Day 1 - Coimbra to Penacova

So this camino was very much a last-minute decision. I wanted to walk in Italy, from Assisi to Rome. However, the Covid-19 insanity was strong in Italy in the summer of 2021, in particular the legal requirement to wear a mask outdoors at all time. So, one could be half a mile from any other person, but, in order to "protect others" one was still required to stick a piece of cloth over one's face. In temperatures of 30 degrees.

Clearly not tenable so I looked around for other walks and on the Gronze website there was reference to an old Portuguese walk that traditionally started outside the city of Viseu at a small village called Farminhao. However, it's possible to do an extension from Coimbra, which I saw last year. Looking at the Gronze stages it looked pretty straightforward to walk up to the Spanish border in a couple of weeks. So, flight to Porto, car to Coimbra and I found myself once more in front of the most wonderful Romanesque cathedral - Sé Velha - in the heart of the old city.

I arrived a little too late to get my credencial stamped at the cathedral which did worry me somewhat as I had no idea what time I could get a stamp the following morning. But there was a woman standing outside the cathedral and although she said it was closed, when I explained my need for a stamp, all changed. She waved to a man standing in the square and the two of them opened up the cathedral and stamped the credencial. So nice and friendly - I can't imagine that happening in many countries.

Then a pleasant dinner sitting outside near the cathedral and a little exploratory stroll through this delightful city. What a great start.

The following morning, I woke up to a sunny day and a great view over the Mondego river. Today's walk was to follow the river upstream to Penacova. There is a route over the hills but the river walk looked good and, obviously, it would be a bit flatter. Breakfast was super and the lovely mother of the guy who owned the guesthouse insisted on preparing a packed lunch in case everything was closed.

The exit from Coimbra is interesting. One goes past a Roman aqueduct that was rebuilt in the 16th century and then there is a nice walk down to the river through the botanical gardens.

After about a km while walking along the riverside one comes to that all-important first arrow or sign that tells you that you are heading in the right direction.

And then a long stroll up the Mondego river. One thing I learned quite quickly on this camino is that the distances on the web are, to be kind, indicative. There was a lot of road walking which was a shame but there was a welcome stop at lunchtime, crossing the river to the restaurant at Praia Fluvial de Palheiros (River beach of Palheiros).

A decent lunch and then a 12km walk to the next watering hole at a little park, again on the other side of the river. Unfortunately, the cafe was closed - it looked like it had closed all summer - so there was nothing to it but to push on to Penacova. The guesthouse was at the top of a hill so I had the joy of finishing my first day with a surprising steep climb up from the river with the rain pouring down.

But the guesthouse owner was a star. Penacova had been hit badly by the lockdown and all the restaurants were closed. However, he pulled up a menu for a restaurant some kms away, got me to choose some options, and then went off to collect it. Again, such unsolicited friendliness. Nice to be back on the trail.