It was still cold and rainy today, so we decided to tour Porto by Redbus Hop-on Hop-off Tours. We walked to the riverfront and took the overhead gondola from the top of the hill to the river-walk. It was a spectacular view, even in the rain.
The tour bus took us all around Porto and we were able to listen to the pre-recorded guide in English. It was really funny because the woman reading the script had a Spanish accent but she was reading the script with an exaggerated British accent. It cracked me up!
The coast and beaches of Porto were a surprise. I never really thought of Porto as a beach town before, but the coastline there is quite nice. At least I imagine that it would be nice - if it were SUNNY and WARM! Even though it was raining, there were dozens of kite-board riders putting on a show all up and down the beach. The Redbus Tour took most of the afternoon, so we ate at a cafe on the riverwalk afterward.
Back at the riverfront, we walked to a Winery for a Port Wine tasting. We were in Porto after all! I never even knew that Port wine came in different flavors and colors. My only experience with Port wine before was with the dark red sweet version. We tasted the traditional dark red, then a blush, then a lighter red, then a white port. The white was my favorite! It has a light, crisp, and fruity taste that I enjoyed immensely. A little too immensely. I so wanted to buy a bottle or two or six, but we were about to start our Camino and we had no way to transport it. Although, we probably would have been the most popular pilgrims on the Way if we shared the port as we went along.
Then we went to the Cathedral again to get our credentials stamped with the official cello (stamp) so Frank could qualify to stay in the Portuguese albergues. We studied the maps and literature about the Portuguese Way and plotted our course. Since we only have to walk 100 km to qualify to receive the official Compostela, we decided to take a bus from Porto to Valenca, Portugal and begin our pilgrimage there. We then headed to the bus station to figure out the schedules and purchase our tickets. I'm getting pretty good at buying long distance train and bus tickets. I'll probably never get on another metro bus again, though.
I'm excited that I'll be back on the Camino again tomorrow. With Frank's help, I think I'll make it after all. It was a good day, I'm so excited!!
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
24 Apr -- Porto, Portugal
First full day with Frank here in Porto!!! We went walking to find the Camino, but it was cold and raining. not very much fun. When we crossed the river, it started to POUR on us! Good thing we were both wearing our waterproof rain jackets and boots. Our pants got soaked, but we both have the quick- dry hiking pants, it really didn't take very long for them to dry! After a little sight-seeing, we stopped for lunch downtown. We found the Camino Trail at the Cathedral and walked it for a bit but my knee was hurting so we gave up and went back to the hotel early.
We watched movies in Spanish and Frank was giving his own interpretation, it was hilarious. Reminded me of the Mystery Science Theater program from years ago.
I got online to book a hotel for the weekend we are scheduled to return to Lisbon from the Canary Islands, but I couldn't get anything for under 500 euros a night!! Yikes!! I don't know what's going on in Lisbon that weekend, but we are in trouble! I finally found a hotel on the outskirts of town for way more than we've been paying per night, then we'll take a bus to Fatima, where I was able to get a good deal.
Ah, the joys of last minute, fly-by-the-seat of your pants travel!! It's not for the faint-hearted!
We watched movies in Spanish and Frank was giving his own interpretation, it was hilarious. Reminded me of the Mystery Science Theater program from years ago.
I got online to book a hotel for the weekend we are scheduled to return to Lisbon from the Canary Islands, but I couldn't get anything for under 500 euros a night!! Yikes!! I don't know what's going on in Lisbon that weekend, but we are in trouble! I finally found a hotel on the outskirts of town for way more than we've been paying per night, then we'll take a bus to Fatima, where I was able to get a good deal.
Ah, the joys of last minute, fly-by-the-seat of your pants travel!! It's not for the faint-hearted!
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
23 Apr -- Porto
This morning, I decided to walk into town again to find the train station so I could meet Frank there. He wasn't scheduled to arrive until 4:00pm so I had plenty of time. I walked back to the river and this time boarded a metro bus heading downtown. When I got there, I found the train station and started sightseeing. The city of Porto is much bigger than I imagined.
