Monday, May 27, 2024 – Ponte de Lima to Rubias

Travel Blog 2 Minutes

Last night the front desk clerk mentioned that they had a complimentary breakfast starting at 7:30 AM. I wanted to get out on the Way early but he told me that I should stick around for breakfast. A normal hotel breakfast is toast with a tomato spread. Boy am I glad I heeded the front desk clerk’s advice and waited until they put out the breakfast buffet.

After I went through the buffet line and loaded up on fruit and cheese and ham and yogurt and pasteries, a nice young woman asked me if I would like some scrambled eggs and bacon. I was pretty full by then but of course I said yes. It took some effort but I cleaned my plate and then wadled out to the Way.
Yesterday afternoon there was a Portuguese folk music festival along the river near my hotel. The Portuguese love to dress up in folk costumes and celebrate their musical heritage. It sounded like a lot of caterwauling to me but what do I know about Portuguese folk music.
This is an old Roman bridge that we had to cross to exit Ponte de Lima.
This is the municipal alburgue on the other side of the bridge. No sheets or towels or blankets or massages or steam rooms or jacuzzis. That is barbaric!

The first half of the walk was a pleasant stroll through vineyards and farm fields. The second half was a grueling hike up a big hill on a very rocky treacherous path.

What are you looking at?
Beautiful waterfall.
This is an old water powered grist mill.
This is John and Ann. He is a retired family practice doctor and she manages their home. I walked with them for the second half of the day and really enjoyed their company. They are devout Catholics and they are on a pilgrimage not just a hike. Good for them!

I finally got to my alburgue, The Nest, at about 3:30. The owner greeted me with a beer and showed me to the bottom bunk she has been saving for me.

My bottom bunk. This place is really nice.
This is the dining room table where we will all be eating dinner in a couple of hours. I am getting really hungry.
The group dinner at the nest.
Chicken and rice.
This is the kitchen crew. Marlene owns the alburgue and Domingo who helps in the kitchen. I helped with the cleanup by drying the dishes. I only broke one dish.
Another evening of drinking with the boyfriend of the alburgue owner. His name is Antonio. What was I thinking!

I decided to play it smart and call it a night at 10:00 PM. No more hungover death marches for this pilgrim.

That’s it from Rubias, Portugal. I hope you are having a great day wherever you are.

Steps walked – 31,309

Kilometers walked – 25.2

Flights of stairs climbed – 73

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Published by abeandmarkonthecamino

I've been retired from the Union Pacific Railroad since 2017. I've been planning to walk the Camino for about 6 months and can't wait to get started.

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One thought on “Monday, May 27, 2024 – Ponte de Lima to Rubias”

  1. I look Forward to your commentary every day. How many days do you have left to complete your journey?  Have safe travels and know you are

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