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13 August Redondela,
Spain – Viana do Castelo, Portugal -
95 km
It was only 35 km to Tui and
the Portuguese border. The weather was
excellent: nice and hot and even a bit of a
tailwind. After stopping for coffee in Tui, I
crossed the river and entered Portugal. As
always, I was excited to see what a new country
would bring. My first town was Valença and so my
impression of Portugal will always be one of
cobblestone streets. I continued along the coast
and was once again amazed that you can
experience a whole new culture simply by
crossing to the other side of a river! It wasn’t
long before I spotted fruit stalls along the
way. I must have been thirsty because once I
spotted the juicy looking peaches I had to have
myself some of them. I stopped under the nearest
tree and scoffed the whole lot.
I followed the N13 which is a
brand new road so is a pleasure to cycle on as
it has a nice wide shoulder. I arrived in Viana
do Castelo and was pleasantly surprised to find
an interesting city with an old fort, historic
centre, old churches and a lively festival
underway.
Just across the river I found
an interesting campsite, which was more like a
farm with plenty of animals. The showers were
converted horse stables and were huge!! One
could have had quite a party in there…
14 August Viana do Castelo
– Porto - 70 km
The previous night the
fireworks carried on until 3 in the morning, so
I only woke up after 8 and the campsite was
still as quiet as a mouse. It made me wonder if
there was perhaps a time change, I should find
out - it would make a lot of sense.
It was an overcast morning as
I took my tent down and loaded up the bike. A
fine drizzle set in as I pedaled along the
coast. The Sunday market was in full swing along
the road. The narrow coastal road was jam-packed
with what appeared to be city slickers in their
fancy convertibles. All seemingly out to buy
some of the nice fresh, home-grown veggies being
sold along the way.
I had my first flat tyre in
Europe. I don’t know how I do it but fixing a
flat tyre always leaves me covered in grease!
Once I reached Porto I
followed the road signs for “centro” and was
once again surprised to find a historic centre.
I was blown away by the spectacle of it all. I
soon found out that it has been declared a World
Heritage Site by UNESCO. I also found out that
port wine is named after the city as this is the
region where port was first produced. It was
time to go and taste the good stuff. I suppose
that’s the beauty of travelling without a
guidebook: everything is a surprise.
15 August - Porto
I was up early to explore the
city further. I first popped into the historic
railway station, which is still in full use, and
I found the most beautiful railway station I
have seen to date. The walls were lined with
tile panels depicting the early history of
Portugal.
A trip to the harbour
revealed narrow alleys flooded with the smell
and smoke of fish-braais. The fresh catch of the
day was on the coals and ready to be devoured.
The seagulls no doubt knew what was going on as
thousands were hovering over the area.
Further along the beach,
fishermen were casting their lines, all trying
their luck. Most, however, seemed unlucky
although I could spot fish swimming in the ocean
with the naked eye. The beaches were packed as
it was a lovely sunny day and a public holiday
as well.
Back in my room and browsing
through my pictures, I realised that people
could easily get the wrong idea about Portugal.
Portugal is actually quite a modern country with
loads of modern buildings designed by famous
architects, both local and foreign. It’s just
that I’m so taken with old buildings that I
hardly ever take pictures of the modern stuff.
They just don’t seem that interesting to me. The
same goes for the smoky fish-braais in the back
alleys: they are far more interesting than the
glitzy restaurants in the city centre.
16 August - Porto – Ilhavo
- 88 km
I ate breakfast at the hotel
before I left. It was an easy day’s riding along
the coast, past the nice beaches of Valadares
and Espinho. It was holiday time and people were
out cycling and running along the beach front.
This is still the Atlantic Ocean so I don’t
think the water is very warm - I didn’t see
people just running into the ocean, but entering
rather slowly instead… I reached Aveiro with its
many canals, colourful boats and old churches.
It was all very touristy and there were no
camping facilities to be found. The nearest
camping area was 10 km along the highway so I
continued along the road to Ilhavo. I still
couldn’t find any camping though and there was
only one very expensive hotel so I just paid the
money and enjoyed a bath, TV and room with a
balcony!!!
