Author: Ben & Joon

This was a easier day from a distance perspective, though the temperature climbed to 84F as we reached Porrino in the late afternoon. The clock also jumped one hour ahead in Spain.

Our lodging was 5 mins from Valenca’s old fort, where the Yellow Arrowed Road led. The scenery from up there was spectacular.

These pictures from top to bottom, are from north to west.

Valenca (Portugal) and Tui (Spain) are sister towns across the bridge-border over the river Minho. We headed towards the Tui Cathedral.

This picture shows the height that we will climb towards the Cathedral (these are always up on a hill).

Note Tui Cathedral on hill.

I addressed commercialism before in my post on Fatima. Unfortunately, it reared its ugly head twice today. We secured our credential stamp from the desk inside the Cathedral. We then wanted to go to the pews and altar area to pray. We were asked for Euro 3 to be able to do that. Even St. Peter’s Basilica doesn’t charge one to enter the altar area. As a Catholic, it was embarrassing that the Cathedral did this.

While our posts has not been on route guidance, we will make an exception for this sector. This is because unscrupulous merchants had re-painted over the Yellow Arrows to re-route Camino pilgrims to pass by their businesses. There are billboards put up to warn, but some/most may not see it.

Here are the guidance. Look out for this stand with this notice.

This map highlights the 2 areas with exclamation marks that one has to take extra care.

This is the detailed explanation of where there had been tampering of the true Yellow Arrow signs.

When you exit the forest trail, you will see the mentioned artwork.

This large art reproduction is worth a stop, read and picture.

Approximately 130 metres from said art reproduction, you will see this turn off to the left.

Note the black paint on the road. The original Arrows pointing to the left were painted over to re-route pilgrims straight to pass the merchants’ businesses.

TAKE this turn off, when you come to the first 4-way junction, go straight (12 o’clock). You will then come to a T-junction. Go right and you will see a bridge over a stream. Go over the bridge and you are on your way. The reason for above details is that for some ways into the turn off, these merchants have continued painting X and blackened out the original Yellow Arrows.

Don’t worry, push ahead. The merchants had tampered with the true original signs for a bit, but after a certain point, you will see the original Arrows leading you into the trail.

A much better route than on tarmac!

In Life, unscrupulous bosses and companies will ask you to trade in your integrity for some monetary compensation. That will take you down a different road in Life. Learn from your Camino experience.

Since today is our 34th Anniversary, we will end this posting by sharing what we would attribute to a long and happy marriage.

1. Evolve your love as each evolves. I change, my partner changes. Love evolves to embrace these changes, and not remain rooted in a past remembrance.
2. Build a shared foundation or vision. This is our shared faith, this is our shared dreams for our family. Engage in shared activities.
3. Laugh & cry with each other. This is never at the other partner’s expense, but always on the same side of the table.
4. Exercise tolerance, forgiveness and patience. Prioritize the relationship over pride and ego. Live out the wedding vows.

It is not difficult, it is not impossible. One’s desire for a long and happy marriage must overcome, must overpower fleeting moments of tests and temptations.

Blessings from the Camino.

Distance and time wise, we are past the half way mark. Our feet have learned the hard way that the distances listed for vehicular traffic on freeways and tarred roads are meant to lull you into a false sense of anticipation.

The guidebook indicated today’s leg would be 30km/18miles. Joon’s Fitbit showed us that the distance covered was 34.7km/21.7 miles. We left our Caminha lodging at about 8.15am and reached Valenca at 6.30pm.

We met Marie and Piet in the lodging’s breakfast area. They are from Namibia, Africa and were on their 4th Camino. They were taking the ferry to Moledo, for the Spiritual Variente route of the Camino Portugues. They walked to enhance their spiritual selves and have grown in such. Joon and I respectively gave each of them a Guido-stone. Thus, all 4 stones with their blessed wishes and intentions have been cast into the Camino pool, rippling through other lives.

Marie & Piet, Camino peregrinos.

Getting to the Yellow Arrowed Road took us via one of the municipal albergues, with its dormitory bunk beds. We met Marina, camping on a piece of lawn outside the front entrance. They had no more room.

Marina was well prepared with her tent, and seemed none the worse for sleeping out. It had warmed up considerably since we left Porto. What an adventure for her!

We met Pawel from Poland on the trail (we chatted with him in Viana do Castelo city center) who too, faced a full house situation in the albergues as he had arrived late in Caminha. Fortunately, that albergue called around and found him a bed.

Walking on the bridge out of Caminha provided some scenic views of the waters and the distant hills.

Life abounds in this waters, but one must stop and observe.

We had been taking pictures of churches as we journeyed these past few days. We have started seeing tiles where Saints have started being depicted, such as St. Antonio, St. Bento, etc. For those not familiar with Saints in the Catholic world, we believe their saintly lives have elevated their souls and they are in heaven. We also believe they can ‘intercede’ on our behalf, which is why you see Catholics venerating and praying to them. Some Saints have miracles attested and verified. Despite me knowing this, I was surprised when I started seeing local provincial churches in Seixal region honoring St. Bento, one church figuring St. Bento in the main altar. That triggered a consultation with Dr. Google, and I found out that St Bento is St Benedict. Wow! Now, I have to really read out on St Benedict’s life when I get back to Seattle.