I finally sat down at a cafe for lunch and ordered a French omelet with fritas and a cervesa. The waiter quickly brought my beer and I sat and watched people jumping on and off the metro buses right in front of the cafe. When my meal arrived, I had just taken a few bites of the delicious omelet when my phone buzzed with a message from Frank: "I'm at the hotel, where are you?" I checked my phone for the time, it was only 12:30!! I thought, "What's going on??" I sent a reply: "I thought you weren't arriving until 4:00!!" I waited, but didn't get a reply. I had visions of an exhausted, jet-lagged Frank waiting for me in the hotel lobby. I panicked. I called the waiter to me and looked up the Portuguese term for "take-away." I figured I'd pack up my lunch and catch a bus back to the hotel. The waiter looked at me and blinked when I said "Tirar." He shrugged, picked up my practically full plate of food and disappeared. I sat there a while, then I thought, "What if he thought I was finished!! Oh no, I really wanted that food! Hey, I'm still hungry!" I was about to just pay and leave, when he showed up with my food clumsily wrapped in paper and in a plastic bag. I guess they don't get many requests for "to go" food. Relieved, I quickly paid my check and ran to the bus stop.
I looked up the name of the stop near the hotel (Ave de Jesus) and saw that the "gold" line would take me back across the bridge and to the correct stop. The first bus came and I asked the driver "Ave de Jesus?" He shook his head and thrust his thumb out toward the bus behind him. I jumped off and waited for the next bus to pull up and repeated my query. The driver nodded and said "Um oitenta." I handed him two euros and got change back. Relieved, I sat down in the nearest seat. I was excited and happy to think that Frank was HERE!! I'd soon be with him at the hotel! The bus took off and I smiled as I thought about spending the next few days with Frank in this beautiful city.
The bus started toward the bridge and then veered off to the left away from the river. I thought, "That's strange, maybe it makes a circle around the plaza before it crosses the bridge." I wasn't worried, after all, the driver had nodded and taken my money. Surely I was on the right bus. I was busy perusing the tourism maps and sight seeing literature I had picked up at the Cathedral when I realized that this trip back across the river was taking a lot longer than the original trip to downtown. I looked up and was shocked to see that I was now in an industrial area. I didn't recognize any of this scenery from the first trip!
The driver kept driving and when I asked again, "Ave de Jesus?" he just nodded his head. I was beginning to worry, but still confident that I would eventually get where I needed to go. There were fewer and fewer people on the bus, and finally - I was the only one left. The driver stopped and pointed to the door. This time, I panicked. I looked at him and pointed to the route map I had in my hand. He looked at the map and sighed. He said something in Portuguese but I didn't understand. I had no idea where I was, but I knew it wasn't where I was supposed to be. He sighed again, pointed to the bus stop and motioned for me to get off the bus. Then he pointed to the stop across the street and said "Wait" in English. So I got off the bus, walked across the street to the stop, and apprehensively waited for - I really didn't know what I was waiting for. The driver drove off as I sat there alone and upset.
About 5 minutes later, I saw a familiar looking bus approach the stop. It was the same bus with the same driver. Puzzled, I stood as he stopped in front of me and motioned for me to get in. I got my coin purse out to pay but he waved me off, pointed to the seat next to him and said "Sit." Obediently, I sat. He drove back towards down town, but about half way there, the stopped the bus, opened the door and pointed to a side street. He was saying something in Portuguese, but the only thing I understood was that he wanted me to get off at this stop and walk somewhere. I didn't argue, I got off the bus. I thought to myself, "That driver is nuts! I'll just wait for another bus and at least get back downtown where I can get a taxi." Then I was thinking, "Well, I'll figure out where I am on Google maps, then I'll walk to a hotel and get a taxi." There were no hotels in sight.
About that time, another bus pulled up and when the driver opened the door I jumped in and asked him "Ave de Jesus?" He said, "Oh no, you're a long way from there. This bus doesn't go that route." He was speaking ENGLISH!!! Horrified that I was so far removed from where I needed to be and thinking that Frank was probably worried about me since it was now nearly 2:00pm, I asked, "How do I get there?" He answered, "Walk down this street to the left and take the metro train. That will take you across the river and it will stop at the station across the street from Ave de Jesus." OH!!! THAT was what the other driver was trying to tell me. I thanked profusely him and jumped off the bus practically running to the train station.
