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  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    1
    Day 42

    Some more seamless PTing

    May 3 in Portugal ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    Without the discipline and exertion of the Camino, baggins and I are both getting a bit heavier, but it's fine because I've only picked the two hilliest cities on planet earth in Porto and Lisbon. Today it was time to transfer twixt them, via a walk, two metro routes, a four hour bus, a walk, one metro route, and a walk. I don't have a sim card you'll recall, so this was all done offline and done very well I MIGHT ADD. I also didn't feel sick on the bus despite taking the extraordinary risk of eating a pastel de nata and a pizza roll that weighed, conservatively, 600g on it.

    The bus station I chose in Lisbon (there are multiple, I bet that's stuffed people up) turns out to be next to the ZOO so that was tempting but I had to tell Little Lexie no for the first time - we had a bit more faff to go to get to the hostel and we had to ration the puff. This was wise because once we'd checked in it was pretty much gone. I went to the supermarket, cooked dinner, read a bit of this Ken Follet that really isn't grabbing me, sadly, and went to bed. They can't all be Nat Geo worthy ok.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    Day 42

    Sandeman

    May 3 in Portugal ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    Rachel, the woman I met via Camino Matt (I hope Matt Inc. is paying him a per diem for travel?) recommended House of Sandeman, across the river in the wine district. She's good looking so of course I did what I was told. It's part hotel part hostel, and it's without a doubt the most luxurious stay of the trip. I don't want to throw around words like 'best' hostel I've ever stayed in because lots of factors go into that, but it's LUSH. She sold it to me as a hostel where you get a hotel experience, and she's right. I am slightly mad I haven't been here the whole time I've been in Porto but it's all good. Better than good.

    The entire Camino, every morning I played a very fun game called 'do I still have two ear plugs' because while they are very effective, I did tend to tug them out in my sleep and they'd end up in my sleeping bag somewhere. I won this game every single day until the last one, when I clearly knew I could relax a bit, and presumably slept walked outside and flung the right one onto a highway because it's nowhere to be seen. Since then I've had two nights in private rooms and two nights in a hostel where sleeping on my right side and just using the left plug worked just fine.

    SNORES MCGEE, MEDICAL MYSTERY, in the far corner, really challenged this arrangement, but the bed was extremely comfy and I drifted off about 1am, after getting the giggles about midnight. I had one of the lower ones which was nice as I think the Sandeman name is more well known in port wine than welding circles. In the morning I met an American man that did not make me want to set fire to anything, extremely noteworthy, and set about showing the free and very good breakfast who had two thumbs and wanted more cake (👍me👍).    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    1
    Day 41

    I am now slightly less thin

    May 2 in Portugal ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    A Francesinha, Google will tell you if you ask nicely, is a sandwich that originated in Porto that involves layers of toasted bread and hot meats like steak, ham, and varieties of sausage. It's topped with (a fried egg if fancy and) sliced cheese, which is "melted by the ladling of a near-boiling tomato-and-beer sauce" and usually served with chips. I really enjoy the phrasing there so I've kept it as a direct quote. It's also the reason I don't need dinner tonight. Very delicious, probably a sometimes food though.

    By divine design (all that Camino karma) I managed to pick what I later learned is a good restaurant by complete accident, and by virtue of being alone, get a table without a reservation. Afterwards, I sat on the bench outside to which the wifi reached, and watched cars attempt to navigate a shockingly sharp tight turn.

    Well actually it's not the turns fault - it was there first and bicycles and horses would have handled it just fine. My favourite was the guy who, at very slow speed, completely missed and rammed the wall of the building and immediately tooted the horn, as if the building should have moved.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    Day 41

    But...

    May 2 in Portugal ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    Another thing I let the Little Lexie operating the joystick these days do was book us both in for a full body scrub and massage today.

    I figure I've got about a cubic metre of grime to shift, and I've been wanting a back scratch for ages so this will tick both boxes.

    On the way I walked past this one - thank goodness I didn't try to come here as it looks like they only do it for pregnant or for child, possibly also for hot stones, I'd have been turned away quick-smart.

    Where I had made my appointment, Pausa Spa, had just the one treatment room so when I walked in he (I was really hoping it wouldn't be a he but so be it) greeted me by name.

    What followed was a very awkward encounter involving the absence of a towel in the change room (he was mortified to have forgotten, I was mortified to exist) but then a nice scrub.

    He asked several times if the pressure was ok, I resisted the urge to say "I would, look at me, I would like you to draw blood" and just mmhmmed.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    Day 41

    It's working

    May 2 in Portugal ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    I am really really enjoying these whatever-I-feel-like days. The Camino was incredibly relaxing in so many ways, but there was fundamental, if extremely simple, structure to each day. In other ways it was an intense experience and I think going straight home after it would have been a Bad Idea so I'm thrilled I have this time in Portugal for a different kind of holiday.

    Obviously Atlantis is real but I'm just about ready to add another fringe belief to my arsenal, and that is that there is a fraternity of Australian men called Mat(t), staged globally, that conspire to babysit me and provide a dose of normality right when I need it. The Porto branch of Matt Inc. was great for eye contact yesterday when Rolling Stone Pilgrim was mucking around, and was there when I unplugged my charger in the common area and caused the entire building to lose power ("what a power move", quipped I). It was restored within seconds by flipping a fuse switch.

