Camino Day -2: Journey

Getting from California to Porto, Portugal

“Today” (this is but a concept with long international travel) was filled with travel from my home in California to Porto, where I’ll start my Camino the day after tomorrow. This morning I drove 3 hrs to a friend’s house, got a ride to SFO airport (thank you! 🙏), flew to Lisbon, took a short metro ride to the train station, then took a train to Porto. Below are a few notes from my journey. I kinda like this casual style. Let’s see if it sticks!

Boarding shortly. No obvious Camino walkers in sight at the airport, sadly. I kinda hoped I’d see one. Surely that will change once I reach Lisbon- or at least in Porto? Maybe not as it’s low season (rainy)?

Immediately after boarding I am wishing the flight were already over as 10.5 hrs is certainly a long slog in coach. But I am also super eager for wheels-up! I felt a very powerful positive emotion once they announced boarding was complete. Exciting! That said, part of me thinks I need to be in Porto for that to really hit me. Right now it could be just any other trip, right?

Taking off - it’s real now! Feels like taking a big step forward. Really excited and hey - the seat next to mine is empty (victory!), and we only took off a little late. Freely admit I shunned watching award-winning films and elected to rewatch The Hangover 1 and 2 inflight :) At least I also watched nearly all of their “Learn Portuguese” series!

Having some trepidation about what lies ahead but mostly very excited to be landing. Happy that I got a few hours of broken sleep but def still tired. Looking forward to arriving at the hostel this evening and thinking about what it means to finally be in Porto!

Had some very tasty snacks at the Lisbon train station! After my first coffee with bread and cheese, and had another coffee with the classic Portuguese custard pastry Pastel de Nata (under 3€, mind you!). I now understand why so many Camino walkers frequently have this as a hiking snack! I think I will too, and it’s now on my to-do list to learn to make these tasty bites!

Bumped my train to Porto up two hours because I made such good time at the airport. Gonna splurge on some T-Mobile high-speed data because trying to rebook tickets over 2G was awful. We are so spoiled, right? 30 min nap on the train and I feel rested. From the train I saw my first glimpse of the angry surf. It’s been stormy here lately. This caught my interest more than any of the other sights on the ride to Porto. Looking at the weather, I may luck out and not have 100% rain for my first few days walking on the Littoral route (along the coast) before moving inland to the main, Central route. We shall see.

Yay, Porto! Tons of traffic. I thought it would be better on a Sunday but I guess not! The Model Y Uber to the hostel is a nice touch esp given it was under €6! The 10 min ride saves me a 45 min walk though traffic with a downpour clearly imminent.

The hostel (at 50 yrs old, it’s my first) is nice. I had reserved a four-bed room but only top bunks were left. Screw that! I chose a six-bed room instead. The three 20-somethings (a German, an Egyptian, and an American) there with me all seem really nice. None of them are Camino walkers. One is a documentary filmmaker so that’s cool.

I’m writing this (my first blog post from my phone and not my laptop or desktop computer!) over a 2€ glass of vinho verde (as one does) and now that I’m done, I’m gonna find some dinner. Tomorrow, Monday, will provide a nice (and likely rainy) opportunity to get myself on Portuguese time, learn about Porto via some walking tours, and to relax before I walk out onto my Camino on Tuesday. I’m excited!