St. Bento/Benedict.

It seems appropriate that at this half point in our Camino, that we do a Mid-Term Examination of what we have learned so far.

1. Greeting Others with Heart. We found that several elders outside the city center, greeted us (in exchange), with such gusto, some with smiles, that the spoken words carried a depth of wishes that positively touches our hearts. Side note: Check out Masaru Emoto’s research on how the human spoken words affect the molecular structure of water, or why people talk to their plants!
2. Arrows and X’s in Life. As a Camino pilgrim, one quickly learns to scan down the road, especially at junctions and roundabouts, to know which is the right road to take. Seeing further beyond the immediate 6-10 feet ahead of you. Thus, seeing a X on a pillar 50-100 feet away on one of the roads in a 3 way junction, rules that out. Seeing an Arrow on the remaining option confirms that to be the route to take (the 3rd is the one you are on!). One could apply that to Life. For example, if I knew that this current discussion with Joon is going to lead to some emotional exchange, some hurt feelings, why then do I want to continue down this path, even though the ‘X’ is flashing caution, danger? Is my Ego or Pride more important than the Relationship that I committed to? One can apply that to other aspects of Life, e.g. a course of Action or specific Behaviors. After all, aren’t we all endowed/blessed with brains that out performed all other living creatures on Earth?
3. Getting Lost Happens. Despite Eagle Eye Joon and my own pair of eyes, despite seeing Arrows and X’s for about 48 hours over the past 4 days and this morning, we both missed the turn off this afternoon. It was a painful uphill mistake. After a bit, Smart Joon asked why we weren’t seeing any more Yellow Arrows. Less Smart Ben responded, trust that we are on the right track. But even Less Smart Ben finally threw in the towel, and banged his hands on the wrestling ring mat. We consulted Dr. Google, and there was a forward path to the freeway. Or we could back track. Hmm….would the Yellow Arrowed Road expose us to vehicular risks? With my best Yoda voice, I boomed to Smart Joon, “Track Back, We Must.” And we located where we missed the turn off. Why did we miss it in the first place? I was heads down writing some notes, Joon was on the other side of the path focused on that side. Doesn’t this sound so like Life? That something takes our focus away, and, boom, we are ‘lost’. Some questions to ponder. What or who are the Yellow Arrows in our Life journey? What or where is our Safe Harbor where we can re-trace to resume our right path? Finally, for those of us blessed and with hearts large mmenough, how can we be Harbor Masters for those seeking Safe Harbors?
4. Passing the Baton. I had to cultivate and nourish a Type A Personality to do well in my career. It’s my second skin now. Fortunately, Joon is not a Type A, and I won’t fall into a trap of classifying her. So, Type A will walk their normal pace uphill and wait for their slower partner. Rinse and repeat. I was guilty of that, and decided to walk behind Joon when we are going uphill. That way, she doesn’t have to feel a need to keep up. In Life, Type A should also let their Partner lead in situations that they agree upon.
5. Purging Batty Conversations. Everyone instinctively ducks when bats are flying overhead. Joon and I had a great conversation on this topic during a walking stretch. She shared how a particular phrase I tended to use, gets her batty. So, we shared what words or phrases tends to evoke a response/reaction. Banish those phrases or words, and peace will reign in the partnership. And increase the ratio of ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ in our conversations!

As we walked through this stretch, we observed that dogs tended to bark more as we neared and passed, especially the tiny ones. This was not the case in the earlier stages. Some dog lovers say that if their tails are wagging while they bark, then, it’s a friendly greeting. Perhaps some humans behave this way too?

Jose was sitting on the steps of the Yellow Arrowed Road. He was delighted when asked to be photographed. He invited Joon to sit, and we will send him a print when we are back.

We passed a stretch of homes where every house’s garden was planted with vines. My theory is that they have grapes with every meal during harvest time.

Here is a close up of the grapes forming.

I love this tile of Mother Mary with thorns around her heart (message from Fatima). I found it when we were ‘lost’ at one stage. Was that the reason for straying off the Yellow Arrowed Road?

A tile of St. Bento. He’s quite popular in the Seixas region.

The missed turn off to the left. We went right, and uphill for about 10 mins before back tracking.

Views from the hill top. What struck us was that it was not over-built. There were many areas where the houses were spaced further apart.

It was another serendipitous moment. We stood in front of a church, St..Pedro, discussing whether we should try a side entrance to see if it was open. A gentleman approached us, and spoke in Portuguese. He invited us into the church and explained they were busy decorating the church for a festival this weekend. Here are some pictures.

Altar being decorated with flowers.

A favorite.

It was the second longest day, on a much hotter day. We realized that while wearing sandals allowed the feet to ‘breathe’, it was harder on the legs. Joon felt some calf cramps coming on as we were in front of the lodging. A shower freshen her up, and we adjourned for a Portuguese dinner (somehow, the meals in the smaller towns are better).