    There's something about that powerpoint I reckon because when the Russian couple sat down for breakfast and their chair leg grazed it we were once again without electricity. Except this time flipping the switch wasn't working. There was one guy working and even with power he was fairly thinly spread between checking guests out, dealing with queries (I feel ya bud) and, for reasons they *must* have, toasting bread to order. Guests must not be in charge of the bread. You will get the quantity and type of bread you requested prior to midnight and he will toast it for you.

    Both of these smashed together when the Russian just could not fathom why the lack of electricity was getting prioritised over their breakfast. With an alarm literally going off and the rest of us sitting calmly, he went over to the small man in the baker boy cap trying everything at the fuse box and made a fuss. Can he get their BREAD PLEASE?

    The German was brave enough to tell him to let our bread/power hero get on with it and won my vote in the upcoming hostel Student Council elections, but nay BREAD NOW, BREAD IN THE DARK. He was very polite and got the bread and I hope he spat on it. Sadly Mat(t) missed this saga and I had to satisfy myself with the woman sitting opposite but she raised her eyebrows at all the appropriate moments so maybe she's an associate member?

    Another big wander with perfectly serendipitous rain breaks, including the local library and adjacent gallery in the gardens with the appallingly good views and all the birds. I've somehow made it four days in Portugal without a pastel de nata, I think because I was putting too much pressure on it, so I sorted that out and perhaps for the best, it was extremely average. So the next one will be better, excellent!    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    3
    Day 41

    What I lugged

    May 2 in Portugal ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    Well, shall we do a little What's In My Bag before I fill it with Portugese tiles?

    Rob Godfrey will be interested, if nobody else. A fair amount of thought went into this and on the whole it's served me very well given I've had snow to rain to sun, minus 3 to 28 degrees.

    If I stand naked and shivering, this is what's in front of me. I've noted what I acquired later (+) or lost (-), and what I wouldn't bring again (*).

    Bags
    - 28L backpack
    - Waterproof pouch
    - Cross body day bag (I only used in cities on Camino but it weighs nothing, doubles as a packing cube and I will use it daily now in Portugal)

    Equipment
    - Waterproof pack cover
    - Sleeping bag (shout out Branna)
    - Carabiner x3 (attached to bag)
    - Duct tape (wrapped on toothbrush)
    - Ear plugs
    - Water bottle
    - Zip lock bags
    - Whistle (shout out Mum)

    Electronics
    - Phone
    - Headphones
    - Travel adapter
    - Head torch (* as discussed)
    - Power bank (-)
    - USB to USB C cord (this needed to be twice as long, note to self)

    Clothing
    - Walking shoes
    - Sandals
    - Rain jacket
    - Puffer jacket
    - Merino long sleeve
    - Merino t-shirt
    - Cotton t-shirt
    - Cotton singlet (+, pure indulgence)
    - Walking trousers
    - Leggings
    - Bike shorts
    - Bamboo dress (* this was a last min pack informed by vanity and I've only worn four times, mostly for laundry purposes, but to be fair I might wear it heaps in Portugal, which was the intent)
    - Merino socks x 3 (this was the right amount given unreliable drying)
    - Underwear x 3 (-1 lol)
    - Bamboo bra x 2 (I'd get something quicker dry next time)

    Toiletries
    - Toothbrush and paste
    - Deodorant
    - Sunscreen
    - Facial cleanser
    - Moisturiser
    - Soap (I mucked around with those stupid wilderness sheets for ages and they are the biggest pain in the ass, just bring a small bar in a ziplock)
    - Shampoo
    - Paw paw ointment
    - Blister kit (I didn't need this but I wasn't to know that and I shared it with others which I feel is in my karmic interest - compeed etc is extremely expensive here)
    - Hair clip

    Miscellaneous
    - Passport
    - Credit cards
    - Coin purse
    - Scallop shell (+)
    - Credential (+)
    - Assorted temporary snacks and books

    It sounds like a lot listed out like that but I'd point out that in weight and volume, comfortably under 7kg/28L, it's roughly half what the majority had. The largest I saw someone carrying was is 85L. I assume that guy is now dead.

    I haven't detailed or photographed the medical stuff because you probably wouldn't have to bring it, but that accounts for about 2kg of my weight so if you deduct that and the backpack itself (just over 1kg), the contents are ~4kg.

    I say to you again, an extremely slim minimalist.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    Day 40

    A rare car-adjacent highlight

    May 1 in Portugal ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    When you travel alone you can make an art out of idling, in a way that for all my progress I don't think I could achieve with almost anyone else - I'd be conscious of what they wanted to do, if they were bored/cold/tired.

    There's also nobody to tip the scales either way when you do something a bit *naughty* like trespass because hang on SURELY that's not still an operational mechanics?

    Although I don't think I really did. Surely it's quasi-public space? One raised eyebrow or attention attracting hollering and I'd have scuttled though. I told you that breakfast was a gateway to the criminal underbelly.

    Anyway. What a garage.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    2
    2
    Day 40

    Bat the bread, win a bread

    May 1 in Portugal ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    A few months ago, I messaged Branna with what I was pretty sure was a revelation.

    Using lots of exclamation marks, I made proprietary noises about the concept of self care through disassociation, i.e, pretend there's a child that needs rest and nutrition and fun and love and dedicate yourself to its service. The child just happens to be you.

    I got the hump when she pointed out how fucking obvious and ancient that thinking is, but as a card carrying people pleaser, externalising a person to please works for me.

    This kid had an absolute whale of a time today. I said yes to everything. You're a bit wet? We'll have a sit down in that warm bar. You want one of those snacky things? We'll have two. That's shiny? Swipe the card babe. Tired? Nap time! I love you. I love you too. Midnight snack? Good idea.    Read more

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