog walker starts to arrive, a fisher or two, one furiously marching guy. Brad is told that the fishing is no good, which is hard to believe as we can hear some pretty loud splashes and see some jumps!

Arriving at Vila Nova de Cerveira, we stop at a cafe in the appealing town square. I spot a Camino distance marker - we've come a long way! - a lovely deep green tiled building, very charming and characteristic of Portuguese tiled structures. And a memorial monument to the 1809 date that the villagers chased the invading French away.

On the way out of town we stop at the big grocery Continente, and get breakfast yoghurt, bun, fruit for about 1.50. So affordable. Even the sausages that we inexplicably added, and enjoyed with our breakfast just past the first bridge to Spain.

The day ticks along steadily and mostly easily. We're getting tired though, enough to be irritated at the cyclists that pass us narrowly, insisting on riding in strict formation without breaking cadre. Rude.

Luckily, we are very nearly at our nights accomodation, booked this morning at the cafe. We are at Alvorada Medieval, where Ana and Pedro welcome us. This is their home and hostel, and their warmth and generosity shine through it in all ways. We meet little Porto, a chihuahua that some Dutch pilgrims had rescued from a car hit and run a few days ago. The Dutch are adopting him, but Pedro and Ana are letting him recuperate from surgery here before Pedro drives him to his new family later.

We arrived in the nick of time, an absolutely torrential downpour and rumbling thunderstorm begins as we complete check in

While I tidy up, Brad looks around the neighborhood a bit. Not surprisingly he finds a local bar. Perhaps a bit more surprising, he meets a local who lived in new Brunswick for 13 years. Tall tales were told, I'm sure.

At 7 is the pilgrims dinner, a shared table with hosts and guests that is a traditional here. We have with us tonight Christopher from Germany. He is doing 30 km days, unlikely we'll meet him again!Ana is passionate about the history of this spot and of the Camino. She passed here on her first Camino and felt drawn magnetically to a ruin which became this alberge. They gave up their professional lives in Lisbon to move here. The name reflects her philosophy, Alvorada is the beginning of the day, a new beginning, maybe a new life. With medieval a reference to the shared past we all have.

Ana says life is like the Camino, sometimes you think they have not marked the way clearly enough, but it is you that is lost. When you realize this, you must go back to where you got lost, and find your way again.

I think I'll be reflecting on Ana's wisdom for a long time.Read more