The next day will be the start of several short stretches, a welcome change from these past 5 days.

The day started with some relationship moments. Both of us didn’t get the best sleep last night. In fact, as it neared early morning, around 5.40am, I could see Joon raise her head and looked at me. That was un-expected and gave a rush to my adrenalin system. Joon on her part was startled to see my head so near her, and she wanted to take a closer look (to verify its me?). We had a small laugh over it as we discussed this later in the morning.

The story about Guido, our Airbnb guest who gave us each a hug and those artistic drawn pebbles happened at breakfast this morning. I wrote about that in Day 3 post just for memory justaposition. Here’s a picture of the stones again.

Joon and I will keep two of these for memories and Guido’s blessings, and we will pass on 4 of these to other Camino pilgrims.

I love art. And the Airbnb house that we stayed in last night was a treasure trove of various art pieces. Even the furniture pieces i the bedroom was antique-ish. Here is a small collection.

This caught my eye, when we were first shown to our bedroom. In landing alcove, early morning, with diffused spot lamp lighting.

One of the many wall hung plate pieces.

If you read my piece on Porto, you will know about my purchase from Livraria Lello, a book by Paulo Coelho. Well, Joanna, the house owner had walked the Camino, and placed this book in the guest bathroom. Co-incidences or a sign for me to look for the English version of this book?

Diary of a Pilgrim.

How can a wonderful Portuguese house like this not have some decorative beautiful tiles? 🙂

We left about 10am, intending to do the inland route, rather than the coastal route, as it was 2 km shorter and we had seen enough of the coastline. Today’s route was 27 km, a bit more than Day 3. But without as many ups and downs. Discounting the dinner prior to checking in, we would reach our accommodation at 8.00pm. According to Joon’s Fitbit, we would have walked 31 km (19.5 miles).

As with anything, plans get disrupted. And by the seismometer standards, ours was a minor blip. But it created some serendipitous moments and memories.

We had anticipated getting our stamps when we start walking at 9am. However, we find that while churches might be open at that hour in the morning, there’s no one around or self service stamp set aside (with one exception that didn’t achieve its self service as the stamp ink was dry). Daniele from Casulu, which is a non-profit for homeless explained that the Camino support was still in its infancy. We decided to adjust and get stamps when we can.

Daniele in front of Casulu premises. They have a FB page and web site if you are interested in supporting their homeless program. Latter is known as Metamorphsis, an expression of the change they wish to bring about for their clientele.

At Casulu, we also met two lovely dogs, mixed Labrador and a huge German breed, one white and one black. They were brothers and named Ying and Yang respectively. See their pics below.

Guido’s gesture that morning was the seed for today’s contemplation. I settled on the concept of giving. Initially, it was how could we give more after the Camino. But along the way, it slowly metamorphasize

There were many scenic and not the usual sights along the way. Here’s a compilation.

One of the hills we climbed today, looking down onto coastline. There was one occassion when the Yellow Arrowed Road led us down to a tap and then up again in a residential area, when there was an option to just walk on level ground above the tap. Other times, we wondered why we walked down and then up, is it because there were houses blocking a more direct route, or is it to build “Pilgrim strength”?

A row of majestic ancient-ish trees. There were other rows that lined the pathway on the other side. Unleashing one’s creative mind, it’s almost as if they were soldiers of the Earth, saluting you as you passed by.

Coming out of the trail across a small stone bridge, we came across this bubbling stream. If I was a home owner in the vicinity, I would have short picnics in the mornings or evenings here.

Quite under-exposed (to rectify post Camino). A forested trail.

I woke up and checked my feet. Happy happy, the swelling had disappeared. I kept to my decision to wear sandals. And diligently applied Foot Glide. The swelling didn’t not reappear at days end.

The distance today was 25.6km, similar somewhat to yesterday, Day 2. We had the best breakfast spread at the hotel, and chatted with Tom & Debra from Australia. They were on a 8 week extended holiday, having spent 2 weeks in Israel earlier. They opted for an organized itinerary for their Camino, since anyone would have difficulty trying to plan 8 weeks. It’s unlikely we will run into each other as their Camino is all along the coast, while we will head inland at Caminha. We started at 9am and reached Vila do Castelo at 7pm. We must have wandered into the Twilight Zone without realizing it! There’s a logical reason for the time – there were a few, no, make that, many uphill stretches. At least three of them were on hard tarred roads/concrete sidewalks. At least three of them were uphill on dirt trails, which are un-even. And of course, there were rocky down hill stretches that one had to be careful to avoid twisting the ankle. TIP: Check the elevation map for the day’s route. We knew beforehand this was an up and down walking day.

Within 5 minutes of leaving our hotel, we couldn’t pass up this photo-op.

Today is our lucky Irish Day. We met 3 different groups of Camino walkers from Ireland. A couple, a group of 3 ladies and a solitary guy. We need to phone our kids to buy a lottery ticket for us! More about some of them later.

