Day 3 Vila do Conde to Fao

Today was a day of getting my sea legs so to speak- learning to navigate the senseless maze of streets, to trust my guide book and to follow yellow waymarkers. It was a good day

Christine and I parted ways as she wanted to follow the Central route.  I  got a very late start - that's  another story - and really wasn't sure which route to take. My guidebook distinguishes between the Seaside route, which I followed yesterday, and the more traditional Coastal route, which actually follows the coast but a little bit inland. The latter is the one I had planned to follow. 

I was confused and intimidated by the descriptions in the guide book so I was looking for an easy way. I followed the Seaside route out of  Vila do Conde- just follow the promenade along the ocean front- easy peasy! But from there I was stumped. 

I was rescued by a Portuguese man on his lunch break who, as a seasoned pilgrim, recognized one in need, and I was soon on my way.

I take back my earlier comment about the guide book not being detailed. It doesn't provide much context but the directions are very specific and clear. There was only once today that I got befuddled and had to ask twice to find the route. 

That was something I learned today. I had to overcome my shyness and be willing to ask for help. I was late and  I had a long distance to cover so I did not have the luxury of taking the time to figure it out on my own.  Good lesson. People were were very friendly and helpful. I just wish I had learned a few basic niceties in Portuguese so I could better express my appreciation. 

Anyway, I made it. Approximately 27 km in total. I arrived shortly after 6PM. I'm tired. My feet are sore. No blisters, but the miles of cobblestone - yes even in the country- took their toll. I am grateful for good boots. 

And I'm so glad I decided to stick to the Coastal Route. While the walk out of town was not so pleasant, most of the day was spent in agricultural areas which I loved. It was way more interesting than the Seaside, which, while lovely, was pretty monotonous. I took a lot of pictures of the different greenhouses and gardens, which I will only share judiciously here. Tomatoes, onions, zucchini, lettuce, cabbage- lots of cabbage. On a massive scale- made me chuckle to think of my little garden! 

A field of vegetables with some greenhouses in the distance


What is that?


A village house

I have just finished enjoying tapas and wine for supper.

And I am finishing off with the Portuguese cup of coffee....a shot of espresso- thank goodness they have decafinated!!

Now it's time to fall into bed.