May Day May Day, I'm too thin

I somehow forgot Porto is on the Portugese Camino route. I have been wished Buen Camino when with my pack on the street, and the hostel is full of pilgrims, many starting today. I clearly reek of Camino (literally as well as figuratively, I suspect) because I have once again fielded all the laundry questions. Mate I've clocked off!

From Porto to SdC is a six day walk, and some have prepared accordingly, like the guy from Amsterdam sitting in front of a breakfast of champions at the next table - a packet of Camels and a hip flask. He asked me if I knew anything about routes, because he was going off some stuff a bartender wrote on a placemat when he went out last night, he's on four hours sleep.

After some chatting he asked to see my Credential and pored over it which made me feel strangely proud, like a boy scout having his sash admired. He showed me the expert guidance he'd be going off and there was substantially less on this placemat than I was expecting to see - literally a list of four towns and a phone number. He was planning on doing 30km today, doesn't have rain gear, and was still there by 9am, so good luck to him.

It's raining, but in a wonderfully workable way. It will sprinkle for about a minute as a warning so that you can find shelter, then it will absolutely bucket for 15 to 30 minutes, then the sun will come back out for 30 and the cycle resets. When you aren't trying to walk 30km through that, it's delightful because you just pop in somewhere or find an awning and wait it out, smug in the knowledge that you'll be right in a bit and it's a good excuse for a break. Not everywhere you are keen to pop into is open as it's the May Day workers public holiday, but that also means there's barely any traffic so when the crowds of umbrellas get too much you can co-opt the cobblestones. Fab.Read more