- Time of past OR future Camino
- Some in the past; more in the future!
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Yes, I think they will be! We saw one peregrina in the morning in Lisbon but didn’t see her again and didn’t get a chance to talk to her. If she’s Portuguese it’s possible she’s going to Fatima and not Santiago.It’s good that you have each others’company since the pilgrims will probably be ‘light-on’ right now?.
stay safe
& Buen camino
I had to look it up but ‘inveja saudável’ seems to do the trick! (Healthy envy for those who didn’t pick up the meaning.) Though I’m sure some level of ‘saudade’ would cover it too!Lovely pictures as always, I will follow along with great interest and “envidia sana.” Does Portuguese have the same term to describe what I am feeling?!
Wendy noticed some dumping in one spot in the distance on the slope of the hill to the right of the path but other than that it seemed pretty cleaned up. There were a few local cyclists on the path too.It looks to me like the riverside path has really been cleaned up. It was an obvious illegal dumping spot when I walked — is that all a thing of the past?
She was hurting by the end but overall she did super well! A combination of new exercises and foot baths (she is carrying a collapsible one) worked wonders in our training walks so she’s optimistic.Hope that this longer stage didn’t provoke any plantar fasciitis. Fingers crossed for Wendy.
We hope to but we’ll have to keep monitoring the COVID situation in Spain and make a call closer to the time.Are you walking to Santiago?
I was planning to start in Lisbon on September 11th but finally succumbed to COVID concerns yesterday and cancelled the trip.
I’m sorry to hear that both of you had to cancel but hopefully you will be able to do it in the not-too-distant future. We are really only able to do this now because we live in Portugal, which means we don’t have to travel anywhere to start, we already have private health insurance and are in the national public health system, we can get home easily if something goes wrong etc.I was just days from leaving for Lisbon last March when the lockdown happened here in California.
They are likely all derived from Arabic. The ‘al’ is usually a giveaway (being ‘the’ in Arabic) and ‘az’ works too as the ‘l’ can be lost in translation (e.g. azulejo which comes from the Arabic al-zulaij or similar).Alverca, Alhandra, Alpriate, Azambuja, what’s with all the A towns?
I thought that Vila Franca would be the best option, since there’s nothing between there and Azambuja. I remember the lovely feeling of crossing the RR tracks in Azambuja and being off asphalt. If memory serves, there is some Roman road right there, but I might be wrong about that.
Thank you for sharing your Lisbon to Santiago de Compostela Camino.Day 1: Lisbon to Alverca do Ribatejo (~36km!)
This morning @Wendy Werneth and I walked out our front door in the São Bento neighbourhood of Lisbon, about 30 minutes by foot from the Sé (cathedral), to begin the Caminho Português. Starting a camino from home has always been something that has appealed to us and considering COVID-related circumstances, this is the camino that makes sense for us this year.
It was fun to start the camino by walking through our adopted home city, past places that were very familiar to us in Alfama and then unfamiliar places as we headed further away from the city centre. Parque das Nações, the 1998 World Expo site, is an area we have only been to at night for events so it was fun to check that out.
After the Vasco da Gama bridge, the camino follows a dirt track along a river for a few kilometres which was nice, and there was some more path walking later on but also a lot of road and cobblestone walking throughout the day.
We had hoped to ease slowly back into the camino rhythm with a fairly light first day but the albergue in Alpriate is closed and we had to continue further to Alverca do Ribatejo which made for a super long day (36km according to my iPhone health app).
Accommodation in Alverca is hard to come by during the week because manual labourers from further north stay here and work in Lisbon. Alfa 10 was full, the restaurant A Lanterna across the street has accommodation but was also full, and we finally managed to get a room at Silvina Ferreira Guesthouse for €15/p with private bathroom (in a closet) which we were very happy with after a day that took us almost 12 hours door-to-door.
Onwards and upwards!
That's the expression I would be using, then ☺I had to look it up but ‘inveja saudável’ seems to do the trick!
Hi, Albertagirl,I have been wondering why anyone would label their photos "spoiler alert."
It's bringing back a lot of wonderful memories from our walk from Lisbon to Santiago in April/May, 2016.
I hope the heat is not too intense, and that Wendy's plantar fascia behave themselves.
We had planned to walk from Lisbon starting on 21 May, but our borders closed (Australia), and we're still in lockdown in Melbourne. I had planned to walk towards Cascais and Sintra, and then follow parts of the Caminho do Mar and the Trilho das Areias to Nazaré. We would have then cut across to Fatima and from there to Tomar, where we would have joined the Caminho Português.
We'll do this next year, se Deus quiser!
I know that Nick personally does not like to see pictures of places where he hasn’t yet walked. (So he would very definitely not enjoy AJ’s virtual threads, where we bombard him with pictures). The tag is there in case you are like Nick and don’t want to spoil the surprise of what awaits you.
I had planned to walk towards Cascais and Sintra, and then follow parts of the Caminho do Mar and the Trilho das Areias to Nazaré.
