Distance: 20.0km (394.7km), time spent: 5:58.
Weather: A variation of misty, sunny and overcast.
Today was one of those days on a Camino where I woke up and found that my clothes was not completely dry after having washed them the day before. I start the day by trying to visit the monastery for a second time. This time, it is open, but I have to be quick as there is a mass about to start. I even get a stamp from the monastery before I have to go. It is yet another morning with overcast weather, a sign that I am approaching the coast maybe.
The cloister garden of the Mosteiro de Grijó.
Inside the church of the Mosteiro de Grijó.
I eat breakfast together with Joan and Paige in a local bar. I feel you can say something about something when you see the locals having a beer already at this time of the day. Joan has decided to take a taxi to Porto, as she has felt some pain and thinks her body needs a little rest, so Paige and I walk together towards Porto. We do not have to walk long before I understand that Paige really likes cats and the Portuguese tiles.
Mosteiro de Grijó on tiles.
Another set of tiles with patterns.
Usually the walk into any big city on a Camino is less exciting, and so it is with Porto too, I had been warned that the walk would not be that interesting today. Not all of that is true, for the walk over the Serra de Negrelos is beautiful. Here, the Camino follows an ancient Roman path through a scenic forest, with old stone walls alongside the path and trees sometimes hanging over it. All in a lovely light, for the sun decided to appear just as we began the walk into the woods. What better time to arrive? It had been nothing but a grey and sad color on the sky before Serra de Negrelos.
Igreja de Perosinho.
A flower loving cat.
We find a café in Rechousa, with the weather changing again. When we walked into the café it was sunny outside, when we walk out it has become grey and sad again. The clouds are even sadder than before, and lower on the sky too. For the remaining walk to Porto it may not mean much, but I would like to arrive to see the city under a blue sky. I have no idea if the clouds are hiding something from our eyes, if they are making the walk less or more exciting.
Camino waymarker, scallopp cobblestones.
The ancient Roman path leading up into the Serra de Negrelos.
Before we will arrive at the heart of Porto next to the Douro river, we will have to go a long walk through the suburbs of Porto. There is no lack of motivation though, we know what is at the end of the line. We are getting a little bit distracted by the numerous tiles we pass by, I share Paige's fascination of them, and by the sometimes lacking waymarks causing us to take wrong turns several times. Seeing Porto coming to view for the first time is a little bit special, knowing that I have now finished the first part of the Camino Portugués.
Serra de Negrelos.
Escola de Pinheiro Memorial Arch outside Porto.
Although the hope was a clear blue sky when arriving, I must confess that it does not matter. We go up to the viewpoint next to the Mosteiro da Serra do Pilar, a national monument and UNESCO world heritage site. The view over Porto is magnificent, and somehow the clouds are playing a wonderful part in it too. Though, I do know why. It is about to lift, there is a blue hue slowly spreading across the sky as the layers of clouds appear to become thinner. Porto looks like a beautiful city divided by the Douro river. The Ponte D Luís I bridge is nothing but impressive and in the distance I can see another impressive bridge too, Ponte da Arrábida. So I made it to Porto after thirteen days of walking. It does feel kind of stranger after setting out from Lisboa.
Approaching Porto in the fog, a lost gate bids us welcome.
A flower and vine clad valley beneath the Camino.
As we walk over the bridge, the clouds are dispersing and blue sky is appearing. Paige and I go to the cathedral, Sé do Porto, from there our ways separate. At least for a very short while. She has been a pleasant walking companion. While she and Joan are staying at the Bluesocks hostel, I had not booked any place to stay. In the end, I end up at the same place, after trying to get a place to stay at some other places first. One place had a bed for me, but I had to change room if I wanted to stay for two nights. A check at another place yields nothing, so I return to the first place telling them I take the bed(s). Have to wait to 15 o'clock to check in, so I go for a cold cerveja while I wait. When I am back at the place at 15 o'clock, they tell me that there are no beds available. I feel annoyed wasting time on this. Do not ask why I did not just go straight to the Bluesocks hostel, I ask that myself. It is a nice hostel.
Mosteiro da Serra do Pilar.
Porto.
Then it is time to explore Porto, or Portus Cale as it was known to the Romans. I have good time, with two days at my disposal, so I take it slow. I meet Joan and Paige who are at the point of being ecstatic about their lunch. We all are eager for icecream, but where to get it? Then I spot a Camino waymarker, and it points right towards a signboard advertising for icecream. We pilgrims truly need our yellow arrows to find what we need. Afterwards, Joan and Paige has some errands to do, so I continue on alone. We agree to meet up later for dinner.
Porto with the Torre dos Clérigos (and a seagull).
Porto waterfront houses.
There is a little bit of a system shock getting to Porto after all those days on a very quiet Camino. The city is bustling with people, a lot of tourists. And as I am, they converge on the riverfront, which is wonderful. I love the narrow, colorful and old buildings stacked next to each other there. As clouds again reappear on the sky from the south, I make my way back up to the cathedral once more. Outside, a company of some sort is dancing. I make my way through the tiny and narrow streets, admiring the tiles and various street art that I find. By chance visiting the Mosteiro de São Bento da Vitória. I end my tour walking past the towering Torre dos Clérigos.
Returning clouds over the city.
Porto seen from a mirador near the Mosteiro de São Bento da Vitória.
Paige is a vegetarian, and that has proven to be a little bit of a problem when doing the Camino Portugués. However, she had got a tip of a great vegan place here in Porto, Da Terra, so we go there for dinner. She is super happy, and I am happy for it. Normally, I do like to have some meat for my meal, but the food does taste good. And Joan and Paige are a great company too.
Decoration inside Mosteiro de São Bento da Vitória.
Ornamented door and its reflection in Mosteiro de São Bento da Vitória.
After I arrived in Porto, I have seen more pilgrims than I saw in total on the whole way from Lisboa, but they have not been walking from Lisboa. Porto is a lot more popular starting point than Lisboa. However, the majority of pilgrims doing the Camino Portugués are starting from Tui. So, there will be a large crowd on the last section to Santiago.
Modern and old world meet, Torre dos Clérigos.
The evening gets by. The light from the viewpoint and Mosteiro da Serra do Pilar are reflecting on the water of the Douro river. Lots of life and people next to the waterfront. Looking across the river, I think it is about 400k since I left Lisboa.
Porto and the river Douro in the evening.
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