Lisbon

We headed to Lisbon and picked up Denise at the airport. Lisbon is another great city with a relaxed vibe, great food and good nightlife. It is built on the hills above the Tejo River, and is great for walking with lots and lots of hills and steps. The cherry brandy has a real kick! The nightlife is centred around the Barrio Alto, with hundreds of little bars and restaurants. We did find a great live Jazz band. The local music is Fado, which you can also see in many Lisbon venues. The Portugese usually have pastries and strong black coffee for breakfast; a speciality being the Custard Tartlet! Another dish worth tasting is Bacalau; dried, salted cod fish, which is also yummy as a fishcake. The top pick is actually a shop selling tinned sardines - all varieties!!

Northern Portugal

We drove into Northern Portugal from Spain. Portugal is noticeably poorer than the rest of Europe we have seen so far, and therefore also cheaper for tourists. The people are very friendly and laid back and the quality of English spoken everywhere even beats Germany,France and Spain. They love to BBQ and on real coals, so grilled meats are really a speciality. Porto is a great little city, and although the old city is a bit dilapidated, it is very pretty. You can sit and enjoy grilled fish and wine and look over the river to all the Port houses on the other side. All the cellars have large advertising signs on the roofs. The old shops are quaint, still as they were about 50 years ago. The beaches nearby are very pretty too and not very crowded, with wonderful boardwalks for jogging or cycling.

Carmin de Santiago

In the middle ages Catholic pilgrims from all over Europe walked well over a thousand kilometres to the Cathedral at Santiago de Compostella, the supposed burial place of St. James.
Once over the Pyrennes and into Spain, all the routes converged for the westward journey across northern Spain. These days it has become a very popular hike, either as a pilgrim or just as a walker. 70 000 people do at least a portion of the trip each year, many on bicycles too. We followed the whole Spanish route in Homer over a period of a few days, visiting all the landmarks of the route. In Santiago, we walked the last 3 kms - so I do not think we will receive much pardon for that. Homer on the other hand should be going straight to heaven.