Walking the Camino de Santiago

August 30-

“It’s alright, alright, alright, yeah
Breathe in and let it go
This life ain’t always perfect
But I know it’s beautiful
When one bad thing leads to another
Baby, there’s a shine at the end of the tunnel
No lie, no lie, no lie, yeah
I know it’s all gonna be alright, yeah” – Lady A

My hotel sat right on the trail today so when it was time to head out, I just threw on my backpack on and off I went. I really love it when my accommodations are directly on the Camino. It doesn’t happen often but it’s so great when it does.

Todays trail was mostly in cities and towns with a few diversions into more forests or vineyards. Afterall we are in the heart of wine country right now.

My habit these days is to hit the trail and worry about my morning breakfast later. I always have something to eat in my backpack, but look forward to that first stop to rest my feet and take in a morning coffee. This morning, as I had stopped at a cafe to have my coffee, I was joined by Conrad. Conrad is the British pilgrim from London I had spoken with the day before. We sat for a while and chatted. It turns out that Conrad, who is 63, and his wife are both Methodist ministers. They are walking their first Camino together, but she had caught some sort of virus and has not been able to walk for three days. So while she takes a taxi to their next destination, Conrad walks.

Conrad explained to me that every 7 years, he gets three months off of work fully paid. And so he and his wife chose the Camino Portuguese as part of their three month vacation. He also let me know that he has been given a new job by the church located in Gibraltar. So, once he completes the Camino in Santiago de Compostela, he will only have two weeks back home in London before he leaves to Gibraltar for two years! He and his wife will be apart for two years!

I found Conrad to be such a nice, gentle, and polite man. At one point he asked if it would be rude if he checked his phone for something. Conrad has been struggling with blisters on his feet for the last two weeks and asked if I had any advice for him. I told him about Judas and what I used/did to help me and suggested he may want to seek the advice of a local Farmacia (pharmacy) who helped me. He was very appreciative of the advice and said he would seek out the pharmacy when we arrived at our destination today. Once we were finished with our morning coffees, we hit the trail together and walked for several miles learning about each others lives. It was a pleasure to get to know him. At one point he needed to stop to take a phone call from his wife and figure a few things out, so I pushed on without him. I’m sure I’ll see him again tomorrow on the trail.

Most of the day today was waking through very small hamlets. Some of which have less than 100 inhabitants.

A little bit about Agueda, my destination for today. It was built on a foundation of successive Celt, Turduli and Lusitania inhabitants and has existed since 370 BC. Ancient occupation of this area dates back to the Bronze Age, marked by diverse megalithic monuments, including the archaeological site at Cabeço do Vouga, an important Roman military fortification.

In addition to its place in history, Agueda is home to the Umbrella Sky project which has been in existence since 2012. The Umbrella Sky Project is a project created by the agency Sexta Feira with the goal of coloring and bringing joy to the city.

I had no idea how cool the umbrellas and the associated decor of this city was. I really love it. It made for a nice welcome as I walked into town in search of my hotel. Which turns out to be equally as lovely.

My thoughts: It’s nice getting to meet people from all over the world like Conrad and Solange. I think it’s one of the things I love about walking the Camino. I’m feeling very grateful and appreciative today. I can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings.