CAMINHO PORTUGUÊS – Viana do Castelo
(37,419 STEPS – 28.73 KMS – 17.84 MILES)
The Funk Walk
I assumed since the albergues in Esposende were full, there would be plenty of pilgrims on the way to Santiago this morning. I was ready for some pilgrim interaction, having had a lot of solo time on the CP so far. My assumption was wrong, or all of them left town earlier than I did (which isn’t hard to do). I didn’t see one pilgrim out of Esposende, through Marinhas, all the way to Belinho. For some reason, this catapulted me into a funk. That, and the ups and downs of the trail. The Camino diverted away from sea-level and into the hills above the ocean. There were a lot of elevation changes.
In Belinhas, I decided to stop for 2nd breakfast. The only problem, there was nothing on the trail. Finally, I came to a sign that pointed the way to a café, only 100 meters away, downhill. There are two good reasons NOT to follow these types of signs:
- The advertised distance (100 meters in this case) is always a guestimate, and the guestimate is provided by the marketing department of the café. That is to say, the distance is bullshit, usually far more than advertised.
- If you chose to follow the sketchy distance estimate, there is a 50/50 chance the place will be closed. Then the pilgrim will have to trudge back to the Camino (in this case, uphill) unfulfilled.
I took the bait and left the Way. I carefully counted the steps (one of my strides is roughly equal to 1 meter) to prove the theory above. This walk should be 100 strides. It was 119, not too bad. And the Café Lampião appeared to be open. A double win.
I walked into the dimly lit café/bar and ordered um café americano. I asked the bartender if he had pastries or any other snack. He replied in pretty good English:
“Don’t worry, I will take care of you. Go sit down.”
On the way out I noticed an unusual* amount of Che Guevara memorabilia inside. I took my place at the best table on the patio and waited. And read a little about Che Guevara on Wikipedia.
A few minutes later, the man delivered my coffee, but no food. I wondered if he had misunderstood. Before I could go back inside, he appeared with a jar of cookies and a bowl of two sliced oranges. He said he would be back. He was, another minute later. This time with fresh honey and raspberry preserves for the cookies. He came back one more time with a little tin bucket full of unshelled peanuts.
I’ve had many good breakfasts in Portugal so far, this one was among the best. And not because of the content. I took my time and relished the hospitality. When finished, I went inside to pay. He asked why I was leaving so soon (I was there 30 minutes), I explained that I still had a long way to go to Viana do Castelo. He calculated my check in his head:
“Um euro.” (1 €)
I argued that wasn’t enough, but he insisted.
“It is my pleasure to serve you, peregrinho. Um euro.”
I gave him the coin. He then grabbed me by the arm and gave me a tour of his Che Guevara museum, the whole inside of the bar, except for the little corner devoted to Bob Marley. Then he stamped my credential and gave me 3 stickers to take with me – one of the café’s official logo, one of the café’s sign, and one of Che Guevara.
I had been taught to despise the pinko-communist Che Guevara, I guess there’s always two sides to every story. And I would assume since this man in Belinho was a big fan, he was probably a Marxist, too. I don’t really care much for labels, but I do pay attention to actions. This man was genuinely hospitable.
By their fruits you will know them…
This kind of hospitality will always slap the whiny funk out of me. The good man walked with me to the edge of the road, patted me on the back, and wished me a “Bom Caminho.”
*Author’s note – I’m not sure what a “usual” amount of Che Guevara memorabilia is, but I guess in my part of the world (the land of God, Guns, Rock’n’Roll, Baseball, and Apple Pie) the amount is zero.
The Power Walk
The coffee break at Café Lampião reset and recharged my brain chemistry, which in turn fired up my leg muscles. It wasn’t long after that I caught up with all the early-risers, I stopped to visit with those I knew and then carried on. I blazed through Antas, across the rustic Ponte do Sebastião, through Castelo do Neiva, Chafé, and Anha.
The last obstacle was the long bridge crossing the Limia River. If ever there was a place for Pilgrim Frogger Bonus Points, this was it. Heavy traffic, narrow sidewalk, a four-feet tall iron fence, and then the river far below.
- Did you frighten the pilgrim/pedestrian in such a way that caused him to leap over the railing into the river below? If yes, 10 points.
Hospitality, the Theme of the Day
I made it safely across the Ponte Eiffel and then proceeded to my next challenge, finding a bed. I’d heard about a place not far from the bridge called Villa Margarida. I checked in with them and found plenty of room.
It seems the Portuguese are in competition with each other to see who can be the most hospitable, with weary travelers the beneficiary. Villa Margarida was another in this long line of service.
The building itself was formerly a childcare center and had sat vacant for years. A lady in town saw the building day after day, year after year, and dreamed a better future for it than dilapidation. She made a plan to convert it to a pilgrim hospitality place and presented the plan to the city (owner of the property). They said yes, and she went to work building a place to stay. It is a labor of love for her, she wanted to be hospitable, and the city facilitated her desire.
In the waning hours of the day, the skies became overcast, the wind picked up, and it got colder (for me). There was an electric heater in the living room of the house, so I established a work center in corner with the heater blazing. Here I sat and caught up with my journaling and planning until I went to bed at 10:00 pm.
I was ready for a good night’s sleep.
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