Tiny Coffees, Mini Beers and New Friends

Day 11: Bordeiro to Seia (44 Miles / 4,730 ft.)

It was a beautiful, cool morning in our little apartment. After our normal quiet breakfast together, we put on our jackets and headed straight back into the climbing. The mornings have been cool, but the bright sunshine and perfectly blue skies warm things up quickly.

In Côja, workers were busy transforming the main square for the weekend’s medieval festival. We wandered through the streets looking for postcards, then joined everyone else with a baked treat and one of Portugal’s amazingly tiny coffees. The sugar packet was nearly as big as my espresso, and the whole thing was gone in about one sip.

The landscape is becoming hotter, drier, and more rugged as we approach the Serra da Estrela, the highest mountain range in mainland Portugal. With temperatures heading into the mid-90s, we took our time because our Warmshowers hosts, Adrianna and Bernardo, suggested arriving around 5:30.

In Lourosa, we visited the Church of São Pedro, a rare pre-Romanesque church dating to 912, along with ancient tombs carved into the surrounding stones. Later, we stopped in the shade among the Roman ruins of Bobadela for a snack, surrounded by the old forum, stone pillars, and monumental arch. Before leaving, we took a quick look at its Roman amphitheater.

Oliveira do Hospital may have a hospital, but that is not where its name comes from. The town was once controlled by the Knights Hospitaller, a medieval religious and military order. We were not especially hungry, but we still could not pass up the local kebab shop. The friendly owner walked outside with us and said that if we ever needed help anywhere in Portugal, he would send one of his employees. That kindness seems to follow us everywhere here.

In Seia, Adriana greeted us warmly with a table full of snacks and cold drinks. When Bernardo returned from his psychiatry practice, we shared soup, baked eggplant, fried eggs, and alheira, a poultry-and-bread sausage traditionally linked to Portuguese Jews who concealed their avoidance of pork during the Inquisition. We also enjoyed grapes, figs, passionfruit, and homemade marmalades from Adriana’s family.

Before we knew it, it was after 11:00. Adriana teaches theater and Bernardo teaches psychology, and they were preparing for one final bicycle-camping trip before returning to teaching Monday.

The craziest connection came late in the evening. Remember the gift we delivered from Al Hood to Professor Joaquim in Coimbra? Bernardo believes Joaquim sat on his dissertation committee and gave the final approval for his degree. Portugal suddenly felt like a very small place.Read more