We walked through a residential area for about 30 mins before reaching a cobble path with trees on one side, and open ground on the other. We took the opportunity to sun my socks which had not dried.

We finally used the safety pin that’s recommended in the forums! And yes, I am wearing the 4th pair (for the bean counters among you). 🙂

This section is not a trail through a forest, more a cobble stone path. So, nothing really attractive and most would speed by it. But Eagle Eye Joon spotted two creatures on the trees. Here they are.

The only family members who will know the name of this green adorable Pokemon are my kids.

Hello Kitty, fancy meeting you here!

I am sure you can draw your own Camino lesson from this. The pace of life that we choose, can cause us to miss things.

As we headed into a residential estate, we could not avoid this chapel built between the entrance and exit roads. The residents probably contributed to it, a testimony of the community coming together.

Inside this tiny chapel.

We were looking forward to getting our stamp at Iglesia Marinhas, but unfortunately, there was no one around. It was a lovely church and I attach one of my favorite interior picture.

Under-exposed to create the dark edges, and highlight Mother Mary.

We met the Irish couple at a cafe near this church (the first group of 3 ladies had zoomed by us on a hill earlier). Tom suffered from arthritis but had recovered sufficiently to do the Camino with his partner, Siobhan. They are cyclists but decided to walk. Siobhan promised Tom that they would stop every hour and a half, which explained our leap frogging back and forth. Mind you, despite his arthritis, they put on a mean pace while we tortoised on. They are both on the Camino for spiritual reasons but they were turned off by the commercialism they experienced in some pilgrimage sites and routes. And they are totally leaving their accommodation unplanned, trusting and looking forward to the adventures they will find.

My mother’s favorite prayer is the Divine Mercy, which we picked up two years ago when we visited her. I promised her that we would say it on the Camino for her. As I mentioned yesterday, my eyes have already become attuned to the various pictorial tiles placed on house and building walls. Imagine my surprise when Eagle Eye Joon (she was walking behind me!) pointed out this Divine Mercy picture of Jesus, which is the only one we had seen throughout these 2 days. Unfortunately, it was blocked by the lamp as you can see below.

Best angled picture I could take from the road.

As I was standing outside the wall taking the picture, a lady driving a car slowly pulls up and asks Joon who was further ahead at the house gate, what was I doing. Joon explained that I was taking a picture of the Divine Mercy tile. Well, it turned out that this lady was the house owner! I wasn’t going to be shy if the Spirit was intervening. So, I asked her if it was okay for me to enter the garden to take a close up. Now, realize I am speaking English, and she’s not entirely fluent in English. She nodded her agreement and opened the gate. I entered the house compound and approached the garden but I backed away as I realized there was no path to the front of the house without going inside the house itself. The owner kindly showed me how to get through her flower bed as there was one small section which had been pushed away. Here’s the close up of this tile.

The two rays represent the Blood and Water gushing from the heart of Jesus.

Is this just a co-incidence? If the owner was a minute earlier, she would be in the house, oblivious to us outside. If she was a minute later, we would have walked further away from her house, satisfied with the first picture. As we are on a spiritual pilgrimage, we believe its the Sprit that is accompanying us. Joon commented that this morning’s walk is unusual too, in that the bells have rung as we approached or were just minutes earlier. One church rang its bell as we literally pulled up at its entrance, at high noon. Discerning the Spirit requires Faith, but also an open heart, and open mind.

One thing I must highlight about some of these residential estates is this. They keep to their agricultural and farming roots. Namely, we will at times, see sizable vegetable plots among houses. In fact, the cobble stone road took us to a plot where sheep were grazing.

I did not carry a telephoto lens to take this picture!

Note the vegetable plots being grown next to residences, not farm houses!

In USA, we use the term, ‘curb/kerb appeal’ to denote the visual attractiveness of the house from the road. The Portuguese homes here win hands and feet down. And yes, you wine lovers, you spotted your favorite fruit.

This was actually taken the day before (Day 2) when we used Dr. Google Maps to navigate a shorter route through agricultural land than through residential streets. I was struck by the manual implement being used to bore some holes in the ground to plant the seedlings. As we walked further from here, we met a lady farmer on her tractor. She thought we had lost our way, and pointed to a direction back to the paved roads. We persisted with Dr G, and continued down more dirt paths. And shorten our route. And arrived to continue down the Yellow Arrowed Road.

This was our first wooded section (may add names of location/district after we return to Seattle). There was a nice monument to depict the Santiago route.

I am pointing to Porto, where we started from.

Talented Joon wrote on this nice pebble she found in the vicinity. We subsequently placed it in a niche in the monument (after adding the word ‘Seattle).

This stretch was no longer the Yellow Arrowed Road but the Dangling Caution Tape Paths as they were draped from trees, branches along the way to show the way forward. The trails reminded us a lot of the Pacific NorthWest trails. Lightly packed dirt trails, not much undergrowth hampering one’s walk, sunlight streaming through the trees.

This was also where magic occured. Magic as in un-explained, not as in sleight of hands illusions. Deeper into the trails, we came to a stretch where it seemed powerful magic had occurred before. The remnants seeped into my body. I was possessed.

