The world before Porto from the eyes of a walker. Always some interesting folk. A bar owner who loves his soccer. Apparently, a whole school decides to walk a mile of the Camino. Sometimes the towns themselves provide interesting scenery. Umbrellas down the main pedestrian street. Nice. Although not nearly as many words and slogans …
Author: sabbatical2017blog
106. Before Porto: Trails, Signs, Altar Shrines, and Fountains
The Portuguese Camino has two distinctive geographic regions. The route from Lisbon to Porto takes a route along the Tagus River and into the center of southern Portugal; the route from Porto to the border with Spain has a route that follows along the ocean. Two very distinctive parts of the country. As I've already …
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105. New Acquaintances
One of the highlights of walking a Camino centers around meeting people from around the world. The Portuguese Camino is no different. I meet a woman from my Scandinavian ancestry; I meet a woman who knows good friends in Atlanta! Lisa is from Sweden like my paternal ancestors. An older woman who was rather upset …
104. Finding a Rhythm with New Surroundings
I'm finding a rhythm. I'm finding that I can appreciate the newness around me. The first few days of walking are rough. Getting lost. Adjusting to the heat. Dodging speeding cars and trucks. Yuck! I find that for a couple of days I woke up with a feeling of dis-ease. I'm not dreading the day, …
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103. Santarem’s Cathedral with a Twist
Historically, the Hebrew and Christian scriptures have been interpreted as supporting patriarchy. This dominant interpretive reading has the effect of overlooking passages that stress gender equality as well as passages that portray strong women. In other words, passages like Galatians "there are neither male nor female" or stories about women such as Ruth are overlooked. …
102. The First Few Days after Lisbon
The days start lovely; the days end with me shaking my head! Such are the first few days beyond Lisbon. The Portuguese Camino begins at the Church of Santiago, or the Igreja de Santiago. Like everybody else, I initially assumed that the Camino begins at the Cathedral. Not so. My first morning is ideal, blue …
101. Lisbon
I am surprised in a wonderful way! Having never visited Lisbon, I find that the city is delightful. Since my lodging is close to the Cathedral, I am perched high above the city and the River Tagus. In order to adjust to the new time zone, I am spending two nights here before I begin …
100. Walking the Camino Portuguese
I am planning another Camino, the Camino Portuguese. I'll be walking from Lisbon to Santiago de Compostela, almost 240 miles. Here is some history and legend associated with the Camino de Santiago. According to church legends of St. James, St. James was beheaded in Jerusalem in 44 CE. Some of his companions take his stone …
99. Memorials of Ypres
My paternal grandfather was a bookbinder. As a young kid, I remember leafing through two volumes of World War I photos. Besides parades sending young men to war, the training camps, the volumes had the victims of war such as the young amputees or the men blinded by poison gas. Since I have now visited …
98. Hanging Around the Church of the Holy Sepulchre
I visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre whenever I’m in the neighborhood. I know that sounds strange, but I like seeing the building and the visitors at various times of the day. It isn’t as though I’m enamored with the building. The building is a “let-down” if you expect London's St. Pauls or …
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