Caminho Portugés Introduction After the Camino Francés (French Way) the Caminho Portugés (Portugés Way) is the most popular of all the ways to St James. Most pilgrims start at Tui as it’s a short route into a see Jimmy and obtain a Composetela. This time as it is winter we will be starting in Santiago and heading south to Lisboa, trying to keep ahead of the rain. Well that is the theory, but the rain has followed us from Spain so far! The Caminho Portugés is one of richest cultural and architectural heritages of the existing Caminos. In Portugal there is a long history of devotion to St James and St Roch, the patron Saint of Pilgrimage. Representations of both Saints are to be found everywhere along the pilgrim road, some can be in prominent ... read more

Matt & Scott’s South-Western Adventure This is the story of Scott and his son Matt who headed off to the wild southwest in search of cowboys and Indians. It was to be an adventure like no other, guns, ammo and cowboy hats galore. Through the searing heat of the Nevada desert, to the O.K. Corral, Little Big Horn and the bright lights of Los Vegas. Nothing could stop them, not even a 13 hour flight to LA. Auckland to LAX 11 June 2010 Off to a good start, managed to secure some extra leg room over the wing next the emergency exit so Matt shouldn’t get too claustrophobic! Speaking of legs, yes Kate I got your foot in the mail and I’ll see what I can do about the cowgirl boots for you. Once we had ... read more

On to the end of the world Part III - Or how to cure your self of walking sickness As with the Vía de la Plata this camino has a choice either on to Finisterre they mythical end of the world or to Muxía the geographic last point of continental Europe. The guide books, if you trust them, suggest that the camino from Santiago to Finisterre is another 3 days. There are also a least 3 albergues on the route and most recommend starting with just over 20kms to Negreira, then just over 30kms each (supposedly) to Olveiroa and Finisterre. But be warned because this is the recommended route, expect these albergues to be full and there are other albergues in other towns along the way that can be used to break the trip up and ... read more

Here we go again Part I - Vía de la Plata - Camino Mozárabe For convenience we’ve covered the planning and training sections in the earlier blog entries and broken the walk itself into the following three sections: Camino Mozárabe from Seville though Mérida and Salamanca to Zamora Camino Sanbrés from Zamora, through Ourense to Santiago de Compostela Camino Finisterre from Santiago to Finisterre they mythical end of the world. The total route is just over 1,100 km, and most guide books recommend that it can be walked in around 6 to 7 weeks to Santiago plus an additional 3 days to Finisterre. Many of those we met on the Camino Francés commented on how this longer route was much quieter with very few peregrinos (pilgrims). ¡We considered this a major plus! Not because we are ... read more

Christmas day, and while this ‘trip’ may not be as exciting as some of out others it is the one that my darling daughter misses most, the trip to the café. Up early-ish and we take the dog as usual, but especially today as it is boxing day and as he is a boxer it is his special day. While Scott enjoys his long black and creamy mushrooms and chorizos, I swill down my latte and blueberry pancakes. Spike gets his treat of hash brown and bacon delivered to him by the indulgent café staff, spoilt dog. Apparently London doesn’t do breakfasts and Fran is really missing a good old kiwi café with good coffee and decent fresh breakfasts. So it just goes to show that some times the best trips are not to exotic far ... read more