Cordoba to Triana ...

Summer in Cordoba is mostly hot and dry ... Autumn this year cool and wet and yesterday's soaking was more than enough ... city tourism not really optimal activity in any weather and the old streets of Cordoba are fine tuned for parting visitors from their cash in a friendly manner ... late afternoon and evening spent drying out and browsing online philosophy and avoiding further excursions ...
First bus to Seville shifts the focus, clouds clear and options open ... first being a late breakfast since supper skipped and only time for a coffee solo at the bus station ... however, breakfast choice a little close to Bus Station to escape cynical exploitation of gullible tourist, watered down orange juice, yesterday's croissant and cafe con leche for a fiver ... the money not the issue, it's the game that feels tawdry ... wandering on and drawn across the river to Triana, with a more authentic feel and a wonderful covered market ... and Triana Backpackers' Hostel has a bed in a dorm for tonight ... second breakfast nearby with churros feels better, some fresh fruit from the market for later .... whilst tapas lunch looks and tastes great. .. ideas for hummus of many colours ... rain, absent for first part of the day returns for a while ... forecast looking better and a one day return to Via de la Plata in the field of possibilities ...

Musing on last evening's entertainment from Nietzsche, Husserl, Heidegger, Sartre, Alan Watts and Robert Anton Wilson ... and the problems inherent in incremental improvements in systems fundamentally flawed ... organised religion generally, Christianity specifically. .. or put another way, doing the wrong thing righter goes nowhere, better do the right thing poorly and improve that ... perhaps pointing to a truth beyond all attempts to describe it, but which may be glimpsed as we live our authentic lives as best we can, simply, compassionately, patiently ...

Cordoba ...

Plenty of people and philosophy to process since the last post ... and plenty of opportunity to catch up since it is raining in Cordoba and its undoubted charms are limited without the Sun ... dodging locals and their umbrellas, themselves dodging packs of sodden tourists each armed with their own umbrellas an art in itself, let alone locating dry places of interest to shelter and learn some of the rich history ... the compact single room in the simple hostal, not to be confused with hostel, offers dry base with WiFi between cultural expeditions ... the challenges and opportunities of new roommates each night, new companions in the kitchen, which is hostel life, exchanged for the privacy and peace of the single room and less convivial company ...

In Tavira information gleaned, briefly, from young Mexican student of molecular biology, based in Germany, and older statistician from Brazil, working in the government, observing recent political developments with interest, noting economic record of recent left wing administrations as poor to say the least ... and pointing out the deeper problems worldwide of widening gap between contributors to pensions and social support and those requiring them ... a fundamental issue needing radical solutions maybe transcending traditional left-right polarities ... accelerating automation exacerbating the problem, global warming and current economic need for ever expanding growth on a finite planet insisting on more than incremental change ... 

... whilst Paloma, from Madrid, offers serious challenge to Spanish speaking, since she has next to no English and a walking trip to Fuseta, followed yesterday by a bus trip to Seville, lunch there and onward train to Cordoba pushes linguistic skills to the limit, albeit assisted by smartphone translate function ... 

Of course, plenty of folks are working on answers to the big questions and young people will do it, when not hypnotised by the dross possible from smartphones, the current brainwashing medium meaning the limited exposure of plugged in televisions are supplemented by always-on opportunities ... whether to make us smarter or stupider our choice perhaps ... recognising the shift to simpler lives essential for individual sanity and thereby saner societies ... less being more and more less ... the perverse power of the super-rich undermined by a populace no longer looking upwards for more stuff but sideways for mutuality ... contemporary communications pointing to this anyway: when we can talk with anyone, anywhere, anytime about anything, vertical hierarchies dissolve, held together temporarily by old structures ... disruptive economic forms are already at it ... liftshare and bla bla car, couchsurfing and airbnb, helpx and workaway, peer to peer funding platforms ... blockchain with its distributed technology to undermine the attempt of older forms to hang on ... 

Now for some damp exploration ...

Examining the Rules ...

Since the stay in Tavira is extended, away from the library in Stanhope, since the hardback copy of Peterson's 12 Rules for Life is stimulating the mind, and since such books are not so easy to come by here, a re-reading is in order, this time examining more closely some of the author's propositions, to see if they fit the evolving delusion which is the world view of Wear and Dao ... and noting some resistance to two elements apparently paradoxical which want some investigation ... tricky, since limited academic intelligence is rather in awe of the author's command of many fields of knowledge ... nevertheless ...

Rule 1, citing the research on dominance hierarchies and deeply entrenched behaviours of humans, particularly the males of maybe all sentient species, suggests the importance of greeting the world with our shoulders back and projecting a confident image. Nothing wrong with that, though there is an assumption along the way that pecking orders, the success of the strongest, is immutable in humanity, the most ancient parts of the brain being hard-wired for aggression. .. wiring, however, as suggested by research appears to be an ongoing process, summed up in the pithy "what fires, wires", proposes that thoughts, speech and especially experience, create new neural pathways and thus literally change our brain ... not necessarily totally changing our mind, since it is not clear to what extent brain and mind interact, but anyway offering hope that progress is possible, despite the distressing ongoing wars and consequent suffering ... indeed data on violence quite clearly demonstrates its steady decline over time ... raising doubts over Peterson's rather pessimistic view ... which lurches from biological determinism to Biblical Mythology, with credence offered to creation myths from Genesis ... stories have power and maybe the world is only a collection of stories, but maybe also they may confuse the issue, since humans have this tendency to confuse the Word with the thing described ...