I could see a train already approaching the station, so I hurriedly ran to the ticket machine. The home page was in Portuguese, but there was an English option. Relieved, I pushed the button for English. The machine froze. The train arrived. I kept pushing buttons, getting more frantic by the minute. Nothing happened. The train pulled out. FINALLY, the machine responded. I bought a ticket. I looked at the receipt, it said "Tren #6, Ave de Jesus. 4:30pm" WHAT???? That's another two hours away!! Surely I can find a taxi before then!! Frank will be worried sick. He hasn't answered my messages, he probably doesn't have wifi because he can't get into the room. Poor Frank, I'm sure he's exhausted and uncomfortable. Augghhhhh!!!
I looked at Google maps. I was in the middle of nowhere in this lousy city. I started walking as fast as I could in the general direction of downtown. I looked for hotels, I couldn't find one. I saw that there was a hospital about 3 km from me. I started walking towards it. I thought, "Surely there'll be a taxi stand near a hospital! If nothing else, I'll be close to an emergency room when I collapse." I finally got to the hospital and I was relieved to find a taxi stand. I approached the first taxi in line and I'm sure the driver was appalled when he saw this wild-eyed, sweaty, bedraggled woman, clutching a greasy, soggy bag of stinky egg and cheese omelet, approaching his pristinely upholstered taxi. I held out my iPhone with the address of the hotel on the screen. He shook his head, he said he didn't know where it was. He took my phone from me and walked to a less shiny, older taxi behind him and showed the address to the driver. They talked for a few minutes and the other driver motioned me over to his cab and we took off. At this point, I didn't care how much this was going to cost. I just needed to get to the hotel as fast as I could because I was sure Frank was frantic with worry.
When I finally got there, he wasn't in the lobby. He had gotten a key to the room, he had showered and changed, and he was comfortably snoring away in the king-sized bed. Blissfully unaware of my ordeal. I kissed him and let him sleep. I collapsed in the chair and fell asleep myself. When I woke up, Frank was eating my lunch.
I'm sure I'll have a good laugh over this someday. Or maybe not.
I finally sat down at a cafe for lunch and ordered a French omelet with fritas and a cervesa. The waiter quickly brought my beer and I sat and watched people jumping on and off the metro buses right in front of the cafe. When my meal arrived, I had just taken a few bites of the delicious omelet when my phone buzzed with a message from Frank: "I'm at the hotel, where are you?" I checked my phone for the time, it was only 12:30!! I thought, "What's going on??" I sent a reply: "I thought you weren't arriving until 4:00!!" I waited, but didn't get a reply. I had visions of an exhausted, jet-lagged Frank waiting for me in the hotel lobby. I panicked. I called the waiter to me and looked up the Portuguese term for "take-away." I figured I'd pack up my lunch and catch a bus back to the hotel. The waiter looked at me and blinked when I said "Tirar." He shrugged, picked up my practically full plate of food and disappeared. I sat there a while, then I thought, "What if he thought I was finished!! Oh no, I really wanted that food! Hey, I'm still hungry!" I was about to just pay and leave, when he showed up with my food clumsily wrapped in paper and in a plastic bag. I guess they don't get many requests for "to go" food. Relieved, I quickly paid my check and ran to the bus stop.
I looked up the name of the stop near the hotel (Ave de Jesus) and saw that the "gold" line would take me back across the bridge and to the correct stop. The first bus came and I asked the driver "Ave de Jesus?" He shook his head and thrust his thumb out toward the bus behind him. I jumped off and waited for the next bus to pull up and repeated my query. The driver nodded and said "Um oitenta." I handed him two euros and got change back. Relieved, I sat down in the nearest seat. I was excited and happy to think that Frank was HERE!! I'd soon be with him at the hotel! The bus took off and I smiled as I thought about spending the next few days with Frank in this beautiful city.
The bus started toward the bridge and then veered off to the left away from the river. I thought, "That's strange, maybe it makes a circle around the plaza before it crosses the bridge." I wasn't worried, after all, the driver had nodded and taken my money. Surely I was on the right bus. I was busy perusing the tourism maps and sight seeing literature I had picked up at the Cathedral when I realized that this trip back across the river was taking a lot longer than the original trip to downtown. I looked up and was shocked to see that I was now in an industrial area. I didn't recognize any of this scenery from the first trip!