Haha. Did you dare try them?They’re all shrivelled up and ... hey presto, sun-dried tomatoes!
Haha. Did you dare try them?
And no worries, @jungleboy . That's a crayfish, not a scorpion. Maybe he strayed from the river to sample the tomatoes. ☺
Will you be staying with Mario in Santarém? Santarem Hostel. I met him many many years ago when I was in Lisbon and he had just opened his hostel, not knowing anything about the Caminho. He’s a wonderful guy and has helped out a lot of peregrinos over the years. Give him an abraço from me if you see him.
Hello, @Sue127! Glad you're still on the forum.How wonderful to be walking. Although I eventually intend to walk the Francés as my first Camino, I’m eager to follow anyone walking now. Love the photos. Buen Camino
Hi, Nick and Wendy. Don’t know if you are planning to stay in Golega? We really enjoyed our stay there.
or stay in Azinhaga
So I have a lmited tech horizon and wonder how those spoiler buttons are created--will someone tell me, please?Coming to this late. Thanks for posting, Nick - it's great to get on-the-ground descriptions of how things are right now. And I'm loving your photos! I hope the heat is not too intense, and that Wendy's plantar fascia behave themselves.
Buen camino to you both!
(An aside...those spoiler alerts...clever. Thanks for expanding my tech horizon.)
I’m quite fascinated by the tomato cultivation of the past two days and especially today. I don’t think I’ve ever seen huge tomato fields like this. Today we saw probably a dozen trucks completely filled to bursting with tomatoes.
If you stay in Azinhaga you can see Saramago’s house.
The heat has been OK so far but tomorrow will be a test with a longer walking day. The path is very well marked. I think they have redone the markings in the last 2-3 years. It’s not faded painted arrows on curbs anymore but clear, consistent signage that is adaptable for different situations (sides of buildings, road sign poles etc). Here’s an example (the first logo and blue arrow being for Fátima):It's another hot day in Lisboa so hope you are staying cool! Has the path been well marked so far?
I'll be starting from Porto in exactly a week from now! I don't think you guys will be there by then, right?
Good to know up-front that the albergue in Alpriate is closed, so I'll put a few more miles into my training ready for a long day 1. I think I might also book accommodation in advance for Alverca, as I will also be arriving on a week-day.
Above the text box, one of the tool buttons is three dots and a down arrow. If you click/tap it and choose Spoiler, it will create the spoiler. You then have the option of adding a title and then you insert what you want as the spoiler between the tags that will appear in the text box (the cursor will automatically go to this spot). So, between the ] and the [.So I have a lmited tech horizon and wonder how those spoiler buttons are created--will someone tell me, please?
After you’ve had a chance to walk around, I’ll be interested in hearing your reaction to that highway sign you see as you drive north on the A-1 announcing Santarém as the Gothic Capital or some hyperbolic statement like that. But it is a nice little place, no doubt.
So happy to hear that the Quinta da Burra is open!! Did you book your stay in advance or did you arrive the day of? Not sure if booking in advance is an option so I’m curious!
Now I'm curious to see your photo @peregrina2000, because after asking multiple locals it seems that Saramago's house (or more precisely, his grandparents' house where he was born) no longer exists. A branch of the Fundação Saramago was established in Azinhaga in 2017, but the building it's in is not his house but rather an old elementary school. I wasn't able to go inside because it's closed on Sundays and Mondays.If you stay in Azinhaga you can see Saramago’s house. I remember thinking how genius springs up in all sorts of unremarkable places. I won’t paste a picture, since I know you don’t like that, but it is such a humble little place. Not very different than Salazar’s birthplace in Vimiero, actually (not on any camino I know of) but look at the differences in terms of their contributions to humanity!
Nevertheless, I enjoyed posing with his statue, and there's a lovely walkway along the river with tile panels featuring quotes by him about the town.
it seems that Saramago's house (or more precisely, his grandparents' house where he was born) no longer exists
I didn't see this plaque, but one local did tell me that there is one, but that the house there is not the house he lived in, but rather a newer house built on the same spot. I don't know when the house was torn down. But if the one in the photo is not it, I imagine it was pretty similar. He definitely came from very humble beginnings.Wow, that’s too bad. I walked by in 2004, I think, and saw the plaque outside. It must have been on a main street, because I hadn’t known he was born in Azainhaga. So I wouldn’t have gone walking around to look for it. Wonder why it was knocked down — doesn’t seem like the town has had a lot of booming redevelopment! But it does sound like the town is justifiably proud of their native son. Neither the statue nor the walk was there when I walked by.
Love the masks! Bom caminho to you both, and thanks so much for the updates! Laurie
I have been wondering why anyone would label their photos "spoiler alert."
This, and also it makes the pages load more quickly if the photos are behind spoilers, which is useful for me at the moment in rural Portugal and maybe for others! I don’t actually write ‘spoiler’, that is automatic!
