It's probably not really Portugal's fault. It's tried very hard, with some splendid walking, wonderful vistas, Super Bock and some pretty good weather. But crossing this bridge this morning from Valença into Tui took me back once more into the warm embrace of Spain, the true home of the Camino - and almost immediately, it …
Author: johnelsewhere1968
Thoughtful wanderer in search of virtual meaning
An Obvious Decision
Much as I'd hoped to be able to walk the 260km from Porto to Santiago in ten or eleven days, another interrupted night with the Tedious Cough saw me slow to rise and more aware of the likely folly of my original ambition. I'd set myself a bit of a physical challenge, which might have …
Barcelos to Lugar do Corgo
Whilst opting for a hotel room in Barcelos had seemed like a cunning plan at the time, in an effort to get a good night's sleep for myself (and avoid potentially disturbing anyone else with all my coughing and sneezing), I'd given no thought at all to one major detail - the date. Almost as …
From Vila do Conde to Barcelos
Having elected to cut inland away from the Camino da Costa to join the more widely traveled Camino Central, the first few miles of the second day's walking took me on a succession of ordinary Portuguese roads for a long 10km stretch, with only a few visual treats to soothe the eyes. It was mundane, …
Back In The Old Routine
It's said that every Camino is different and the first couple of days on the Portugués route have certainly been that. The similarities are there - the friendly chatter in the albergue with Meg and Jennifer from England and Maria from Poland, all of us on our second Camino's, cheerfully recalling highlights from our last …
From St Jean Pied de Port to Porto
Hello everyone - it's me again. It's been a while, but I'm somewhere else again, so here are some words. I've arrived in Porto this evening to begin my second Camino, having walked an extraordinarily memorable Francés last autumn from St Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela. Almost as soon as I returned …
Journey’s End
The 34km covered between Bilbao and Castro-Urdiales proved to be the last few steps of the Camino for me - I'd been really quite grateful to reach my B&B the previous night, but not as much as both Right Shoulder and Left Shoulder, who were unified in their opinion that strike action would be considered …
Bilbao and Beyond
After the Very Messy Weekend in San Sebastián, I thought I had a choice to make - to return to the UK with the Good Friends on a pre-booked flight, or to linger a little while longer in Spain. As it turned out, there was no choice to make, as British Airways apparently took a …
San Sebastián
Many months ago, a Good Friend of mine asked a girl he liked a Very Important Question and, happily for all concerned, she gave him The Right Answer. As a result of that, many other things started to happen, including the issue of an invitation to gather together with Other Good Friends in a distant …
Finisterre
As a child, I often found myself listening with some fascination to the Shipping Forecast on the BBC, a litany of unusual placenames from the seas surrounding the British Isles, hearing about visibility, temperatures and sea conditions in far off places. Finisterre was one of those exotic locations and even though I did Latin for …
johnelsewhere 