Day 10 Vila do Conde to Esposende

After yesterday's great walk, today started off pretty badly. The coast is not reserved for pilgrims. Lots of Portuguese tourists want to enjoy their coast too and many have the same taste as British tourists. So there was a few miles of high-rise hotels and apartment buildings, some tacky cheap cafes and a few amusement arcades. Povoa de Varzim is not somewhere I'll be booking a fortnight's holiday in a hurry.

Povoa de Varzim

But after a while the tackiness subsided and there followed a long and leisurely walk up the coast.

It's quite obvious why swimmers are rare on these beaches. There is a precipitous drop on the sea bed and the currents are vicious.

A golf course with sea views meant that the coastal path was diverted. Many pilgrims had clearly decided that crosses were the only way to protect themselves against the evil of golfers in diamond design sweaters.

Just before Esposende one came into a little market square in Fao. A pleasant reminder of the close links between Britain and Portugal.

Esposende was pleasant enough with a good range of shops although the chemists couldn't supply any aloe vera. Dinner was at O Buraco which was very pilgrim-friendly - the owner couldn't have been nicer. The guesthouse was in an office block - a bit odd, but very clean and friendly. And a washing machine meant that the laundry pile stayed under control.