The driver kept driving and when I asked again, "Ave de Jesus?" he just nodded his head. I was beginning to worry, but still confident that I would eventually get where I needed to go. There were fewer and fewer people on the bus, and finally - I was the only one left. The driver stopped and pointed to the door. This time, I panicked. I looked at him and pointed to the route map I had in my hand. He looked at the map and sighed. He said something in Portuguese but I didn't understand. I had no idea where I was, but I knew it wasn't where I was supposed to be. He sighed again, pointed to the bus stop and motioned for me to get off the bus. Then he pointed to the stop across the street and said "Wait" in English. So I got off the bus, walked across the street to the stop, and apprehensively waited for - I really didn't know what I was waiting for. The driver drove off as I sat there alone and upset.
About 5 minutes later, I saw a familiar looking bus approach the stop. It was the same bus with the same driver. Puzzled, I stood as he stopped in front of me and motioned for me to get in. I got my coin purse out to pay but he waved me off, pointed to the seat next to him and said "Sit." Obediently, I sat. He drove back towards down town, but about half way there, the stopped the bus, opened the door and pointed to a side street. He was saying something in Portuguese, but the only thing I understood was that he wanted me to get off at this stop and walk somewhere. I didn't argue, I got off the bus. I thought to myself, "That driver is nuts! I'll just wait for another bus and at least get back downtown where I can get a taxi." Then I was thinking, "Well, I'll figure out where I am on Google maps, then I'll walk to a hotel and get a taxi." There were no hotels in sight.
About that time, another bus pulled up and when the driver opened the door I jumped in and asked him "Ave de Jesus?" He said, "Oh no, you're a long way from there. This bus doesn't go that route." He was speaking ENGLISH!!! Horrified that I was so far removed from where I needed to be and thinking that Frank was probably worried about me since it was now nearly 2:00pm, I asked, "How do I get there?" He answered, "Walk down this street to the left and take the metro train. That will take you across the river and it will stop at the station across the street from Ave de Jesus." OH!!! THAT was what the other driver was trying to tell me. I thanked profusely him and jumped off the bus practically running to the train station.
I could see a train already approaching the station, so I hurriedly ran to the ticket machine. The home page was in Portuguese, but there was an English option. Relieved, I pushed the button for English. The machine froze. The train arrived. I kept pushing buttons, getting more frantic by the minute. Nothing happened. The train pulled out. FINALLY, the machine responded. I bought a ticket. I looked at the receipt, it said "Tren #6, Ave de Jesus. 4:30pm" WHAT???? That's another two hours away!! Surely I can find a taxi before then!! Frank will be worried sick. He hasn't answered my messages, he probably doesn't have wifi because he can't get into the room. Poor Frank, I'm sure he's exhausted and uncomfortable. Augghhhhh!!!
I looked at Google maps. I was in the middle of nowhere in this lousy city. I started walking as fast as I could in the general direction of downtown. I looked for hotels, I couldn't find one. I saw that there was a hospital about 3 km from me. I started walking towards it. I thought, "Surely there'll be a taxi stand near a hospital! If nothing else, I'll be close to an emergency room when I collapse." I finally got to the hospital and I was relieved to find a taxi stand. I approached the first taxi in line and I'm sure the driver was appalled when he saw this wild-eyed, sweaty, bedraggled woman, clutching a greasy, soggy bag of stinky egg and cheese omelet, approaching his pristinely upholstered taxi. I held out my iPhone with the address of the hotel on the screen. He shook his head, he said he didn't know where it was. He took my phone from me and walked to a less shiny, older taxi behind him and showed the address to the driver. They talked for a few minutes and the other driver motioned me over to his cab and we took off. At this point, I didn't care how much this was going to cost. I just needed to get to the hotel as fast as I could because I was sure Frank was frantic with worry.
When I finally got there, he wasn't in the lobby. He had gotten a key to the room, he had showered and changed, and he was comfortably snoring away in the king-sized bed. Blissfully unaware of my ordeal. I kissed him and let him sleep. I collapsed in the chair and fell asleep myself. When I woke up, Frank was eating my lunch.
