“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao Tzu

Day 2

Today was a really wonderful day!

We started with a fabulous breakfast  at a hotel around the corner from our inn, included with our accomodation. Here we met another couple of lovely woacas Dana and Bobbie… from the USA before we headed off. 

Rain is expected at 9 and right on time it arrives. Not heavy but making everything a little misty and bit miserable. And I can never seem to get my temperature right- jumper on, jumper off, shirt on, raincoat on, raincoat off. Maybe we need ponchos that will cover our packs… but I am believing for little rain as we journey on. 

It didn’t take long to find our first arrow… looking for these will be an important part of our day for the next few weeks, ensuring that we stay on track… along with the Camino Ninja App and Google Maps.

We walked through town, crossed the Rio Leça, and then walked a few blocks to the Atlantic Ocean, which we would follow all day long. 

Leaving Matosinhos, which is really an outer suburb of Porto, makes today feels like our first real stretch of walking… the first real Camino-ing. And it’s beautiful despite the slightly blustery and rainy day. Not far from Matasinhos, Anne stops for the bathroom where we meet another lovely couple from the US who are currently living in Singapore and not sure if they’ll ever go back. Here we also run back into Dana and Bobbie and end up continuing our journey with them for much of the day until they stop for their booked accommodation. We have great and easy conversation as we walk about family, life, the universe and everything. It is exactly what I had been hoping for on our Camino… connecting with random strangers from all over the world. 

We pass plenty of cafes as we are still on the outskirts of Porto… pass a lighthouse… several old forts and chapels along the way between here and La Bruge. For much of the day our pathway is boardwalk, with a few cobbled sections and the day is a mixture of nice little towns and rugged but lovely coastline. We walk through Praia de Angeiras, with a tiny little colourful fishing village that feels really authentic…

… and eventually stop for a break to rest our weary legs, take the shoes off and eat a snack which we carried with us from breakfast this morning. Another young girl Bethan, from Wales  who we have bumped into several times, joins us as well. 

As we continue on we pass lots of beautiful beaches where you could probably stop for a swim if you like cold water and swimming in the current conditions (which I definitely don’t) but I do love the sea… and here I am, walking by the ocean in Portugal.

And, as I look out at the endless ocean and along the coastline that stretches into the distance, I feel: this is all ours to soak up and enjoy… the road that lies before me is a gift, and here in this vast space I am also a part of something bigger. That I get out not only from the 4 walls of my everyday life, but also from the problems in my head. 

One of the things I’ve been hoping for on this journey is to unplug a little from some of the issues in our world that have been really messing with my head… but inevitably when in conversation with people from the US, some of these issues seep into our conversations (prepare for a rant!).

My thoughts at the moment which I know sadly, some of you will disagree with:

The rise of facism and authoritarianism is wrong and it’s wrong that white men horde power and dominate in every area of society. It is wrong that a small handful of billionaires own so much of this planet’s wealth and resources and that they get tax breaks when many cant afford food or healthcare. It is wrong to kill children, to bomb hospitals, to starve people to death and to block humanitarian aid. It is wrong that men kill women every single day in every single country of the world and no one seems to care enough to actually do anything about it. It is wrong that in some parts of the world people seem to care more about their guns than their children. It is wrong to stigmatise gay people. It is wrong that our beautiful earth is constantly destroyed for profit. It is wrong to ban books just because you don’t agree with ideas held inside them and it is wrong to erase or distort history. It is wrong that a morally bankrupt convicted felon is able to hold the most powerful position in the world… and that as he tests the waters of dictatorship, he defies the Supreme Court, pushes to send people to concentration camps, uses racism to gain power, scapegoats the vulnerable to keep the majority afraid and angry, mocks the weak and uses his power waging petty vendettas, exalts himself and preys on the innocent. Win at all costs. Cruelty and corruption seem to be the flavour of the day and it’s making me cynical and despondent… and I’m kind of obsessing. And what makes it all so much worse is that so much of it is done under the guise of Christianity… using Scripture to justify bigotry, when most of these things are in direct contradiction to the teachings of Jesus.

And yes- Im woke! Woke to me means awakened by compassion, guided by truth, committed to justice. I seek compassion for humanity as the people of the world have lived through enough cruelty, violence and war. And as Pope Leo XIV  said, “To be called “woke’ in a world that sleeps through suffering is not an insult, it’s the gospel”. Mercy isn’t ’woke leftism’. It’s literally the gospel of Jesus. Denying mercy is Antichrist. 

And I think that we were never meant to know about all this stuff happening everywhere all at once. I don’t think we were built for this much information. We were never meant to wake up and immediately scroll through war zones, natural disasters and political madness. It’s not normal (although it kind of is now… but shouldn’t be). I don’t believe we were designed to carry the grief of the whole world in our minds or bodies… and yet sometimes that’s how I feel. We’ve got the weight of billions beamed directly into our faces 24/7 through our phones or TVs. It burns you out. It numbs you. Or worse- it makes us think that this chaos and cruelty is normal. And makes me cynical and despondent… makes me feel helpless… and hopeless, when I know that I need to try to lean towards hope and empowerment instead of despair… to focus on what is right with the world. I will not allow the steady maddening onslaught of insanity to wear down my humanity. I will keep knowing the truth, my truth… keep telling the truth. I will try to do my small part every damn day to stay human, to stay awake and tender, so that the world does not wear away at my humanity. 

And I do still regularly “think to myself what a wonderful world”, but it’s been getting more difficult… so this trip will I hope, be a big reminder. And apparently looking at the sea for just 5 minutes has a calming effect equivalent to a week of therapy…it serves as medicine to many. So I’m in the right place. And it’s part of why we chose to walk mostly the coastal route on our journey to Santiago de Compostela. There is just something about the ocean…

… refreshing, renewing, calming and awakening. And I feel and smell the salt in the air and the wind on my skin and gaze at the grey muted line of the horizon allowing my mind to wander and peace to come.

Continuing onward after the girls leave us, the path remains much the same as before… boardwalks and wildflowers, endless coastline, blustery seas. I think I have forgotten to mention earlier the wildflowers that have so wonderfully surrounded us all day lining the boardwalks. Orange nasturtiums, yellow and white daisies of many kinds,   purple lobelia, something that looks like Queen Anne’s lace and others like large pig face flowers… there are foxgloves and huge areas of wild pink roses… hydrangeas and so many others that I didn’t have a clue what they are. Abundant beauty surrounds us. 

There are a few weird and wonderful and arty things as well we happen across as we walk…

… we met up with Bethan once again at this place she was exploring… not sure what it was but it felt a bit witchy. 

Near the end of the day, the Camino turned inland a bit, and we found our way to the town of Mindelo where we are staying tonight at the On the Way guesthouse… which turns out to be just perfection. Our hostess Ana was just beautiful and friendly and went out of her way to make sure everything was just perfect- right down to chocolates and freshly brewed herbal tea. She recommended a fab family run restaurant for dinner which was close by and served delicious BBQ fish again and lovely wine. And we were very ready for bed. 

Steps today- 30,757

Kilometres today- 19.4km

Floors climbed- 5

Temperature- 21°