Day 2 on the Caminho – Barcelos to Vittorino de Paies
We woke up for our first day of walking to meet a drizzly morning. We were undaunted – each of us was equipped one way or another with rain gear – DM had a voluminous poncho which was parr of the swag from one of her cruises, I had my lightweight hooded gown courtesy of a Maid of the Mist tour at Niagara Falls, M and B had more elegant fitted jackets and backpack covers. D even unfurled her umbrella, but the rest of us decided to keep our hands free.
One of the few miscalculations M made in her planning was to have us start off with one of the longest hikes, Barcelos to Vitorino dos Paies. We started off through the center of Barcelos, which we had explored the evening before, spent some time in the suburbs, and finally reached open country. (M agreed later that we could easily have hopped a taxi and skipped the suburbs, though if you want to learn a country the suburbs count too.)
Along the way there were plenty of accomodations for pilgrims. We learned to be alert for the scallop shells in the pavement or bright blue and gold signs, whether to announce a meal opportunity or sanitary facilities.
After seven miles, (broken by lunch and snack breaks) we limped into Postela ready to sit and soak our feet. Despite two layers of socks I still had a blister forming on my left big toe and the toenails on both my little toes were turning blue.