I'm sure I'll have a good laugh over this someday. Or maybe not.
22 Apr -- Afternoon in Porto
I arrived at the airport and took a taxi to the hotel. I used Holiday Inn reward points to book four nights at the hotel, the last of Frank's super-duper Gold Premier-level points from all his business travel. When I got there, they upgraded me to a suite on the 20th floor with a river view. It was a little overwhelming after staying in hostels, shared rooms, dormitories, and small European hotels for a month! Unfortunately, the only clothes I had were the "quick-dry" camp shirts, merino wool t-shirt, hiking boots, and zipper hiking pants/shorts combo. I felt under dressed as I was surrounded by all the men and women in business attire. I had purchased a scarf when I was in Burgos, so I tucked the scarf around my neck and with my black jacket over the camp shirt it didn't look too bad! I took off in search of a cafe because the hotel restaurant was crowded with well-dressed patrons. My GPS took me down to the river where there were many tourist cafes, bars, restaurants, and corner grocery shops. Casually-dressed tourists in tennis shoes, jeans, and sweat-shirts were everywhere and I felt more comfortable. The river was beautiful! The buildings of the city spill down the hillside and crowd around both riverbanks and the activity flows into the river where port wine barges, river taxis, tourist sight-seeing boats, and sailboats navigate in both directions; sometimes coming precariously close to one another.
It was sunny, but still cold. I wanted to find the Camino Pilgrim's office and official tourist information center so I looked it up on Google maps, put the route into my GPS, and took off across the river to the old town. The GPS showed a walking route through a tunnel to the cathedral. Well, when I got across the bridge, the tunnel was blocked to pedestrian traffic due to construction. So I had to take the alternate route - up the hillside! I looked at the staircases ahead and almost gave up. But I could only see a short section of stairs and I decided that if I just took it slowly I'd be ok. Each time I reached a summit, I turned a corner and there was ANOTHER flight of stairs. THIRTY TWO flights all together. When, huffing and puffing all the way, I finally reached the top; I heard a crowd of people coming toward me. I wondered if they had taken a different route up because some had canes and they didn't look winded at all. When I turned the corner, I found the hillside tram from which the group had just disembarked. Cursing under my breath, I nearly thew my GPS phone into the gutter. Instead, I took note of the route for my eventual descent. I found the Cathedral, the Camino route, and the tourist information center. Armed with maps and a list of Portuguese albergues, I headed back to the hotel to plot our Camino trek. I stopped at a corner store and picked up a coke, some ham, cheese, and a baguette for dinner. Called it a night, watched the sunset over the city from my 20th floor balcony. A good day indeed.
It was sunny, but still cold. I wanted to find the Camino Pilgrim's office and official tourist information center so I looked it up on Google maps, put the route into my GPS, and took off across the river to the old town. The GPS showed a walking route through a tunnel to the cathedral. Well, when I got across the bridge, the tunnel was blocked to pedestrian traffic due to construction. So I had to take the alternate route - up the hillside! I looked at the staircases ahead and almost gave up. But I could only see a short section of stairs and I decided that if I just took it slowly I'd be ok. Each time I reached a summit, I turned a corner and there was ANOTHER flight of stairs. THIRTY TWO flights all together. When, huffing and puffing all the way, I finally reached the top; I heard a crowd of people coming toward me. I wondered if they had taken a different route up because some had canes and they didn't look winded at all. When I turned the corner, I found the hillside tram from which the group had just disembarked. Cursing under my breath, I nearly thew my GPS phone into the gutter. Instead, I took note of the route for my eventual descent. I found the Cathedral, the Camino route, and the tourist information center. Armed with maps and a list of Portuguese albergues, I headed back to the hotel to plot our Camino trek. I stopped at a corner store and picked up a coke, some ham, cheese, and a baguette for dinner. Called it a night, watched the sunset over the city from my 20th floor balcony. A good day indeed.
