We've developed webbed feet!

After a really good night's sleep, despite the crowing of the cockrel at 0400 and the clucking of the chickens at 0600, we looked out to see it wasn't actually raining that much! The weather forecast was for heavy rain but we thought maybe it'd passed us by. So, still togged up for rain in our wet weather gear, we set off at 0800 for Carreço, 25km away. Our Antas host had said there was a café 15 minutes away, so we were heading there for our first breakfast. However, we got chatting to a bloke from the Lake District who was walking apace and completely missed it. Oh no!😱😂.
Part of the path today led us through a fabulous wooded area so we slowed down and he carried on striding - not sure he'd be appreciating his surroundings at that speed, but we all enjoy different caminos. It really was a few kilometres in which to slow down and just enjoy our surroundings (not least of all because we were likely to take a tumble if we didn't look where we were placing our feet!) We made a short stop to light a candle for Nigel, knowing he'd have really appreciated this place🥰🥰🥰.
It was definitely raining, but we were sheltered because of the trees, and it wasn't that bad. Julie found a new friend outside an albergue, obviously dressed in lost property 😂 and we finally found a café at Castelo do Neiva, just 150m off route, where we made the most of our first breakfasts 😋.
When we left the café, the rain had definitely increased and we were pleased we'd kept our waterproofs on. In fact, it was 'orrible! We just had to keep our heads down and head into it. Not massively pleasant, especially as we couldn't enjoy what was around us or take time to wander, for example, when we passed the Mosterio de São Romão de Neiva, which looked rather interesting! Never mind😂.
Our route had been very Camino Frances-ish at this point. It continued to take us uphill towards Chafé, where we knew there was another café. We passed a small stall selling all sorts of paraphernalia but Chafé was our destination! (we'd decided to stop every 5km or so to rest our feet and take our soaked jackets off.) As we were climbing we found a small stall selling homemade fridge magnets, which we both took advantage of (it meant we had a few minutes rest, as well). The café in Chafé served us our lunch - we both ordered a mixed omelette and a drink. As time went by we noticed others being served who'd arrived after us. We'd been forgotten 😱. Still, the plates we saw being served were filled with chips, too, so we'd forgive them 😂. By the time they realised they hadn't fed us, though, our dishes turned into straightforward omelette 😥. No chips 😫😂😂. No tip!!!
We headed straight out into more rain and continued up up up until we reached the top (not sure what of, but it was high enough!). The downward journey took next to no time but, of course, we still couldn't enjoy our surroundings because every time we lifted our heads we just got wetter and wetter! Before we knew it, we were striding across a very long bridge into Viana do Castelo (the bridge also managed to go up up up before going down down down 🙄) and straight to a café for a well-deserved cake 🎂. We'd already agreed to find a different sort of transport to our final destination and we managed to find the train station to take us there! Our accommodation was just a few hundred metres from the station, where we were met with hugs and kisses from Tatania and Marcus, as if we were long-lost friends! We both admitted to being a bit taken aback by the OTT welcome and a bit worried that we were the only 2 guests that evening 😂. All's been good up to now, though!🙏😂
An evening meal at a local restaurant, where we shared a menu because it was so big, was delicious and great value for money. And Sid started acting up, too!!! "Just call me Jonah!" he said. 😂😂😂
Tomorrow, we lose an hour as we're walking (no, sailing!) into Spain! Marcel is very excited to be making an appearance at last!😂😂😂Read more