After a night of feasting and playing pool, we slept like teenagers. No chance of getting up earlier than 7am. It’s a good thing we’re not staying in Albergues or Hostels because they would kick us out. Everyone is up at 6am and out the door by 7am. We finally packed up and made it to the Cafe by 8:00am. Just in time for the church crowd.

We had our typical double espresso with a shot of milk and croissants. It’s a jolt of caffeine and some carbs to get us moving in the morning. Today we had a calm cool day. No rain to speak of, literally no wind, just cloudy skies and perfect walking temperature.

The scenery was pleasant. Beach for the first few miles, then inland for most the day. Even though we are on the Coastal Route, it’s not all coastline. We headed to the base of the mountains and climbed a few bumps on the road. George broke out his hiking sticks and that seemed to power him up like a flying beast!

The villages were plentiful with lots of people milling around, bicyclists were, well biking, and we saw a couple of Pilgrims. In fact I saw my first family, Mom and Dad pushing a toddler along the Camino. In the States, I see a lot of families backpacking but not many Piligrinos with children.

The churches appear to be getting even more frequent, with each village having several. Some are newer but not like United States standards. So many were built in the 10-12th Century and the villages we are passing through have more modern churches built in 18-19th Century. They still have the same style, almost Mission-Style but with newer plaster.

We passed through many backyard gardens, with tons of squash and pumpkins. Of course kale and tomatoes were growing too. What was so beautiful today was the fact we were maybe 500’ above the ocean, with small mountains behind. The villages had gorgeous views of both ocean and mountains. It was quite a paradise in Belinho, Antes and Feital. All small villages but each had Cafes, Mercados (Family Markets) and some sort of hanging out spot. The Portuguese like to just sit and talk. And I think they love watching Pilgrims pass by. Buen Camino is the phrase they use to greet us. Have a good journey.

We stopped in a one-horse town of R.M. Rio de Moinhos. This has the first Biker Bar I’ve seen in Portugal. There was a sign for Pilgrim Stamps and I thought it was for this fine establishment called T.T. Bar. When I looked inside, all the guys were dressed in Leathers and didn’t appear to have a stamp for my Passport. I’m sure they could’ve devised one quickly but I figured I best not wait on that. I shuffled out the Bar Door and continued on.

We did make our way to a Delta Cafe and had our customary noontime hops with a bag of homemade potato chips. That carried us up and over the afternoon hill. We actually turned off the road and walked on a real dirt trail today. It was lined with pines and eucalyptus trees and the Rio Neive was flowing. There was a small waterfall and good amount of water that they constructed a rock bridge over the river crossing.

Once we made our crossing, we headed back west to the ocean. It was a bit of an off-shoot and no real trail markings to rely on. We meandered through a small town which looked abandoned but still had cats and dogs before making it back to the roadway. These villages always have some bit of charm to them, whether it is the homes that were built before time or the fact that Mother-Nature has reclaimed them. The amount of homes that have vines overtaking them surprises me.

Our feet finally landed back on the Coastline with no Boardwalk. This was purely compass-bearing walking. The town was north of us and the only thing separating us from Amorosa Beach was the beach itself. So off we went making our own trail.

This is what I’ve been waiting for. There was a creek that would eventually make its way to the ocean so as long as we stayed on the south side of it, we were good. Sure enough, we climbed up and over a few dunes and mounds of sand, and the big, not so blue, Atlantic Ocean, showed herself. It was a great ending to a perfect day.

We walked the beach for close to a mile before finding stairs that took us to the town of Amorosa . I think the stairs was the end of George’s day. That sealed the deal and it was time to get to our home for the night. Google Maps got us most of the way. This time we were only a quarter of a mile and we made a call to our host. She walked over to the Cafe and navigated us the last bit.

We settled in, unloaded our gear and prepared for a night on the town. Well there’s not much of a town but a square. Yet we landed on a great Seafood Place called Magma Caffe. It’s really part Wine Bar and part Seafood extravaganza. When we sat down, the waitress brought over two plates of appetizers and a bag of bread. I looked at George and thought if we eat this, why order dinner?

The waitress came back with some type of Pizza Appetizer and that’s when I explained to her that we didn’t order this. She promptly took everything away and we started over. Now we can order what we want. They had a Surf & Turf that sounded amazing. She asked me if it was for me or both of us? I’m thinking do I look like I can eat all of that myself? But then I am a big American and we are known for eating a lot. I tried my best to say that we would share the meal.

When it came, we could’ve shared the meal with a small army! It included a pound of mussels, pound of shrimp, sausages, meat, chicken, black beans & rice, potatoes and salad. Oh boy, good thing we saved our appetite because this will finish us off! It was scrumptious. No dessert tonight but we did follow it up with coffee and a Take-Away box, as they call it.

Thank goodness we had a bit of a walk back. Another outstanding meal. The Portuguese have food dialed up a notch over the Americans. And the price is within reach of most. Restaurants are typically full, at least by the time George and I are finished. We are typically the first to arrive for dinner around 7:30-8:00pm as most of the locals show up around 8:30-9:00pm. This works good for us since we don’t need to make reservations being most of the Portuguese are still walking to the Restaurant while we are eating dinner. It works well.

Tomorrow we will pickup the pace and attempt more like 15-16 miles, rather than 12-14. This means an alarm clock. Oh no! There’s a new sheriff in town and it’s time to get on the trail before nine! May the sweet Lord give us plenty of rest so we can wake-up refreshed and ready to hit the trail running! Well maybe just walking with a pep in our step!