17 August - Ilhavo –
Coimbra - 65 km
Included in the hefty room
rate was a lovely breakfast spread. Whatever you
could think of was there, but unfortunately one
can only eat so much. I knew it was a short ride
to Coimbra so I took my time in packing up.
Along the way a friendly local cyclist caught up
with me and gave me plenty of information about
the area. We even stopped and raided a fig tree
along the way, which he seemed quite happy to
do. I always know it’s time for a reality check
when people say “You can come and shower at my
place!” - definitely time to do laundry again!
Eventually it was time for him to turn off and I
continued down the road in the direction of
Coimbra.
Once in Coimbra I took a room
again as the campsite seemed quite far out of
town, so it was my second night in pricey
accommodation. I wasted no time in setting off
to explore the well-known city of Coimbra.
Coimbra has a history dating back to the Middle
Ages so there was plenty to see. Even more
well-known is the University, which is situated
high up on the hill and surrounded by narrow
cobblestone alleys with niches and steep
staircases.
18-19 August - Coimbra –
Nazare - 100 km
Of course I had breakfast at
the hotel before setting off in the direction of
Nazare, a beach town along the coast. It was an
uneventful day on the road. By then I had been
totally spoilt for views so what I would
normally have considered a good ride, I now
described as “uneventful”.
As usual, I dreaded getting
to my final destination. I felt I was going
slower and slower in order to avoid the
inevitable. After feeling particularly strong
(both mentally and physically) in the past few
months, I found it hard to deal with feeling
lethargic. On arrival at Nazare I took the first
campsite I saw.
The next morning I woke and
found I had little energy to load my bike. With
plenty of time on hand before my visa ran out, I
made the decision to stay another day. It’s
quite amazing how one can do absolutely nothing
for an entire day. Although it was a very nice
campsite, the flies bothered me endlessly. It
was already way past their bedtime, but despite
the hour the sun was still high in the sky. In
order to get away from the flies, I took the
bike and went for a ride. The views were too
hazy for taking pictures so I returned to my
fly-infested campsite. I sat people-watching
while having a glass of wine and realised, once
again, just how similar people are all over the
world.
20 August - Nazare -
Obidas - 42 km
Back on the bike I followed
the coastal road towards Lisbon. I even bumped
into my cycle friend from 3 days ago. This time
he was in a car, so we had a quick chat and then
I was on my way again.
My first stop was at Caldas
da Rainha where I nearly stayed as it is such a
picturesque village. The Saturday market was in
full swing and the cobbled alleys, where people
sat at sidewalk cafes, looked very inviting. I
continued however and a good thing too, as I
soon spotted the ancient walled city of Obidos,
high up on a hill. I could not get myself to
cycle past without stopping, so I booked into a
rather expensive room. Although touristy, it was
worth every cent. The city has a history dating
back to BC and has changed hands many times over
the years. Today it is considered one of the 7
wonders of Portugal and rightly so. I wandered
around taking a zillion pictures, ate small
“milk tarts” till they came out my ears and
drank liqueur out of small chocolate cups: now
that’s what I call a good day!!
21 August - Obidas –
Ericeira - 60 km
I did not anticipate this
day’s ride being so hard. It was fairly hilly
but worse, there was a strong headwind. Once
along the coast it was great as the views were
stunning, but views like that do not come
without climbing up a hill or two.
Due to the strong wind I
camped early at Ericeira which had a nice
campsite with all the facilities I could wish
for.
22 August - Ericeira –
Cascais - 50 km
I packed up in a fine drizzle
for the final cycle into Cascais. The road led
me past Sintra, another interesting town.
Finally I arrived in Cascais, where my friend
Carlos lives. I have known Carlos for many years
since our days of working together at Syfrets
Trust in Cape Town, South Africa. Today Carlos
is living with his wife, Melody, and her two
beautiful daughters, in Cascais. They have a
beautiful home high up on a hill overlooking the
coast. I was shown to a large comfortable room
where I could spread out (what luxury!!).
That night Carlos, in true
South African style, lit a fire and we had a
real SA braai with “boerewors” made by a South
African now living in Portugal.
The following day we took my
bike to the bike shop for a service and to be
boxed for the flight to Rio. I also booked my
flight to Rio for the 27th, giving me
a few days of R&R in Cascais.
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