22 Apr -- Madrid - Porto, Portugal
I spent one night in Madrid and left early this morning on a plane (Ryan Air) bound for Porto, Portugal. When I was in Pamplona, I Skyped with Frank and tearfully told him about my injury and how I didn't think I could go on. He offered sympathy and encouragement, but what I didn't know was that he decided to change his plans and fly to Lisbon earlier so he could meet me and help me walk the Camino.
After leaving Pamplona and walking several more painful sections, I called him again from Burgos and admitted that I was probably through. That's when he told me he was planning to come earlier to help. Frankie to the rescue!!! He thought he could probably catch a train in Lisbon and meet me in Leon, Spain where we could begin together.
I did some quick research and found that the Camino Portuguese was a coastal route and it was supposedly flatter than the Camino Frances. This sounded like the perfect solution! We decided to meet in Porto and walk the Portuguese route together.
My knee is still swollen and painful, but a few days of rest in Porto and the heavy-duty knee brace Frank is bringing from home should do the trick.
Relief swelled up in me and threatened to spill out in tears again, but instead I went out and celebrated. Frank is on his way!!
After leaving Pamplona and walking several more painful sections, I called him again from Burgos and admitted that I was probably through. That's when he told me he was planning to come earlier to help. Frankie to the rescue!!! He thought he could probably catch a train in Lisbon and meet me in Leon, Spain where we could begin together.
I did some quick research and found that the Camino Portuguese was a coastal route and it was supposedly flatter than the Camino Frances. This sounded like the perfect solution! We decided to meet in Porto and walk the Portuguese route together.
My knee is still swollen and painful, but a few days of rest in Porto and the heavy-duty knee brace Frank is bringing from home should do the trick.
Relief swelled up in me and threatened to spill out in tears again, but instead I went out and celebrated. Frank is on his way!!
Monday, May 5, 2014
21 Apr -- Burgos - Madrid
There had been a break in the rain yesterday afternoon, so I walked to the bus station to check the schedule and buy a ticket for Madrid. The bus leaving at 9:40 am would get me to Madrid after lunch, so I bought the ticket and headed back to the hotel to stay warm.
I ventured out one last time for supper at the cafeteria on the plaza before packing everything in my backpack for the trip to Madrid. I had a fitful night of sleep partly because of all the squeaking wooden floors in the hotel and partly because I was feeling unsettled.
I got up early and took off walking in the cold rain for the bus station. Had coffee and tortilla at the cafe in the station while waiting for my departure time.
The bus was very comfortable and they even had a movie on the TV monitors in the bus. It was strange to watch Spiderman in Spanish. The Spanish voices they chose for the actors just didn't match up. But -- there was free wifi on board, so I was set!
The bus route took me to the Madrid airport where I called the hotel for a shuttle. The hotel desk attendant asked me which terminal I was in but I didn't have a clue!! I rushed from sign to sign trying to figure it out, when the guy on the line asked me "What color is the ceiling?" Baffled, I looked up and and said "Yellow." He answered, "You're in terminal number four." Well, that was good to know - and I was so grateful that he knew enough to figure it out! Apparently, the terminals are color coded.
I got to the hotel before 2:00 pm and they let me check in even though I was early. I was starving, but remembering how expensive the hotel restaurant was, I asked if there were any restaurants nearby. The woman at the reception desk said, "Yes, we have a NEW Burger King just across the avenue!" She seemed pretty excited about this. Since I really didn't want to eat at a Burger King, I asked if there was anything else. She said there were other cafes around the avenue as well. I took off walking.
Of course, it was siesta time when I got to the avenue. All the local cafes and bars were closed. But the Burger King was open! I walked in and smelled the French fries and I was hooked. It was the first hamburger and fries I'd had in over a month. They even had Coke Zero on tap! With FREE REFILLS!! The French fries even came with catsup!! Oh it was so delightful.
I ate my food and had TWO refills of Coke before heading back to the hotel. I asked for a wake up call and a shuttle to the airport for my early morning departure, then I showered and went to bed. With the help of two ibuprofen and a sleeping pill, I was out early.
It wasn't a bad day, yet I couldn't shake a melancholy mood that had settled on me in the rain in Burgos. My knee was still swollen. I wasn't walking the Camino. Things weren't going as I had planned.
Well, end this chapter... Turn the page, start a new one. Here we go.
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