Ina with family on Coastal Portugues  

Day 5         Póvoa da Varzim  -  Fao             Monday, 30/July/2018 19 km        4 1/2 hrs plus   1 1/2 hrs pause on the beach plus two short pauses Last night after having found each other again we had a substantial meal just before the hotel restaurant closed at 10 pm which meant that the meal went on well beyond official closing time. There were several families like ours, so the restaurant was quite busy well beyond 10pm. Difficult getting up in the mornng, and then there was a huge breakfast buffet. In the end we left just after 10 am. The sky was grey, threatening rain and in the end it did rain a bit. We got out rain jackets and the rain protection for our packs, and I opened my magic umbrella. But this did not last. In the end we came across a beachside cafe which allowed Andrea and myself to sit under cover on the terrasse while the “children” went down to the sea an...

Day 4           Vila do Conde  -  Póvoa da Varzim          Sunday 29/July/2018 5.5 km         1 1/2 hrs.      One quick sitdown to find location of hotel Last night we ended up in a large popular restaurant where they offered a pilgrim’s menu: a small bowl of vegetable soup, a huge plate with a large steak or fish plus mixed salad and rice and chips, followed by coffee for 5 euros. Drinks to be paid extra. We took our time over getting up and breakfast, seeing today’s stage was so very short - that will change as from tomorrow: 26 km! All these places along the coast run into each other and look the same, small houses or apartment blocks, until you come to Póvoa da Varzim which is full of high rise, even very high rise, apartment blocks. And full of people along the beaches. This being Sunday there were not only the ones on holiday, but the weekenders as well. It reminded ...

Day 3         Vila Chã  -  Vila do Conde         Saturday  28/July/2018 7 km           2 hrs  of which 1 pause of 10 min to telephone This is becoming more and more leisurely! Beautiful sunshine, quite hot as we are walking out of this village. But nicely relieved with a gentle breeze as we reach the beach promenade.  Arrived at our destination at 11:30 am, shared a sandwich which had survived in my pack and had a lie-down after the tremendous exertions of the morning. Left to find the tourist office for more detailed information than what was to be had from our two guidebooks  - tourist office closed all weekend. Of course! What kind of tourist would come for the weekend requiring information! So we went on a walkabout on our own, found the very impressive Matriz Church - managed to go round just before a wedding while first the organ, then a small orchestra, were pra...

Day 2       Matosinhos - Vila Chã        Friday   27/July/2018 15 km       6 hrs of which pauses of 30, 60 (lunch) and 30 min Seeing the above times you can tell we are on holiday! Up almost as late as yesterday - I have to start the getting-up procedure earlier if I want to get out earlier. On the other hand with stages as short as this and a nice cooling breeze there is no need to get up early.  Breakfast was included in the price so we had it in our hotel. Found the river easily, crossed the bridge, and walked briskly to the sea. And then it was mostly on wooden planks following the coastline. Many sandy beaches, not crowded at all, parts of the coast quite rocky, fairly big waves with some surfers.  At lunchtime we went to a beachside restaurant thinking of having a pizza or some such thing and ended up having delicious seabass, deliciously expensive too, but then I thought why not live it up occ...

Day 1         Porto Cathedral - Matosinhos         26/July/2018 10 km        Forgot to check the time Up latish after a very good night’s sleep! I discovered that Nicola had forgotten to bring  rubber tips for her poles and I had forgotten to check this before leaving home; so we started today’s stage by walking 1 1/2 km to the nearest Decathlon to buy those tips - in vain, they were sold out. So Clara is going to bring some and I will have to put up with Nicola’s click, click, click - she does not mind hearing this noise. Back to the cathedral to pick up the yellow arrows and off we go at last, just before midday! Happily following the arrows which should take us to the river (Douro) until at last we ask ourselves why it is taking so long to get there! And I remember that the other Camino Portugues, the interior one, also starts at the cathedral and we had picked up the wrong one. This needs a stop for a...

Travel to O Porto         Tuesday/Wednesday 24 - 25/July/2018 In the early afternoon we took the train from Guingamp to Rennes and from there a Eurolines bus to O Porto with change in the hub of Palancia. That is how you can travel from almost anywhere in Europe to almost anywhere in Spain, an amazing organisation in this hub getting people from one bus to another - very efficient. The usual problem - very little if any sleep as the bus was full up to Palancia. After that we had the row of backseats to ourselves, so Nicola could catch up with her sleep. We arrived after some 24 hours on the bus and decided to go first to the cathedral to get the stamp in our pilgrim’s “passport”. This meant a 40 minute walk from the bus station across town, guided by Nicola with the gps system on her mobile. It also implied a good walkabout in the old city which is charming - lots of renovated old houses, bars and restaurants, quite animated at 5 pm. The cathedral is high up o...

Here I go again, this time on the Coastal Portuguese camino which is also called the Camino Litoral. The plan was hatched when walking with my daughter Andrea last year: Starting in Porto this camino is relatively short (260 km) and half of it goes along the beaches and the river Minho/Miño which constitutes the border between Spain and Portugal. So we thought this would be an ideal way to introduce my grandchildren to my caminos with stops for a swim in the sea or the river. Having booked private rooms in hostals or hotels we need not arrive early to make certain to have beds, but can take our time. We are:  Ina (78),  Andrea (51),  Alison (49),  Clara (18 next month),  James (15),  Leo (13)  and Paulo(10).  Plus, during 10 days of a total of over two weeks, granddaughter Nicola (15) will be coming along – she cannot come the whole way because school starts at the beginning of August. I, together with Nicola, will tak...