Day 3 - 25.3km Vila do Conde to Esposende

Ola - another absolutely beautiful day on Day 3 of our Camino. We walked 25.3 km today and varied scenery under the bright sunlight. EVERYONE was up and ready at 7:30 am and started our day off with a fabulous breakfast at our hotel in Vila do Conde and then a new trail for all of us along the Portuguese Coastal route. We spent a better part of the morning walking along a scenic coast, meeting more Canadians along the route. The boardwalk seems to be a common way for the local folk to commute from one village/town to the next and is much safer than walking along the busy roadways. We noticed that in several places on the beach, seaweed was neatly arranged to dry to be later rolled up into large dome-shaped bales. We learned that the locals clear large areas, digging into the terrain and use the dried seaweed as a fertilizer base for vegetable gardens. We saw acres of tomatoes, cabbage, garlic, onions, pumpkins, squash, zucchini, beans, lettuce and so forth (some in various stages of growth). This method appears to work as the gardens appear very fertile and the produce looks delicious. It was all we could to, to not slip down and grab a few tomatoes - but there are those among us that frown from this kind of activity - so we abstained. There were workers in these garden fields on their hands and knees pulling weeds. Tough work!!! Speaking of tough work, we saw how the cobblestone paths were made. Two men were working on a cobblestone pathway and it is all done by hand, right down to hammering the stone into the right size pieces and placing them into a pattern. They were not wearing gloves nor did they have knee pads on their knees. We have a great deal of appreciation for the work that goes into making the cobblestone streets and pathways - all manual labor. What hardworking people!!! We finally found our way to the hostel in Esposende. Fortunately for us, Marilyn our travel booking agent, we were checked into private rooms in the hostel, with our own bathrooms (verses bunk beds and shared facilities). We basically had the patio to ourselves and enjoyed some very fresh mini bread loaves and local wine as we reviewed the events of the day. We found that you cannot judge a book by its cover as we selected the place to have our supper. The outside of the restaurant did no justice to the delicious fish and lamb we enjoyed inside. The vegetables tasted like they had just been picked and prepared freshly from the gardens we passed today! We learned that one in our group developed a sensitivity to their socks and another had their eyes so fixated on the scenery that they are now sporting a tender shoulder as they walked right into one of those large green garbage bins. Most of us have found that the boardwalk or dirt road is easier to walk on than the cobblestone pathway/street, More padded insoles would be helpful as we adjust to the terrain from the roadways. We had some connectivity issues with the local WIFI and I ended up in the eating area of the hostel to try and get a signal. I ended up meeting 7 people on the Camino from Poland - when I found that out, I tried my Polish with them and was surprised and what I knew and could speak. We ended up visiting for several hours (long past my bedtime). What fun - that is what the Camino is about too - meeting people from all over the world. That's all for tonight, till tomorrow.