Day 13: Rio Labruja

18.3k👣 31Z🧡
12.4km

Headed downhill from the Gloriosa Guest House in Ponte de Lima, passing all the kids & parents getting to school.
Stopped for a lovely apple & raisin pastry with a galão (latte) at a fancy pastelaria
Took a look another church Igreja Matriz de Santa Maria dos Anjos. I definitely prefer this Gothic/Romanesque style to gaudy Baroque
Set out in the misting rain across the Ponte de Lima bridge that I painted yesterday
Took a right, which led us fairly quickly to paths alongside vineyards and cornfields and streams
Today was mostly on dirt paths through forests. Towns and highways were never far away, as the Camino path crossed under the highway above several times
Feet felt a LOT better than the last few days. I think the Compeed is finally working!
Still, 3.5 hrs in, with no breaks, at the last stop before the 400m climb started in earnest, and I knew the wise thing to do was to call a cab. So , following some juice, yogurt and banana, I wished Joe happy trails and broke out my art kit.
Who should come along but Tony, the Aussie we met yesterday at lunch in front of the church!
We chatted while he fueled up, and I sketched
When he set out, I called the taxi driver Hélder and, 15 min later, I was on my way across and around the alto to our albergue for the night Ninho The Pilgrim Nest
More time for sketching!!
Talked with Yvgeny from Israel by way of Germany, who was moving to Switzerland (which, I learned, is NOT part of the EU) and a couple of Canadians, Germans, and Belgians
Helped out Marlene by welcoming in and orienting a couple sets of pilgrims, one of which was Abby, Eric & Joe!
After they showered and did laundry, Marlene brought out some vinho verde, a white sparkling wine from the region
Dinner upstairs at the long table was delish: spicy buckwheat (?) pancakes, bread rolls, salad, more vinho verde, a HUGE pot of chicken and pasta, and a custard dessert
Conversation got quite emotional when Nina from Lebanon got into describing how her family has been impacted by the war, the corruption of Hezbollah, the failure of the Lebanese government to do anything about it. Yvgeny from Israel started in about Hamas and Gaza and the West Bank, but ended up holding his tongue as Nina acknowledged what an emotional topic it was for her
After dinner, 5 women and 1 guy went in to wash the dishes, and we were done in no time
With that, I joined Joe in getting ready for bed.Read more