Thanks for the instructions —. I love learning these tips -Above the text box, one of the tool buttons is three dots and a down arrow. If you click/tap it and choose Spoiler, it will create the spoiler. You then have the option of adding a title and then you insert what you want as the spoiler between the tags that will appear in the text box (the cursor will automatically go to this spot). So, between the ] and the [.
I've often seen such fields of sunflowers while walking various Camino routes as I prefer to walk in the autumn. I have wondered why the plants are left like that without the seeds having been harvested. Any ideas?A random aside: in the last couple of days, we have seen a few fields of sunflowers that are unfortunately well past their prime. It’s a bit sad to see droopy sunflowers! Today it was even worse as we saw a huge field of black and brown sunflowers all facing the ground. Somehow, it was weirdly photogenic!
Any ideas?
In order to harvest the seeds, the flower has to dry on the stem until head turns brown, the leaves turns yellow, the petals die.I've often seen such fields of sunflowers while walking various Camino routes as I prefer to walk in the autumn. I have wondered why the plants are left like that without the seeds having been harvested. Any ideas?
My plan was to start on 20th September from Lisbon and walk to Porto, so of course I'm following this with interest. I have 13 days for this. However I am having second thoughts now, seeing that there are so few albergues open and not many pilgrims. It seems that it would be better to start from Porto and walk to Santiago (or even to Spanish border twice, 2 different routes, depending on the Covid situation at the time).
Nick - I'm starting my Caminho from Porto on Saturday so can keep you posted on how busy it is! I'll start a separate live thread on this forum once I get started.Nick and Wendy, thanks for sharing this with us. My plan was to start on 20th September from Lisbon and walk to Porto, so of course I'm following this with interest. I have 13 days for this. However I am having second thoughts now, seeing that there are so few albergues open and not many pilgrims. It seems that it would be better to start from Porto and walk to Santiago (or even to Spanish border twice, 2 different routes, depending on the Covid situation at the time). I already have the flights to Lisbon and return from Porto, so I'd prefer to start in Lisbon. Still about 1 week to make my mind up.
Thanks again, keep us posted and Buen Camino.
Nick
Look at that blue sky! It gives Castilla a run for the money. Just lovely, Nick. I LOVE Tomar. Did you happen to pass by any of the women sitting on the side of the road? I have gone by some a few times and it is always awkward, but the last time, the woman sitting there gave me a big smile and a thumbs up. I felt so sorry for her and her plight.
Sorry to sound ungrateful for all the beautiful pictures so far, but would you mind posting a pic or two of the visigothic graves? Like you, I have never heard anything about them!!
I am walking from Santarem on 5th October. This is all so useful, please keep it coming. Thanks
Is that the albergue next to the museum? (There are 2 albergues in Rabacal.) Wow, still only 15 euros for an ensuite twin-bed room.
I don‘t know how to do the spoiler, but don’t cast your eyes on the attachment if you are holding out hope of seeing the Rabaçal mosaics some day. Hope it’s ok to post it.
If all goes to plan I'll be a day ahead of you - due to arrive in Santarem on 4th - Buen Camino!I am walking from Santarem on 5th October. This is all so useful, please keep it coming. Thanks
I thought it prudent to get the best deals I could so I've now pre-booked my accommodation as far as Tomar (where I'll take an extra day to explore).
There are only two things that make me weak in the knees: Daniel Craig and fresh figs!It’s Bonito, so that must be the other one. Not en suite but we’ll take it. And the fig-gorging continues!
I was also the only pilgrim at Cernache. I phoned the number on the door and the hospitalero gave me the key code – but it wouldn’t work. It took us a while to realise it was because the electricity was still out! (Trees had fallen across power lines in the storm the previous night.) He had to drive over and let me in through the garage.we are the only people in the albergue in Cernache tonight
I was also the only pilgrim at Cernache.
Just before Fonte Coberta, we had a big surprise when we stumbled upon a donativo campsite run by Nicolau and Maria (who have read this thread and were waiting for us!). We spent about an hour there with them and their French guest Jean, who has made a lovely painted rock garden at the entrance to the camp. They are all free spirits with a positive and beautiful outlook on life and the spirit of the camino runs deeply through all of them. If anyone walking behind us has the chance to spend some time with them and approaches with an open mind it will certainly be an interesting and enriching experience!
Also, I don't know what the albergue kitchen was like when you were there @jsalt , but it's now been stripped of all utensils, pots, etc. There's not even a kettle, so making coffee would not be possible even if there was electricity. I did see oil, vinegar and sugar on the counter, though, so I get the feeling it wasn't always this way.Oh no, your night there sounds pretty terrible! Ours was slightly better. There is only one restaurant in town and all they had was veal and potatoes, so we went to the store instead and made PB&J sandwiches! All in all, it’s a pretty dour place to stay. It was our third choice to begin with and now we can see why!
Thank you so much for your posts. I have enjoyed them.
We started in Coimbra on the 11th October in 2019 and loved it.
Am looking forward to see if our virtual paths cross. We also stayed where you did in Sernadelo.
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