As Beloved Joon caught up with me, I took her hands and looked into her eyes. And I apologized three times to her. Three times I asked for forgiveness, and three times she forgave. So, the slate is renewed as we approach our 34th anniversary, on the same day that Prince Harry and Meghan undertake their wedding vows.

To be truthfully, it wasn’t magic, but the Holy Spirit.

This stretch skirts along Rio (River) Nieve near the end. We could hear the river falling over. As we paused, Irishman Eamon turned up. We merely greeted each other before we moved on. We would chat more and walk together later.

This wooded trail ends in a delightful stone bridge. It’s really refreshing and we rested to have a snack, as we had powered on without lunch.

Extremely restful spot; budget time to soak in the beauty and tranquility of this spot!

It was probably 10 mins after we had reached this spot when Eamon turned up (by then, I had assume he had gone into the river at the spot we first greeted him). He took some pictures and laid on the bridge, sun bathing. Later we would find out from Tom that Eamon had a bad back, and needed to relax it.

Regardless whether Eamon’s back was acting up, this was a terrific way to do the Camino. Eamon lying on the bridge, with the sun, rushing waters, ionised air. Creating special memories, not achieving a speed record.

Tom & Siobahn properly introduced Eamon to us in front of an alberque further up, where they had a sign for a self service stamp. Eamon and us walked a bit together and chatted.

Eamon has the ability to travel now, and he had heard about the Camino from his sister who had done it two years ago. We got to chatting in general. Then without any prompting from us, Eamon brought up a point of view that for some couples, it’s better they do the Camino separately. That was an un-expected topic. I reflected on that, and responded as follows. It may be that couples might have to do the Camino separately at first but when each person changes as a result of the Camino, they should do it as a couple, to enhance the relationship. He reflected on what I said. My impression was he had other couples in mind, but Intuitive Joon thought otherwise. Who knows.

There was an uphill stretch over a pebbled path. If one is heads down or eyes straight ahead, one will miss this nice tiled picture of St. James (St. Tiago) as one has to look sideways/backwards to see it.

This is why I carry my point and shoot camera, as this picture is an aspect ratio of 1:1. In other words, Instagram sizing.

To end the Irish story, as we exited one of the forested trails, and rested a bit, the first lady of the 3 Irish gals bounded by. When I inquired, she said her two friends were behind. Those two other Irish gals caught up with us as we were re-filling our water bottles and water bladder. One of them provided us this great idea. TIP: Cool the water bladder in the refrigerator beforehand!

We chose an Airbnb for the night in Viana do Castelo due to its more central location. In addition, we wanted to meet some locals. This intuition turned out to be a blessing. Joanna the host was away in Italy and her best friend Guido hosted us instead. The house is a beauty, filled and decorated with art and artefacts. The wooden floors were covered with rugs and carpets. The fixtures were period pieces. It was a wonderul ambience.

Guido is an artist, a theraputist.

Guido near his ceramic art work.

Guido passed us some of his pieces to spread human caring. While we will keep two pieces for ourselves, we are to pass the others on via a hug and the story. How lovely.

Well, we have to hit the road….so, I will end today’s post though I may have more to write.

Blessings be with you, as they have been with us.

p/s. Joanna had walked the Camino several times. She had this book in the guest bathroom that we used. Co-incidence or a sign?

We slept very well, the aches and pains from yesterday were a distant memory. This doesn’t mean a sleep-in, as I got up from bed at 6am, washed up, prepared instant coffee in the kitchen and completed the previous day’s blog. A rhythm that seems to work, first draft in the evening and completion the following morning.

Today’s walk is 24.2 km. Based on our actual arrival time this evening, we are averaging about 4 km per hour. Lunch plus rest stops plus photographic lingering is adding another 2 hours. That’s how the numbers added up today. I am about to name ourselves the Strolling Camino Pilgrims, or the Ambling Camino Pilgrims!

Near our lodging was a sculpture park. We took the opportunity to pass through it. I am always in awe of the inspired works of artists. It’s a talent that I was not blessed with.

This was the piece that I spotted through the fence, that brought us into the sculpture gardens.

A cleaner noticed I was taking pictures, and pointed this piece to me at the end of a wall as we were exiting! How helpful of her.

Aqueduct for Vila do Conde.

We decided to get our Villa do Condo stamp at Igreja Matriz, which opened at 10am. Breakfast was at a nearby cafe, we tried rice cake which was sumptous.

Exterior of Igreja Matriz.

I was moved to take the interior pictures in B&W.

Oh, we should share that our Camino theme is Faith, Fellowship & Food. Why food? Because it reflects the cultures of the regions and countries we visit.

We set off at about 10.40am, a late start. The initial stages of the Yellow Arrowed Road were through residential areas. There are several common strategies that one can employ when walking through stretches of the Camino that can dull the eyes/mind. Especially when one goes through a part of the city that is largely non-descript, say an industrial or residential area.

