Camino de Santiago Portuguese - Day 6

Daily Overview

• Summary of the Day: We headed out of the guest house in Belinho around eight o’clock this morning after sharing the kitchen and breakfast with two ladies from Germany who spoke no English. We just gestured a lot. As a side note, I have to say that I have never struggled more with keys and door locks in my entire life than I have in the last several days. Just opening a door with a key should be a pretty simple process, unless it’s not. Part of the essence of Pilgrimage is allowing yourself to become less than you think you are, and I have certainly gotten a good dose of that this week. Once we figured out how to lock the door of the house, we headed back up the narrow back streets of the village to the church where we left the Camino the day before. There were other pilgrims already out and walking in the very cool morning. Over here, the sun doesn’t rise until closer to eight o’clock, so it was still pretty dark. The locals were also out doing their various morning routines. I wonder what they must think of us. We found our way back to the Camino and started walking towards our next destination, Viana do Castelo,a beautiful city on the Lima river and right on the ocean. While the Camino Coastal route has the reputation for being much flatter than some of the other Camino routes, that was not the case today as we immediately found ourselves walking through the woods. For a little while, we could have been on the trail to Dark Hollow Falls in Shenandoah National Park. Our trek today took us through the woods, up the mountain, along busy roads, and through ancient villages with flowers in full bloom and lemon trees with plenty of fruit. The final leg of the day was up a massive hill that the Shenandoah Valley is so well known for. Sandy and I just stood there laughing at the steepness of the incline after already walking ten miles. About three-quarters of the way up the hill, there was a stand set up with drinks and fruit payable on the honor system, according to the sign. Sandy bought a banana for a euro to eat later. One thing you learn very quickly on the Camino is that you buy food when you can find it. And if needs be, you save it for later, or you will go without. The second day of our trip, we walked fourteen miles with only a couple of granola bars we brought from home. Cresting the top of that crazy hill brought the beautiful city of Viana do Castelo into view. What a stunning sight. It reminded me of when Dorothy and her friends came out of the woods and saw the city of Oz in the distance. Only we didn’t run down the hill. We ended the day in a little apartment in the city center, accompanied by a trip to the first legitimate grocery store I have seen since I’ve been here.

  
  

• What we planned to do: Today, we planned to walk to Viana do Castelo (pronounced kash-tel-loo), just under twelve miles away. We hadn’t looked ahead too much at the coming topography, so we were surprised by the number of hills and changes in the different terrain we encountered. We wanted to get a good head start so that we could finish on the early side and have some time to rest. Tomorrow will be a much-needed rest day for us here, and we are looking forward to that.

The Day's Focus

• Topic: The Higher Call

  The higher call that you and I are being invited into requires that we go even lower in ways we didn’t expect. What if going higher means getting passed by literally every other pilgrim on the path and knowing that you are only being sustained by the generosity of strangers and the loving support of those you can never repay? It almost always means suffering that is nestled in joy.

• Word for the Day: Sustained

• Scripture: Phil 3:13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

• Spiritual Practice:  How am I being called to a new level of vulnerability with God and with other people? How does God want to sustain me in ways that I have not been willing to allow? Pick one area in your life where you are willing to make yourself more vulnerable to others and therefore more open to God.

  
  

Moments and Images

• Images from the Way Today: 

  
  
  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

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• Beautiful Spot of the Day: 

  

  The city of Viana do Castelo shines in the distance

• Spiritual Meditative Moment: Sitting in the first church of the day we visited. Profoundly grateful for the peace we found there.

• What Church We Visited: This beautiful church at the top of yet another hill with open doors and bathrooms and water, and even a little cafe with food for pilgrims. We ate that sandwich for lunch. These churches have become a lifeline for us, providing for the most basic needs of water, rest ,and relief with no expectation of anything in return. They do this every day for hundreds/ thousands of pilgrims. I think this is what the church Jesus started is supposed to look like. For when I was hungry you fed me and when I was thirsty you gave me something to drink…

  

  In this church, I felt like there was a door that God had opened much in the same way that we open a door and invite him in

• People we experienced: 

  Today we encountered people from Poland, the Czech Republic, Spain, Oregon, and one lady from Ukraine who said there are no flights in or out of her country. She drove three days to get her flight to the Camino.

• Unexpected Surprises:  Walking through the woods beside a beautiful stream

  with waterfalls.

• Animal/Nature or local life: 

  

  These lovely lilies in a field outside Chafe

  
  

Camino Portugues Video of the day:

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/ed6b9a_e5dddad77bb04790873b721ef1a8488f/360p/mp4/file.mp4

View from the bridge, walking into Viana do Castelo

Reflections and Learnings

• Reflections from Today: Here in this country, walking as pilgrims to a far-off place. We are aliens. We do not know the language, or where to buy food, or what things should cost, or how things should be done. We try to blend in, but it is clear we do not belong. Oftentimes, we are in the way and out of sync with the people who belong here. How is that any different than belonging to a different kingdom?

• "Well, that was hard.": Frankly, just getting out of the guest house we were staying in was like being trapped in an escape room with keys that don’t work with the door

• "What helped me today": the sustaining prayers of our friends and family at home

• "Something I learned": Just because a restaurant or cafe advertises that it serves certain food, it doesn’t mean they will have it when you show up, so plan accordingly.

• "Insight for the day": Don’t wait for others to ask your name or who you are, or where you are from. You must do it, and you only have a moment as they pass by.

• "Mystical occurrences": We had two encounters around the eucalyptus tree. It came up in conversation with two different pilgrims. It represents strength and protection. Another pilgrim stopped us in the woods to smell one of the leaves

Daily Conclusion

• A View of Our Compostela

  

  
  

• Gratitudes (1–3 things I'm thankful for):

  A ham and cheese sandwich provided by a church

  Getting to walk and talk with another couple from California, we met two days ago

  The strength to do the distance today