Day 4 - 27.2 km from Esposende to Viana do Castelo

Ola - another georgeous day of 25+ weather walking more interior than on the coast. Walking through the delightful woodlands, with the smell of eucalyptus trees and other outdoor smells, we enjoyed the shade and the change of terrain. We walked through many villages, saw more vegetable gardens, grapes (and yes, most of us abstained from eating them) and more farmland. The smell of the country was all around us (barnyard, silage, etc.). We saw a whole driveway covered in shucked corn drying to be made into cornmeal or for POPCORN!! We found many villages and even larger centres had tractors driving right through town! We made several small stops along the way and were always greeted with friendly staff - one cafe owner was so excited we were there, he treated us to local cookies, stamps and special memorabilia. One of our favorite stops, was the was the one for ice cream - it tasted so good in the hot sun. We had the most interesting day - Gerry, we found, has a special way with animals - a type of donkey whisperer you might say. When he saw this forlorn lonely donkey, he went over, petted it and talked to him. The very next thing you knew, the donkey wanted to come home with him and was quite annoyed when the tethering would not let him loose. I think Gerry has a gift with animals. We are learning a lot about other members in our group. Dave, with the agility of a 20 year old lept to his feet to help a young, good looking damsel with the water spigot, almost pushing the others aside. When we needed help, he simply told us to push the spigot harder, maybe it is all about age??? Nevertheless, who said that chivalry is dead? We were pleased that Dave could assist this young lady get the much needed water in the heat of the day. Today, we had sunburns, heat rashes, scraped and stiff limbs, still no one complained of the distance we travelled. We did 27.2 km from the hotel in Esposende to Viana de Costelo, but really - according to my garmin - by the end of the day did 46,400 steps (this is from the morning until we retired for the evening)!!! The terrain varied and we definitely had more of an incline and a bit more rocky than our previous day but we still walked a fair amount on cobblestone. We enjoyed the pathways that we're off the beaten track in the woodlands, more shade and easier on the feet. In the distance we could see Santa Luzia monument, high on a hill over looking the city as we entered Viana de Costelo. We were relieved to be so incredibly close to our final destination for the day - but as we started to cross the bridge, it felt like it would not end. You could not really admire the view as you had to pay attention to where you were walking as it is a very busy bridge - I am certain it was at least a km long!!! We went up the tram to the Monument of Santa Luzia and the view from there was spectacular - it is a very picturesque city along the ocean, the red tiled roofs of the buildings and homes below added to the beauty of the scenery below. We could actually identify where we started our journey today and marvel at how far we had walked. The day ended with tasting local fish, octopus and salmon. The meals were incredibly delicious and abundant. Their supper mealtimes start at 7:30 pm, so for us Canadians, it is a late meal as we head back to our rooms to get the much needed rest for another long day tomorrow (even further distance than today). We are still enjoying each other's company and the journey. Boa noite!