1. Talk to one’s walking partners/companions
2. Listen to music
3. Medidate/contemplate/pray
4. Increase the walking pace to get this stretch over quickly
5. Zone out

I am sure we have employed all or a mix of such strategies, depending on the stretch. How about augmenting this list?

Well, it took me a bit to trigger my creative juices, walking by all the various and largely non-descript houses. However, I noticed quite a number of houses displayed pictorial tiles on the walls of their houses. In addition, a number of houses also tiled their external walls facing the road. Net, I decided to start my own ‘collection’ of such pictures. I am putting a small sample here, as I am quite limited in the ability to post-edit these pictures.

While most tiles are typically 1.5 feet by 1 feet (guestimate), there were some were significant in size.

M

It was a sunnier day today, no overcast skies. Thus, the Atlantic ocean reflected the blue skies (that plus the setting on my X100F. It’s beyond comprehension how long the beach stretches, given this is the 2nd day of walking along the coastline.

Fortunately, the wind was resting today. The boardwalk stretches alongside the beach for the most part.

Wild flowers of various colors were blooming in spring. There were stretches with multi-colored flowers.

Unlike yesterday, we started seeing people sun-bathe today. Note the panels to help shield them from the wind (& sand blowing into them).

We have come across locks of love, padlocked on fences, bridges, etc. Here’s one of sea shells!

On the back, some of them inscribe their wishes/intentions.

At one stage of the walk along the coastline, I was reflecting on all the sounds I was hearing. The ocean waves, the blowing wind, the birds chirping. There was absolutely no man-made noise. And I was reflecting on how the people in the area, enjoyed such beauty but lived very simple lives. One did not see the massive condo blocks that one would see in Miami or Hawaii along these beaches. And the question formed in my mind, “How can we further simplify our lives?” Joon agreed it was a good question to contemplate for the walk today.

The stopping to take pictures was obviously slowing our journey. Even though I had said to myself earlier, that was the last picture of the ocean I was taking, below is the final picture that I took (that I recall, as I am working off two albums – one on the phone, one on the camera). I am wirelessly transmitting a subset of pics from camera to phone for this blog updates.

Every action, every thought on the Camino tends to raise more contemplation for me. This persistence to continue taking pictures of the same subject seems almost OCD-like. We may have different ‘subjects’ where we have OCD compulsions, but rather than psycho-analyzing this, I turned it around. How can I harness this same photographic mania/OCD for my spiritual life? How can I pray with the same OCD-like compulsion as I love to take photographs? This question need not be spiritual, it could be something as simple as deepening the relationship with someone, harnessing that OCD impulses that lie with most every one!

The final stretch into Esposende was along the sidewalks. We could see kite surfers taking advantage of the winds blowing in from the ocean. Harnessing nature, enjoying the winds.

Coming back to the theme of Fellowship, we met Andrea on the boardwalks along the beach. She engaged in a discussion with us. She requested two things from us, a small donation and a prayer (for a good man). We happily obliged.

Andrea & Joon on the boardwalk. She was an expressive character!

We also came across Petra, fellow Camino pilgrim. She was resting by the roadside, and we struck up a conversation. Petra is young, she’s doing the Camino care free, without a plan or schedule. Example, she took the time to sun bathe on the beach. The weight of her backpack floored me – 10 kilos or 22 pouunds! And she was wearing sandals to ease a blister that had formed. Needless to say, after chatting for a bit while walking together, she pulled away as we normalized to our usual pace. 🙂

We checked into a hotel, where there was an elevator and an attached bathroom. We met an Australian couple, Tom & Debra. Debra advised us to soak into the bath tub of warm water. It forces the blood circulation to rise to the skin, and helps one recover and rejuvenate. Joon took the advice. I showered. It was a question of time efficiency. 🙂

As I took off my shoes, I noticed the start of blisters being formed under both my feet, under the fleshy part of the big toe. I had neglected to apply Foot Glide like I did on the first day. I contemplated bursting the swollen area to drain the liquid, but Joon advised to sleep on it. Let’s see what happens tomorrow, but I made the decision to wear my sandals instead of my shoes.

I convinced Joon to venture a bit beyond the hotel for dinner. Our first suggestion from Senor Yelp was closed (this was after a 15 min walk). We were heading to the second suggestion, when Joon spotted a restaurant that was about 15 metres before it. It was filled with diners. In we went. We ordered a seafood rice and fried octopus. It was beyond our expectations.

Before ending today’s post, I am sure you are wondering how we will further simplify our lives. We had already downsized more than 2 summers ago. The question has also morphed from simplification to something more. Here are our thoughts from today:

1. Reduce screen time. For us, it’s less the television but our electronic devices and phones.
2. Live in the moment. The Camino is teaching us to appreciate every moment, every experience. It’s the journey, not just the destination.
3. Commune with nature. Increase our outdoor time. City life can become the “matrix”, as we chase the latest restaurant, the latest in-thing, etc. As Neo was asked, the red or blue pill?
4. Pray more as time frees up from some of above. You can interpret ‘pray’ as medidate or contemplate more.

p/s. The floor tiles in the bathroom were heated! How we are subjected to temptations, tsk tsk.

