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2018 Wanderings

August - October 2018
A 45-day adventure by ElizabethLorraine Read more
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  • Traveler2018 Wanderings
    Day 23

    Elizabeth Cuddy

    September 9, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Donostia,Regatta day. I saw it last year too
    Local towns in a rowing race off. Large row boars with about 12 oars men/ women. So many people having a good time. Me included, along with Kevin and Chelsea.
    Then they went for a late swim..I passed , no sun cool breeze
    Then dinner in a.local restaurant. Freddie served us very friendly guy from Guatemala . We ordered but he brought out the number 3 instead of the #2, twice he did it. It tasted great and was cheap so that was fine. Lovely evening, everyone out walking.
    I feel like a ragamuffin in my Camino clothes and they all fancy. I broke out my 20 Euro dress for the regatta.    Read more

  • Traveler2018 Wanderings
    Day 24

    San Vincente de la baquerra

    September 10, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    So here I am back where I left off last year. Lucky me. I did not think I would be able to get time off again.
    I took a bus from Donostia to Bilbao and then bus to Santander and then a local bus to here. I am in a hospitalera just outside the town. It is lovely , I am sitting on the big balcony overlooking hills and farmland and a river.
    I wandered around the town and went into a really old church,from the 14 the century. Pilgrims have been stopping there since then. It is off the track and up a big hill so I could see how some walkers would pass it up after a long day.
    I was not hungry at lunch time and all the restaurants put their chairs on the tables after lunch and that is it for them until tomorrow.
    I got yogurt and bananas and nuts so I will be fine . Might lose some weight , that would be a bonus. Nice hotel room,football on tonight so I am all set.
    Room. 35 euro
    Buses 9 euro
    Cafe 1.40 euro/ cent
    Napolitano 1.40 euro
    Grocery store 12 euros.
    Sandwich 3 euros. It was ham and cheese and tortilla. Triple decker. Then I thought about Keera getting sick on ham and cheese sandwich in Madrid,so I threw most of it away.
    Cool breeze sitting on the balcony. Rain may be on the way.    Read more

  • Traveler2018 Wanderings
    Day 27

    Nueva

    September 13, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    Got a nice hotel here after a lovely day of rambling. No other peregrinos at all, just me and the cats, cows and cur dogs. Oh and endless cows with huge bells. There is a festival here tonight when they erect a huge pole, really exceptionally tall pole with a flag on the top. Chopping it down, carrying it and erecting is all done to impress the ladies.
    I thought I might stay but I will walk on.
    I had two glasses of wine last night and took two Motrin before bed. It acted like speed, I think. It was a virtually sleepless night. Today will be interesting. I need to eat more, though I don't feel hungry most of the time.    Read more

  • Traveler2018 Wanderings
    Day 30

    Oviedo

    September 16, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    The Camino pauses here, I will start phase three in Gijon. About 10 or 11 days of walking left.
    The six days I walked this time we're good. No rain , no too hot and no people. Three days ,no people during the day, just at night. However it seems that people were on their phones most of the time.
    I was glad of the phone for the GPS as I did manage to lose the trail more than twice , so I used it to get back " on the yellow". I did get in a few swims, which was what I had hoped for. The water was nice and the waves were a bit too big!
    I do a bad job managing food and water, so I will be more careful about that thenezt time. However, I always wonder what the pilgrims from ages ago did. It is alwayso ing to be in a church or some other spot where they actually stopped or we're fed along the way.
    It has been a wonderful experience, filled with gratitude, every day    Read more

  • Traveler2018 Wanderings
    Day 33

    Donostia

    September 19, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Back with Kevin and Chelsea. Three buses back , a good and cheap way to travel in Spain. I do not like Bilbao, it is very grimey and seems rough.
    We ate falafels down in the plaza, they were good. Outside life here is very vibrant..
    I walked around Santander between us trips. The prom is lovely, the big flag.    Read more

