What a great day in Santarem. It all began with breakfast being delivered to our Apartment. What a novel idea. A gal dropped off a basket with coffee, tea, juice, and sandwiches (meat and cheese on a roll).

Our new friend Briosa picked us up and gave the Baraga’s an unofficial tour of the city. First stop was Decathalon, Europes version of REI. George is having issues with his backpack and was hoping to find a better fitting pack. Unfortunately, Decathalon caters to a one-size fits all, so after trying on every pack that Decathalon has, he walked out with the same pack he walked n with. But George did find a foam pad, some shoe inserts and replaced his bandana. So not all was lost.

Briosa took us to a hole-in-the-wall restaurant which is obviously, not a secret to the locals. We arrived and went upstairs as downstairs was filled up. We had the traditional Portuguese Flair of snails, conk, crab, shrimp, octopus and roe. So, this may not sound absolutely amazing but until you try it, don’t knock it. What I am finding is it comes down to the preparation. It was so tasty, and George consumed it like a local!

After having our scrumptious lunch, we stopped at the University to see the one of a kind Portuguese Horse. The Sorraia is a rare breed of horse indigenous to the portion of the Iberian peninsula, in the Sorraia River basin, in Portugal. The Sorraia is known for its primitive features, including a convex profile and dun coloring with primitive markings.

Afterwards we drove to the Castle where Conquistador King Afonso Henriques conquered Santarem. Once I saw the walls that surrounded this fortress of a castle, it was obvious how the Moors would’ve been easy prey to the Portuguese.

Our tour continued to a Bull Fighting Bar that is definitely a local hang out. There were the two elders who have their own table. They sit and drink red wine and watch the news. The boys from the Uni (University) came in to drink and eat. There was an overflow table from lunch who were still talking hours later, and whomever else was in the back rooms. We had white wine spritzer which was perfect with our bread, olives and cheese. I felt that we were in! Hanging with a local allows you special privileges like the special table and drinks that aren’t on the menu. We talked about life in Portugal, where to live and what it costs. Mostly everything but maybe gas is half the price compared to the states. And that reflects in salary. The average yearly salary might be $50K and the minimum wage is $780 monthly. So it goes without saying, Anerican’s can do pretty well here.

The day was incredible, much more than anything George and I could’ve imagined or expected. We had dinner, went back to the castle at night and explored the Cathedral Square. All in all it was one of the nicest days we’ve had in Portugal.

When we woke up, breakfast was delivered again. It’s like Room Service without the price. Today we made the decision to jump ahead. With the heat, and the fact we really want to visit Fatima, which is off the trail, we walked to the Train Station and bought a one-way ticket to Tomar. There goes our dreams of a Purist Pilgrimage. Maybe we can revisit that in Porto.

The train was a quick one plus hour ride and we were in a new town. Tomar has a rich history connected to the Knights Templar in Portugal. It was their order which saw the construction of the Convento do Cristo, though one suspects it didn’t get that exact name until the Templars were dissolved and the stronghold fell to the Knights of the Order of Christ. Both were military orders, and although the name of the order changed, many of the members did not. Both are buried in the Church of Santa Maria do Olival on the other side of the river.

We found our room at the Hostel 2300 Thomar. We saw our friends Luisa, gal from Holland and Rudy from Germany. It’s amazing how you keep seeing the same Pilgrims time and time again. George and I dropped our packs and headed up the hillside to the Convert of Christ. It is a beautiful castle that sits on the highest point in the city. The views from above were outstanding. They are doing much refurbishing but the gates are wide open so one can walk the grounds. The one thing I’ve noticed is these Castles, Convents, Parks and Churches are free. No one asked us for anything!

We headed back to town, had our customary beer with Luisa and Ann. We talked about our future plans for the trail. Luisa will beat feet out of here early in the morning. George and I will take a bus to Fatima and Ann will relax in town. We had dinner and returned to our humble abode.

With our short time here, the past week has been full of surprises and we have met such wonderful friends along the way. I truly believe that there are incredible people everywhere you venture, you just need to be open to making time to stop and chat. Languages do not seem to be a barrier. Even if we don’t speak the same, we can always understand one another. It truly is magical! Another reason to allow yourself to explore what our Lord has created. His people are truly the best gift of all.