We left our Porto inn at 6.20am, heading for the riverfront. The plan was 34.9 km along the coastal route, per Brierley’s guidebook. The day turned out to be overcast, with isolated spots of drizzle (if you are used to Seattle’s rainy weather, this was like a little brother act). This unusual weather pattern made it cooler and created a subdued scenery all morning into early afternoon. I had anticipated about 9-10 hours walk, allocating a couple of hours for lunch and stops. So, we should have reached Vila Do Conde by 3.30-4.30pm.

Probably at least 10 Camino walkers passed us, only a few exchanged Bom Camino greetings. Everyone has their own pace, and we settled into our rhythm. We were willing to linger at various points along the route, as the Camino is about the journey, not the destination.

Landscapes in the morning, lose its harsh lines and tones that we typically see in the afternoon sun. The cool air also makes the going much easier.

River front in the morning. At one stage, it was difficult to discern the waters from the sky.

An area along river front set aside as a wild birds sanctuary.

Sanctuary area. At about 9 o’clock, you can spot someone hunting for clams/crabs?

As we walked further from the core of Porto, we started seeing several men fishing from the river Duoro. Further up, there were 4 men sorting prawns in some baskets. I guessed it was sorting by size, so they can price and sell appropriately. It took us about 2.5 hours to reach the river mouth with the sea. So, we were looking for a cafe before we got too far away from Porto, fearing there will be very few cafes. It took us a while, before we spotted one that was opened. After that breakfast stop, we decided that plain croissants with sesame seeds were the best option for breakfast. None of the sweet breads for breakfast (Portugal is famous for its sweet breads and pastries. Our favorite is the Portuguese egg tart that we had on Sunday).

While we both enjoying taking pictures of landscapes, we each also have our niche interests. Joon goes for flowers, trees and plaques. I tend to go for monuments, art and interesting street scenes. So, our picture taking complements each other. We probably took more pictures than the other Camino pilgrims that passed us! This is worth mentioning for reasons detailed shortly.

As we had mentioned in an earlier Camino post, we decided that we would focus on a daily objective. Strengthening our bonds and relationships was paramount for both of us. So, it made sense to ask how we could achieve that. Joon’s response to how I could better the relationship was for me to be more understanding and considerate. Innocuous adjectives, but it caused me to reflect on ways that I had not been so, and obviously, to imprint these requests internally within my forehead. So, if you see me hitting my forehead periodically, it’s to further imprint it as I probably slipped!

At Matosinhos, we chanced upon a Tourism Center at the corner, before turning onto the broad sidewalk along the ocean. Joao was extremely helpful. He pointed out where we could buy our Camino shells, showed us pictures on his monitor of various seafood dishes, and pointed out where we could have lunch. This center also has a great stamp, with an outline of the Camino shell! TIPS – Join the wooden boardwalk after the car park, as sections of the boardwalk before that, are covered with sand. Locals go for plain grilled fishes and the octopus rice. We enjoyed the latter at a great Yelp find in Porto, so, we heartily concurred with this recommendation.

We saw more sea gulls on the beach than people throughout the walk all day. The waves and swells were spectacular, crashing upon the rocks and beach. It was high tide, but the waves and swells were driven by persistent northerly wind. Brrr……our rain jackets acted as a wind breaker. While our bodies were protected, our faces were subjected to this wind. And its very likely this non-stop wind slowed down our walking pace.

At one stage, we diverted into the inner roads (as I used GPS to navigate). It helped a bit but the winds still blew at us as we were walking north on the inner roads. Eventually, we got back to the boardwalk along the ocean as the dirt path we got onto, ran into some impassable bushes.

Every Camino has its tests. On our first day, we faced a couple. On page 120 of Brierley’s 2018 CP guidebook, we thought we were following the Seashore Sendra Litoral route, which constitutes the 34.9 km that I had calculated. We were comfortable skirting the coast line and following the Yellow Arrows that we were on auto-pilot, never referring to the PDF guide during the walk. BIG mistake. After reaching Vila do Conde, we re-read the guide. On page 120, it’s clearly stated that the Seashore Sendra Litora is ‘distinct from the Coastal Way Caminho da Coasta’. Yes, we had walked the latter, not the former. We reached Vila do Conde at 7.00pm! We couldn’t believe how a planned 34.9 km could have taken us 12+ hours (perhaps 2.5 hours for lunch, breakfast, picture taking, cafe stops). Joon’s Fitbit estimated we had walked 56.0 km (35 miles) instead! Couple of learnings – not knowing beforehand actually allowed us to accomplish this distance. Secondly, slow and steady does allow one to finish the task.

This un-planned longer route imposed a greater burden than expected. Joon really showed her mettle, turning down my offer to carry her backpack in the later stages. She really wanted to make it on her own steam. Needless to say, I was extremely proud of her, though at times, it was painful to see how she was struggling. On my part, my left hip acted up (as noted in previous post on preparing for Camino).

