ensuitepilgrim's Blog

These two enjoyable experiences were in ALVOR and a short riverside walk out.

The market consisted of small stalls with varying amounts and types of produce – mainly smallholdings I would guess. A homely feel to them.

Leaving this part of the waterfront we made our way through a small reconstruction of a shelter, along the Ria to the base of a small cliff.

We met an English couple who have a timeshare in ALVOR and they told us that once they did the walk on a Bank Holiday and were startled by gunfire – apparently on those days random hunting is allowed – fortunately they were able to attract the gun holders and got through unscathed.

Saturday and after waiting in vain for the number 13 bus – unluckily for us – no buses on Saturdays nor Sundays, we called a taxi and within three minutes we were on Portimao’s riverside.

Following the signs for the Turismo, housed in a renovated Moorish building,further frustration as it was closed, yes you guessed it,at weekends when you would think they would be the days most likely to be busy with visitors. No buses,no Turismo,and later to discover no shops open after 1pm – I need to get my head round this Algarvian logic.

Walking alongside the River Arrade .

We stopped to examine this conveyor belt,just outside the museum.

It is housed in a renovated canning factory the Portimão Museum, invites you to discover the origins and evolution of its community, territory and the most striking aspects of its industrial and maritime history. In addition to the permanent exhibition “Portimão, Territorio e Identidade”, the museum presents a diversified cultural program in the temporary exhibition rooms and auditorium. More of that later.

If someone told you that you would be both well informed and fascinated by the sardine canning process,you might have been forgiven for a scornful riposte – well it was as much about the working lives of the mainly women here as it was about tins. The first thing to strike you was the amazing layout of the exhibits.

The actual workplace was well reproduced,too.

There was also a section devoted to the 19 th century King Carlos and his seagoing adventures.

The temporary exhibition was about the relationship between food and art – it certainly gave us an appetite for lunch! Below are some of the images.

The canning factories had been heavily subsidised during Salazar’s dictatorship. When he died the subsidies mostly dried up,this,plus dwindling supplies of fish and competition from North Africa saw the canning industry die for the most part.

There followed a walkabout around a largely deserted town. Portimao as you might have gathered is not a “ tourist” town and its beaches are 3 Km away,including the famous Praia de Rocha and opposite in Ferrugudo,where we once camped in the mid seventies. But worth a day for the feel of a working Portuguese town.

There are three bridges over the river.

There are various sculptures alongside the river.

Portimao was a worthwhile excursion. I wonder if we’ll have sardines for dinner?

Take a holiday so long, you forget all of your passwords!

Alvor was founded in 436 B.C. by the Carthaginian General Aníbal Barca as a commercial port, which he named Portus Hannibalis. The settlement grew around the sea, near the place called Vila Velha, where a Celtic castro dominated the river mouth during the Iron Age.

The history of Alvor is long, possibly dating back as far as the 4th century BC. During the Roman occupation of Iberia it was a prosperous port and later became the Moorish town of Al-bur. However, the village’s greatest claim to fame is as the place where King João II died in 1495. In more recent years still, it cemented its place in the history books as the venue for the negotiations which brought about the independence of the former Portuguese territory of Angola.

Five days in to this little holiday and I have lost track of time. How? Why? It’s only when you come away from your regular routines and haunts that you realise the rut you’re in. I’ve not missed the morning paper, the garden or the allotment,nor the never ending televised sporting events I am usually guilty of having on,even if only half watching. I have not missed walking because I have done plenty of that since being here.I have not missed the tedium of “royal” events either.

The Mercardo was very quiet,too.

In the mornings, nothing much opened before 10 am – not a single punter down this popular alleyway.

A walk back down towards the River ALVOR Estuary

Brummies will brag about their “ Floozie in the Jacuzzi”; here in Alvor they have their” Mermaid on the Esplanade”

It was time to take the Boardwalk trail.

It’s a wide network of boardwalks that connects Alvor Beach with the river banks. The total distance of the boardwalks is about 6 km. Following the boardwalk you can appreciate two different sides of Alvor; its wide sandy beach and the freshwater marshes that are home to dozens of species of birds.

On either side you can see the estuary, the dunes,marshes and all manner of boats.

Based a mile and a half or so up from ALVOR Town and not wanting the hassle of a hire car – bus trips €0.70 and taxis very reasonable – mastering the bus timetables are important. You can obtain a prepaid card to show on the bus – the amount is dependent on how often you anticipate using a bus. Tomorrow we envisage using it to get to Portimao for the day.

The VAI E VEM bus service .

I shall finish this Blog with some photos of the local flora,many of which are found around the pool and grounds of the apartment.

A vacation is what you take when you can no longer take what you’ve been taking.

FOOD AND DRINK ON THE CAMINO FRANCES

EVERYWHERE YOU GO ALWAYS TAKE THE WEATHER WITH YOU.

