It’s been four months since my first big walking adventure in Portugal/Spain. Already before arriving home from that adventure rised the idea of living another one, this time in Brasil and for a longer period of time. It took me a bit over a month to take the final decision and book a ticket to Sao Paulo and start making it real. You can track my progress and kind of walk with me on: https://happingness.com/caminhodafe/
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Once again I find myself in some kind of paradise. This time it is the city of Paraisópolis, viewing out of the bakery which is on the central square where the Pousada which i am staying at is located as well. It is raining outside which is a fitting setting for this somewhat dreary resting day on the Caminho. It is quite the contrast with the 12 hour adventure i lived yesterday during which i walked just shy of a marathon distance. Read all about it.
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And so I sit here at the viewing point looking out over the small town of Aguas da Prata, birthplace of the Caminho da Fé, and the spot I choose as a place to stop over for a day to give my legs somewhat of a rest. Accompanied by some dark clouds floating by on my right and on my left is good old Christ who seems to be looking out over just about every town in Brasil no matter how small it may be.
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It has been some 40 hours or so since I did not put on my walking boots anymore. The Easter weekend has caused a hickup in my Caminho already so soon along the way. I am already missing out on the daily activity of walking for hours on end but tomorrow I will be back at it again.
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I find myself in a hotel room in Sao Sebastiao do Paraiso as I write this. Some 20 kilometers up the road from where I ended my walk today in a small town called Sao Tomas de Aquíno. My initial plan was to stay there for the night but upon arrival I found out quickly that the hotel which is listed on Google is not functioning as such anymore. “The hotel is closed” says the man sitting on the doorstep of the hotel. It’s the owner whom a bit later explains to me that it’s just not really good business. I had tried calling ahead to see if I could book a room but nobody answered. Now it’s clear why.
He fills up my water bottle with mineral water and is so kinds to arrange a taxi. 10 minutes later I am already in a private car on my way to the next stop on the route to which I thought I would be arriving on foot. The owner of the car is a retired man who has a hard time sitting still and occupies himself with various jobs of which taxi driving is one. We arrive there quickly and I have him take me to a hotel which I had already spotted online.
After washing myself and some of my clothes I decide to go out to get something to eat. The city is quite uninspiring. Maybe it’s because of the weather, it’s raining again. Or maybe because it’s a holiday today, it’s good Friday and that might be somewhat of a deal in a religious country. After finding some closed restaurants and not wanting to struggle any longer today I decide to just go and eat a quick hamburger in the fast food place across the street from the hotel.
Now I am back in the hotel room in between my clothes which are hanging out to dry. Hopefully they will be dry enough to get going again tomorrow. I have armed a drying system involving my walking stick and the hotel room ceiling fan. I feel a bit uncertain now by today’s events: stormy weather and non existing hotels in particular. I am not keen on getting drenched and dirty once again and the forecast says that it will rain during the next few days. Reality will have to tell what kind of rain that will be. And regarding the hotel situation; I have tried to call ahead to tomorrow’s accomodation but again without any luck. Another accommodation that is closed, maybe? I guess I will find out tomorrow.
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I am heading homewards and the magic of the Camino is already wearing of a bit. It’s cold and gray outside as I am watching out of the train window while traveling from Eindhoven Airport to final destination Enschede. As i’ve done many times during the past weeks I have a look at the weather forecast; more coldness and more grayness. But let’s not go there just yet. In this post I will share some post arrival moments to feel the Camino magic just a little bit longer.
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Last day of walking. I don’t really know what to expect of this day. A part of me wants to arrive at destination, another part wants to keep on walking. What will arrival in Santiago feel like? Will it be special or will it be like the most common thing in the world? Only one way to find out.
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I am still on the Spiritual Way today. Will today’s experience be as enlightening as yesterday’s one? Let’s find out in a different manner this time; 4 short stories to describe my day.
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I just want to walk. That’s the feeling with which I start today. I don’t want to look at the weather forecast to see if it will rain or not. I don’t want to check my guidebook once again to see what to expect for the next stage. I don’t want to check the app on my phone to see where I can sleep tonight. It all does not really change anything and all of these routines sometimes get a bit in the way of walking. And today I am a bit tired of them. So today I will just walk.
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Yesterday my walk ended quite early and with a painful foot. I walked with a limp around the town center of Redondela to see if some relaxed walking offered some relief. It doesn’t really. I realize it’s in part because of the large distance I walked after my resting day. Go easy is the mantra I have been repeating to myself during the first part of this trip not really having complied with it. Is this my body repeating the same mantra to me again? Tomorrow I will really try and listen. Will I succeed?
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