Then on to Vila Praia da Ancora, Portugal

It never ceases to amaze me that I, who get lost in the supermarket, always manage to somehow reach my destinations when traveling in foreign countries. My children have often expressed their amazement also. 😳

And so it was that I managed to find the train station and wend my way up to the north of Portugal to visit Tracey Ponting, a fellow pilgrim I met a few weeks ago.

She has an attic apartment so of course there were many stairs involved (never any lifts in these old European buildings) but the view from her balcony was fantastic!

No health and safety rules here

I was welcomed with some home made cauliflower and leek soup, cheese, bread and a lovely glass of cold, crisp local wine. Oh my it was so delicious.

I had verbal diarrhoea, I don’t know why, but we chatted for ages and then I went for a walk to the beach to watch the sunset. I made friends with some feral cats hanging around by the fishing nets and I wandered peacefully and thoughtfully along the waters edge. It was truly beautiful. n

My thoughts were mainly of transitioning home to Australia. What a contrast Europe is to Australia. I inhaled the salty air, felt the chilly autumn wind in my face and revelled in the colours of the changing sky. Small boats bobbed in the shallows, dog chased the seagulls and my feet painted a trail of footsteps behind me. Magical moments to capture and hold in memory.

The sunset was so beautiful

After this, I met Tracey for dinner and we decided to treat ourselves to a posh-ish restaurant. We ordered steak and vegetables which was cooked at our table and it was super delicious!!

So much for the ‘Eat, Pray,Love’ type of year…. but I’m enjoying the ‘eat’ part!!! Seem to have stopped there. Oops

So then after a great night’s sleep, brekkie and a wander around the market, I taxied to the next town and caught a bus back to Santiago. What a great little trip that was💪😄

Oh, and I saw lots of Pilgrims as this town is on the Portugues Coastal Camino!