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=pa8DunAJMHs&feature=share CROWDED HOUSE, Live.

MOSTLY PAIRS

ULTREIA ET SUSEIA – “ Let’s Go Forward, Hallelujah “Let’s Go Higher”. Who knows…?

Much cooler conditions as we began a climb.

There followed a slight incline down to the village of Cardenuela Riopico.

After checking in to Hotel Sercotel de Castilla, we had ample time to explore this beautiful and prosperous city

Useful map from the tourist office easily found after crossing the Arlanzon River.

What follows are a medley of snaps from that afternoon’s saunter around Burgos.

The house contains an eclectic mixture of artefacts,momentoes and photographs which cover walls, stairs and landings.

We had two rooms for four people off the same landing and they were found to be very comfortable.

It was like being on the set of a 70s sitcom-with fast moving exchanges in Australian inflected English,given a strong Spanish twist! Great fun. Our Steak,chips and salad, followed by an in house dessert were consumed with gusto and Rodrigo then generously served us different kinds of Orujo – a smoky digestif – a very convivial evening and one like no other, for the very best of reasons.

We passed the ruddy coloured remains of the castle lurking above us.

We then crossed the River Tiron via wooden footbridge and then off left towards Tosantos,some 3Km away.

Then a slight climb to a plateau with views of rolling pastures

Through the tiny hamlet of Vilambistia.

And then a coffee/drinks break at a cafe you could not miss.

The saint that shares its name, the disciple of Saint Domingo de la Calzada, builder and protector of the ancient route, managed to erect a small church and an important refuge for pilgrims which gave them shelter after the difficult climb up the inhospitable Montes de Oca. Today this quiet place is revived with the presence of pilgrims.

From Atapuerca we were collected by our host from “ Boomerang Cottage” in Quintanapalla – we would be dropped off the following morning for our last Etape .

Leaving Santo Domingo by way of the Santo Domingo y Ermita bridge.

After six KM or thereabouts we reached Granon and another memorable coffee stop. The first sights to arrest the attention – Camino murals – which drew us up to an imaginatively and conveniently situated cafe.

HOTEL A SANTIAGO – probably one of the best stops on the Camino. And the community evening meal was as good as advertised.

An early start as sections of this stage have little in the way of shade

There are ten kilometres to walk before the next chance of refreshments in Ciruena – plenty of water needed.

Ciruena is a village of two halves. As we approached, we walk past a golf course which felt incongruous given the size of the place,but beyond it was a kind of “ new town” developing.

Accomodation – surprisingly for a small town, Santo Domingo housed two Paradors,both with a similar name. As a treat, we were booked into Parador de San Domingo Bernardo de Fresneda. Paradors are usually situated in old,venerable / historic buildings and our Parador was no exception as the following photos show.

“The hotel occupies a former 12th-century hospital near the cathedral, erected by St. Dominic to take in pilgrims traveling on the Way of St. James. It has a regal, elegant style, with majestic function rooms and a lobby filled with Gothic arches and wood coffered ceilings. Fine materials and eye-catching colors—whites and blues—give way to comfortable guest rooms decorated with exquisite taste. You will find a warm, harmonious environment which is also highly suited to social events and meetings.” EXTRACT FROM THE PARADOR WEBSITE

Mike and I had a walkabout in what was now a relatively deserted town,however we found that much sought after refreshment – Estella Galicia” in a locals’ bar,where the menfolk were deeply engaged in the afternoon ritual of a game of cards…which baffled both of us.

Then back through the still quiet streets of the Casa Antigua- designated as a historic place of interest – then so many of the places we have been fortunate enough to traverse have held our interest.

Another very hot day is forecast and so taxis were taken out of the city towards Navarette, in time for breakfast.

The translation is as follows:

Dust , mud, sun and rain

It is Camino de Santiago. 

thousands of pilgrims 

and more than a thousand years. 

Pilgrim Who calls you? 

What hidden force draws you?

– Not even the field of stars 

nor the great cathedrals.

It is not the bravery Navarra,

nor the wine of the Rioja

nor the Galician shellfish,

nor the Castilian fields.

Pilgrim Who calls you?

What hidden force draws you? 

– Neither the people of the Way 

nor rural customs.

It is not history and culture,

nor the rooster of the Calzada

nor Gaudí’s palace, 

nor the Ponferrada castle.

I see everything as I pass,

and it’s a joy to see it all,

 but the voice that calls me

I feel it much deeper.

The force that pushes me 

the force that attracts me,

I don’t even know how to explain it.

Only He above knows!

This romance-poem won the second prize in the literary contest organized by the cultural recreational society “PEÑA EL SALERO”, from Santo Domingo de la Calzada, on September 19, 1987.

We have Tom to thank for the following photos of the Monasterio.