  • Traveler2018 Wanderings
    Day 35

    Wanders in Donostia

    September 21, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    It has been very hot for this time of year which is a bonus as I have been able to have some swims. The water is so clear and not cold and the waves are gentle. I swam out and around the dock , good exercise for the upper body and gives the legs a rest.
    Kevin has a loaner bike and I went off on that for the afternoon , and Chelsea and I went swimming and checked out the Tabacalera that is right beside their flat. It is a really interesting community space with a lot of things going on. Well there is always something going on , and there is always people out and about,or sitting in cafes and bars.
    There is certainly a divide between the haves and have nots, as there is everywhere, but overall I would say the quality of life here appears to be good. Well from a socal standpoint , it is Mike's ahead of Lincoln and it is extra ordinarily cleaner than Dublin.    Read more

  • Traveler2018 Wanderings
    Day 37

    Overnight bus to Porto

    September 23, 2018 in Portugal ⋅ 🌙 14 °C

    I left Donostia at 10.15 pm and I was greatly relieved that the bus was not full so I had extra room. The ticket only cost 9 Euro and it takes 9.5 hours . It is called a Flixbus, and it is run by a German company. It is very much a budget bus compared to Alsa.. The seats are small and hard so it was probably built as a local bus. Anyway it is quiet, does not smell and it is cheap.
    . We just crossed the border into Portugal , it is pitch black out with a huge full moon.
    It is hard to see out the big windows because of the reflection. Let's see what Porto has to offer.    Read more

  • Traveler2018 Wanderings
    Day 38

    Porto

    September 24, 2018 in Portugal ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    No o problem on the overnight bus. Arrived to a dark and deserted bus station . I went into a coffee shop and had a really bad coissant . Then I put my backpack into a locker and went on a wander.
    It is a busy place, that is for sure, mobbed with tourists. It got really hot in the afternoon so I headed into an air conditioned shopping center and there was a Fado concert on, so that was good.
    I got into the bnb at 3 and then spent a lot of time on line getting a plane ticket to get out of Portugal a day ahead of the one day strike. That was annoying and expensive.
    I went to get groceries and there was no Portugee people ini there , All bnb guests, I thought. I bought vino Verde, for less than 2euro and went to bed early. I was tired and it was hot.
    It seems.like there is another heat wave coming.    Read more

  • Traveler2018 Wanderings
    Day 39

    Oporto

    September 25, 2018 in Portugal ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

    So, three days here in Porto and I am over my initial dislike . I think that I was overwhelmed by the amount of tourists, not speaking a word of Portugese and the oppressive heat.
    I got a handle on the layout, stayed in the shade, drank Conor Verde and Port and settled in.
    It is really quite the city. The hills and narrow streets are amazing and the mix of old and new, clean and dirty, crowded and relaxed is all a wonderful experience.
    I took a river boat tour and a port wine tour and they were fine. However the city bus,for 2 wiro , out to Masachnos was the best. It was cooler out at the beach and it is very different from the old city.
    Food and wine are cheap, Cork bags, shoes and all kinds of things are not really expensive and best of all, a CR7 Beach towel is only 10 euro.    Read more

  • Traveler2018 Wanderings
    Day 40

    Good bye Por-tu-gal

    September 26, 2018 in Portugal ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Another hot day. I wandered about , checked out some more churches, walked up and down a lot of hill and took the metro out to the Drago football stadium for a look. It is impressive but quite intimate. The metro leaves you out literally at the turnstiles.
    I took the bus all the way to Maraschino this evening. What a place, huge beach, huge prom, loads of high rises. It would be ok to live there as it is easy to get into Porto on a bus. Only 40 minutes and under 2 euro.
    Kind of like leaving Stoneybatter and going out to Malahide.
    Porto is a very intense place. It is a workout getting around , the hills are very steep and it was very hot. I keep saying that it was hot...... I do like it though and want to come back to check out the Duro vineyards. I did not want to join tourist throngs on one of the $100 day trips up the river to the vineyards. I will save those options for my next trip.
    I got a great pastel de nata today, out of the oven,still warm.
    It was delicious. Rua Santa Catalina, in a bake shop.
    I would try to get some basic Portuges phrases mastered before returning so I do not feel so inept. Port wine is good and so is vinho verde. It has been an interesting and tiring visit. I walked all over the place.    Read more

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