“Walking is a man’s best medicine”- Hippocrates (ancient Greek physician)

Day 6 and 7

And today I needed medicine. Yesterday afternoon I started with tummy cramps and the resulting many visits to the bathroom overnight does not bode well for a long walk… but we head off as usual… a little earlier actually as today is going to be hot. 

We say good bye to our beautiful friends Constance and Matthew… though we have bumped into them so many times, this may be the last time as we are having a rest day once we reach Ponte de Lima whereas they will continue on their journey. It has been so lovely connecting with this couple over the last few days. 

We pass a tiny church and then, leaving Balugães behind, walk through vineyards and lush green countryside.

Our destination today is Ponte de Lima… an ancient little town along the Lima river. It is a beautiful day on the Camino… peaceful and quiet… passing vineyards, orchards, pretty homes with beautiful gardens that are a riot of spring flowers…

… with the last of the springtime wisteria still blooming.  The sun is shining and the birds are singing. Walking along a mixture of dirt tracks, cobbled paths and, occasionally, some paved roads, we really enjoy the morning although there is a little more climbing than in previous days and the sun is hot. I am using the walking sticks as it was a challenging route for much of the day. 

We miss an arrow but very quickly realise when we come to a T with no arrow and I check my app which shows it was only a few metres back. Constantly looking for arrows to keep us in track.

More cornfields… always more cornfields… and grapevines. At one stage we pass a literal wall of jasmine that just keeps going and the beautiful fragrance lingers.

I notice monuments to those walking the Camino- from tile depictions to scallop shells hanging from a post above the roadway as a form of greeting to those who pass below it.

The powerful and protective symbol of the Ways to Compostela, the scallop shell has its beginning according to tradition in the sandy beaches we have already passed on our first few days walking. It represents pilgrimage, guidance, and spiritual transformation. It signifies the journey, with its lines converging towards Santiago de Compostela, and symbolizes the interconnectedness of pilgrims. Historically, it served as a practical tool for pilgrims to eat and drink, and has become a widely recognized emblem of the Camino, used on markers and worn by pilgrims. We have one hanging on our packs. 

It is very quiet today and we don’t come across many pilgrims although as we rest beside a church an Australian passes and stops for a chat. Deb from Melbourne on her second Camino, walked 37 km yesterday. Wow! When I hear things like this it can make me feel a bit pathetic when I’m struggling to walk 18km. But comparison is the thief of joy and I have to be grateful that my body is allowing me to do this at all. 

The rest of our walk took us through more lovely countryside and small villages where there were more shrines at frequent intervals along the way. Some are decorated with colourful ribbons, prayer cards, a pair of boots, signs, a small stuffed animal, shells, statues, flowers, photos, a rosary, bits of this and that. 

At one point, walking over a pass between valleys, we came upon what can only be described as a Fairy Glen; on the lefthand side, the forest filled with wild calla lilies…

… on the righthand side the orange-yellow trumpets flowers you see in the picture below, faces turned down towards us. It was magical, and refreshing, and unphotographable.

Quiet paths, byways and cobbled tracks, peaceful landscapes, woodlands, vineyards and quaint Portuguese villages with rich histories and legends.

There were sections where trees provide some shade, but others where the sun was beating straight down on us and as the day went on and got hotter, it became more and more difficult. And we ran out of water. There had been no bathrooms, no shops, no cafes or bars at all today… and suddenly… like an oasis in the desert, there was an esky outside someone’s home with bottles of water and a donation tin.

We couldn’t have been more grateful and gulped that precious liquid before making our last push towards Ponte de Lima. 

The Camino always provides. 

At one point we were under a grapevine arbour walkway and of course, more cobblestones. And then… an ethereal entry to Ponte as elegantly arching sycamore trees made a stunning sun-dappled veil overhead like a shimmering illusion. To overheated exhausted pilgrims, it was so welcome. There was a huge market under the trees along the river and we walked through the middle, not even looking, just wanting to get to our hotel as quickly as possible.

We could see in the distance  the famous Roman bridge from which the town gets its name. 

The oldest village in Portugal, Ponte de Lima, turned out to be just lovely… after showers and rest. And we have a great view from our room.

Full of character and charm…

… the town sits on the slow-flowing Lima River, and has been the primary river crossing since the Romans constructed a bridge here in 1AD. The age of the town is reflected in a delightful assortment of medieval houses, pretty plazas and ancient religious buildings throughout the town… and it has stunning natural scenery, which all together creates a wonderful little town.

We make ourselves presentable and go out for a wine. We google restaurants nearby and read the reviews and decide on a little tapas place. When we put it into google maps, we realise we are already sitting in it having our wine.

So we stay for dinner and head home for bed. It is nearly sunset and we aren’t usually around at this time, so I leave Anne to go to bed and go out to watch the sunset- nothing spectacular but such a pretty place. 

I also decide to get up soon after sunrise. I knew it would take a while for the suns rays to actually come over the town and hit the gorgeous old bridge- just beautiful. 

We have a rest day today, planned months ago for practical reasons… but another little blessing of the Camino as today is forecast to be around 37° and I would hate to have been walking in that heat… yesterday at 34° was bad enough. We spend the day resting and doing chores- washing clothes✔️…bank ✔️… send parcel home to lighten my main pack✔️… chemist for more nurofen, chapstick and something for my hikers rash (yes it’s a real thing)✔️

And I do a little exploring through the town and visit some of the churches.

I’m actually disappointed to be leaving this town tomorrow. Preparations are being made everywhere for the Corpus Christi “party” that starts tomorrow night and goes into the next day. It’s actually hard to envisage this place in party mode as it is such a quiet town. But there are lights and sound systems being set up all over town and huge bars ready for copious amounts of drinks. They are testing one of the sound systems as I write. Apparently people come in from towns for miles. It’s a pity to miss it although we had plenty of music blasting in the middle of the night in Lisbon. What would have been a huge highlight would have been to see the streets of the historic center adorned with intricate floral carpets, created by residents using flowers, sawdust, and other materials. The carpets are made for the Corpus Christi procession, where the Blessed Sacrament is carried through the town.  

I remember being in Guatemala for something similar and it was amazing. 

Anyway, it is not possible at this stage and it’s a new adventure for us again tomorrow as we head into Spain. 

Steps today- 30,328

Kilometres today- 20.39

Floors climbed- 14

Temperature- 34°

Some of the wildflowers today