Day 1 - April 28, 2017 - Matasinhos to Vila do Condo

As we began our el Camino, my wife, Nicola and I skip the nine kilometre walk through Porto to the coastal trail. Instead, we take the train to Matasinhos and from here, we need to walk a mere 25 kilometres to Vila do Condo to the hotel where Nicola has booked a room for us for the night. 

We get help from attendant to purchase tickets on the light rail transit that runs through the suburbs and stops every couple of blocks. This is nothing like the gorgeous downtown area with medieval stone buildings and fantastic blue tile mosaics. Instead, developers have decided to build nearly identical five and six story apartment buildings that provide the modern living space in which most people seem to live in this city. It would be Portugal's equivalent to the suburbs that surround our North American cities. 

Len  (me) heading across bridge at beginning of ourx el Camino

As we exit the station in Matasinhos, we see no sign of the ocean. We do spot a couple of girls sporting backpacks, one dressed all in camo wearing calf-height army boots. That's different, I say to Nicola, but I bet she's doing the El Camino. So, we follow her onto a bridge over an estuary that blocks the northern coastline from the city of Porto. Once over, we turn left and spot an El Camino station. It's the office of tourist information, a modern building with large glass windows overlooking the beach 

We pull out our pilgrim passports that Nicola ordered in Canada. They're necessary for those wanting to stay in hostels called albergues available to perigrinos (pilgrims) as they make their way to the destination of their pilgrimage, Santiago de Compostela. The el Camino is Called The Way of St. James, in English because the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela, contains the remains of the apostle. Pilgrims have been making the journey through the Pyrenees since the 11th Century. Queen Isabel made the pilgrimage from Lisbon during her reign between 1271 and 1336. The coastal route that we're following is more recent joining the original trail as it approaches its destination. 

Passports provide proof that a pilgrim has completed the el Camino or a portion thereof  and is thereby eligible for a certificate. Eligibility for a certificate depends on walking at least 100 kilometres of the camino to reach Santiago de Compostela. 

                                                   

Nicola along the boardwalk

Finding the coastal board walk is not difficult because it's right across the street from the tourist information office. Now, all we have to is walk the 24 kilometres to Vila do Condo. 

We're in high spirits as we begin our trek.  Waves crash on the beach of fine, beige sand that extends as far as the eye can see broken only occasionally by rocky outcrops. Nicola comments that the swimming and surfing will be great later in the season as the air and water get warmer. Being April, the flowers are blooming and amazing. Nicola particularly likes the bright red and yellow rubbery flowers of the Cape Fig.  These plants hug the sand as protection from the wind that blasted off the water. It spreads vine-like along the surface feeling its way for possible sources of nutrients.

A huge oil refinery looms across the road  It's dirty and ugly with pipes leading everywhere emitting exhaust into the crystal blue sky and so big it takes us about hour to walk pass. I remind myself that it would also be a prime source of employment in the area. 

An older guy flashes by at a sprightly pace and wishes us our first “bon Camino." Not long after, as we pass the Obelisk de Memorial, we make way for a young couple who give us the same “bon Camino” greeting. I respond with a shy version of my own. Nicola says nothing. We have yet to feel the communal spirit of those who share the trail.

I wonder why they're walking to fast. Shouldn’t they be enjoying the experience, stopping to enjoy the flowers, view and take pictures of the obelisk commemorating the landing of 7500 men sent by Pedro IV’s men from Brazil on July 8, 1832. They were there to aid the liberation of Portugal from French occupation under Napoleon’s armies. 

Refinery

We stop for lunch at the nearby café built right on the beach and I experience the lightness of foot that comes with relieving oneself of a heavy backpack. We find a table with a great view of the ocean and I notice the other patrons, all Portuguese, who pay us no attention whatsoever despite our bedraggled appearance and the large packs we've dump in the corner. The waiter speaks no English but we're able to communicate our desire for a cokes and sandwiches. We sit in silence as we're already tired even though we're not half way there and it's already 1:30.

Memorial Obelisk

Three kilometres up the trail from where we'd enjoyed lunch, we pass the Lavra Angeiras which are replicas of Roman salt tanks that were used to collect and salt fish. The rock tanks are of trapezoid shape embedded in the sand and look functional. I don't bother taking a picture. On a sign, I read that villagers also harvested seaweed in the area to use as fertilizer for the sandy soil. It's a this point that we notice lots of condominiums or time shares built along the coastline. Unlike in North America, these are built well back from the waterline making the entire beach open to the public.

We pass a couple of old fishing villages that are located right along the coast. Fisherman have pulled their brightly painted heavy boats high up on the beach. Most have one or two large outboard motors and are equipped the latest navigational electronics. Brightly painted houses contrast sharply with the beige coloured sand. Lobster pots are piled alongside nets coiled high in the sand with the requisite buoys attached. One fisherman untangles his fishing net while an interested couple from a parked tour bus look on. 

In the second village, we pass an alburgue where we would have stayed had we not made a reservation at a hotel in Vila do Condo. We haven’t rested since eating our short lunch and we're exhausted. Twenty-four kilometres might have been a bit ambitious for the first day. With Vila do Condo well within our sights, we collapse onto chairs at a beachside café and order ice-cream bars, the first I’ve had in years. Absolutely delicious.

Fishing village

With the addition of a coke, we feel energized enough to walk the five kilometres to our hotel. Instead of following the trail, I use Google Maps to direct us on the fastest course. Maybe a mistake. Hard cement and tarmac combined with boring cityscape frustrates us. It seems stupid to be walking where bike or motorcycle transportation makes a whole lot more sense.

We pass few single home dwellings as most people seem to live in condos or apartments with a shared lawn and gardens. I observe one old guy mowing his lawn in bare feet.  It reminds me of my aunt who cut her toes doing the same thing.

After criss-crossing major thoroughfares, we enter a residential area that's not the ordinary location for a hotel. Our facial expressions must have reflected our confusion about the location and weird house numbering because an older woman approaches us wondering if we need help. We tell her and she repeats something back to us. And we see what. And she repeats what she said and I say what and Nicola says yes. She points to a building with an awning covering a walkway from the street to the front door. We nod our okays but she's not convinced of we're looking at the same building so she motions us to follow. At the door, she yells into an empty entranceway with an walnut reception desk at one end.

Waterfront - Villa Conde

An affable, middle-aged gentleman greets us as he enters from a passageway behind the reception desk. After registering, he insists on taking the backpack from Nicola who has been limping badly. He escorts us to a room on the second floor with two twin beds, a single florescent light in the ceiling and a small bathroom with tub, toilet and bidet. We collapse on our respective beds and discuss our prospects for dinner.

We decide on one of Trip Advisor’s highest rated restaurants for the area even though it requires we walk 600 metres, which doesn't sound like much but double it, you get a kilometre more of walking we'd rather do without. Once out, we're immediately energized  by the beautiful surroundings of beautifully restored ancient structures that line the narrow alleys close to the harbour. 

Our destination has a beautiful view of the harbour. Upon entering the restaurant, we feel Nicola's reservation may have been unnecessary until the waitress seats us at one of the few tables with a view. Outside, sailboats are illuminated by the rose-coloured glow of the sunset. Even though we didn't arrive until 7:30, the majority of the restaurant's patrons don't arrive until after 8:00. Perhaps that's the reason we need a good half-hour to attract the attention of the waitress to pay our bill. Despite the pretensions provided by the appearance of an upscale restaurant, the meal was actually very mediocre. Nevertheless, we feel reinvigorated after our first gruelling day of walking.

View from restaurant

After 25 km., time for dinner

Lobster pots, colourful houses