Ben: Me thinks – “Wow, it’s great to be able to sit down without a backpack at lunch”.

Left Hip: “Hmm….we have to remind Ben to take care of us”.

Ben: Getting up to go to bathroom after lunch. Ouch….lurching back and forward between the 2 legs. Walking to the bathroom like someone who needs a crutch.

LH: “He better take care of us the next time round”.

Above scenario played out similarly after dinner too! 😦

Here are some pictures of the coastal scenery.

Imagine the winds driving that level of surf/swells!

Notice the smooth texture of rocks, not jagged/rough.

Nice mix of rockery and ocean.

Sylvia from Cologne, Germany took this picture for us. We traded picture taking services!

The beach stretched for km and km. We started from beyond the horizon part of the beach.

After such a gruelling day, we opted for an early night. We applied some muscle relaxing lotion that Joon’s aunt gave us. And we took an ibuprofen.

Next morning, both of us work up, refreshed and ready to go. The Camino Provides!

This piece is all about the spiritual preparation that we are undertaking for the Camino. It’s 20 days before we depart, and 26 days before we step on the Camino.

We are approaching this Camino as a pilgrimage. I wasn’t satisfied with the various dictionaries’ definitions of ‘pilgrimage’. Let me put forward an expansive personal definition, as follows. It’s a journey undertaken for spiritual reasons. A pilgrimage is expressly for one’s soul. People, places and events will play an important role in shaping the pilgrim’s experience, but it is the heart and soul encounters that will shape the pilgrim’s spiritual self.

Our approach is also intentional. Ask and it will be given you; Search and you will find; Knock and the door will open for you.

Given this perspective, I undertook several spiritual preparation steps:

1. Step up my spiritual & Bible readings
2. Self-correct my un-Christian attitudes & behaviors
3. Increase the depth of my prayers
4. Ponder, contemplate Biblical verses that spoke to me
5. Prepare for ‘on the Camino’ – spiritual intent, prayers, verses
6. Install some Christian songs on my smartphone, to place us in a spiritually contemplative state

Just as I am conditioning my body to be in shape for the rigors of the Camino walk, I am conditioning my soul for this pilgrimage. Per the parable of the Sower, I am preparing the soil so that it will bear fruit when God’s words speak to me on the Camino.

I can net it out all the above efforts to this, that I am in a process to “Purify My Soul” so that it will be receptive to what God will reveal to me on the Camino.

“……He who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through His Spirit that dwells in you”.    Romans 8:11

“Likewise, the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes (for you) with sighs too deep for words”.   Romans 8:26

“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God”.    Romans 8:14

Thus, this on-going, unceasing efforts to purify my soul, is to strive to be in a state of grace, a state that encourages the Holy Spirit that dwells in me, to intercede and guide me to be attentive to God’s presence and promptings.

Prior to stepping out on the Camino Portuguese from Porto, we will make a pilgrimage to Fatima. Let me frame Fatima. This is a spiritual event blessing that occurred in the 20^th century, in 1917. God continues to reach out to us via Mother Mary, St. Joseph and Jesus.

Jean Wysocki recommended reading “Fatima in Lucia’s own words”. I was touched very deeply by this. It is the most moving read I had in recent times. Mother Mary’s words ‘challenges’ me to the core, the three children’s total acceptance and compliance is a blessing (example) to the rest of us. It awakens in me, the desire to do what Mother Mary has asked. It awakens in me the need to be more consistent with the Rosary. It stirs my soul.

What remains as the clock counts down to our departure are these:

• Getting the Pilgrim Blessing from our Parish Priest
• Drafting ‘some’ of the Camino’s intentional focus. To illustrate:
  • Day 1 – Being at Peace, Being Present to Each Other, to Fellow Pilgrims/Neighbors
  • Day 2 – Praise & Thanksgiving for the Blessings, the Pains/Hurts
  • Day 3 – What am I Struggling With?
  • Day x – Start the Weeding (preparation for confession in Santiago)
  • Day x – Sharing Our Dreams
  • Day x – Praying for God’s Intervention

• ….. and so on. It’s likely the list will change, as it’s not meant to box us in. But having a draft creates the ‘guard rails’ so that we can discuss and achieve our respective Camino intent. And some days may start as a blank canvass for the Good Lord to paint as He Wills.

• Compiling some prayers for the Camino walk. Not to pass the time or occupy our minds during a long boring stretch, but intentional prayers for our current life situations.

We do want to explicitly share that we do expect God to reach out to us, via our fellow pilgrims and neighbors that we meet on the Camino. We look forward to that fellowship, guided by the Holy Spirit.

The Peace of the Lord be with you.

B

Resources:

• Fatima in Lucia’s Own Words. Kindle Version – https://tinyurl.com/y7omegjt
• 25 Basic Bible Studies. Paperback – https://tinyurl.com/yauqpbsy
• The New Oxford Annotated Bible, NRSV 2018 5^th Edition – https://tinyurl.com/ya7vwvtn
• Sacred Story Rosary – An Ignatian Way to Pray the Mysteries – https://tinyurl.com/yc9emkwm