Rainy day starts with conversation with Diana, who works at the hostel, previous resident of England, born there of Portuguese parents, and offering helpful insights to the relationship between the two nationalities ... later, longer dialogue with Peter dives deep into fundamental questions, his perspective being from his career in the Dutch Civil Service at quite high level, belied by his holiday persona as hostel dweller and ardent photographer of flamingos and other bird life so abundant in the salt pans hereabouts. ...

Evening philosophy session continues over hostel supper, with Amelie, 24 year old teacher from Paris adding French, female and youth perspective ... coincidentally the actress in the charming film of that name, Audrey Tatou, came from the same small village near Clermont - Ferrand as our young philosopher ...

Later in Room 103, Franz arrives, disclosing at breakfast this morning that he is cycling from Lisbon to Munich, having previously covered the Nordcap to Lisbon stage ... not a bad way for a retired civil engineer to pass the time ....

At the flea market, Transition Town Tavira have a small stall, offering a few second hand items priced in the local currency, the Tav ... confusing a local Portuguese chap trying to buy a clock with his euros ... alternative currencies perhaps requiring a period of transition too? The project is run by settlers from Northern Europe, and engagement with longer term residents looking necessary ...

In another coincidence,  Federico, pictured in Wear and Dao on the walk from Guimarres to Amarante in November 2016, turns out to be a cousin of Ivan, roommate in 103 ... latest instagram pic shows swollen face due to drugs taken to treat an illness, but it's him alright ...

Meanwhile, at the penultimate visit to the dentist, Humberto, itinerant implatologist, turns out to be a philosopher ... referencing a Portuguese  scientist who proposes each cell of the body has its own consciousness and therefore intelligence and concluding that Descartes had it wrong when he said: I think, therefore I am ... more likely the exact opposite ... further research required!

Hostel people

One of the benefits of hostel living, as well as the low cost, is the opportunity to meet interesting folks from around the world ... as previously observed ... the picture shows Peter from Holland and Jens and Reena from Germany ... the latter leaving today for Lisbon and the night train to Hendaye ... and an early bout of philosophy delays this morning's walk, though there was no firm plan ... Jens seeking something, having identified the adoption of his father's successful plant nursery business as a problem ... the creation of the father not meeting the existential needs of the son ... a common enough problem though no less painful for that ... anyway, a warm connection and maybe to be continued ...

Last night James arrived in Room 103 from Alvor and Atlanta, Georgia via Chicago ... seeking respite from Trumpistan .... a long conversation continues this morning over pastries at the French bakery before he heads for Santo Antonio and a trip to Ayamonte on the ferry across the Guidiana ... Bernardo vacated his bunk after missing out in the qualifying round, whilst Thomas moves to a double room as he progresses, a solid night's sleep helpful for peak performance ... Ivan, Spanish chef working the dreaded split shifts, continues as longer term roommate as he sorts out finances for winter let of nearby apartment ... with pool ...

This morning's later start means a rerun of the circular walk to Barril (previously misspelled Barill) and back along the beach ... slightly cooler today as Sun hides a little behind thin cloud ... reconciled to a minimum of 10 days before teeth completion and settling in Tavira until next appointment Saturday, then maybe a new adventure for a week before, hopefully, final fitting ... and a quick Camino. ..

Uncommon Sense

One of the fundamental problems with understanding reality is the idea of common sense, or more accurately, consensus reality ... anthropology having amply demonstrated how common sense varies quite widely across cultures ... and historians have shown the same across time ...

Looking closer at the senses through which commonly accepted realities are constructed, another problem arises, since there is often an erroneous assumption that we see through the eyes, hear through the ears, smell through the nose, taste through the tongue and feel through the fingers and the skin in general ... leaving aside for now the oft experienced sixth sense, the information from those five receptors is only energy at a certain frequency, which is interpreted in different parts of the brain and matched up with already established patterns to create some kind of common sense story ... and, returning to recent posts, the mind seeks security, which is what we know, more or less ... order rather than the alternative, chaos .... of course this only works for a while, since we are much more than we know, maybe infinitely so .... then comes existential angst, since the soul, for want of a better word, insists on the infinite or at least moving towards it .... consensus reality, or our conditioned reality, increasingly aligned with the story of stuff, Samsara, the hell realm promoted through the brainwashing techniques of television, radio, "news"papers ... has to be challenged, putting us at odds with family, friends and peers still operating there, albeit often numbed by illegal and prescription drugs, alcohol and so on ... solitude, of course, is an opportunity to investigate without censure ... avoiding the hypnotic agents of television, radio, newspapers and social media helps too ... less is more ... and beyond that, nothing is everything, more or less ...

Today's routine, what with 4.30 dental appointment and sunny weather forecast, takes in early coffee and pastry at the French bakery near the hostel ... opening at 7 am, rather than hostel 8.30 breakfast, coffee excellent rather than mediocre hostel coffee ... not to sound ungrateful for the warm, welcoming hostel staff, of course!  Walk to Santa Luzia and Barill beach means firm sand for low tide walk towards Tavira and ferry, after an hour or so of Sun and a couple of dips in the sea, very energising in the waves ... time for a shower and change before lunch at nearby vegetarian restaurant as the day heats up to near summer temperatures ... offering a vision of Coimbra to Santiago in the Sun. .. Spring walk rather wet ...

Trains and lodgings await outcome of dentistry.... just as well, since visit reveals laboratory has not delivered the work and completion is postponed until Saturday at least. Still, there are worse places to wait than Tavira and the virtue of Patience can only benefit from further practice. ... 

Rules, Routines, Rituals ...

Treading the edge between Order and Chaos, the 3 Rs reside in Order, there to offer a frame to live a Life ... well the first two do anyway, Ritual begins to help us approach the numinous, the mysterious beauty of Chaos and too often settles into form, losing its point along the way ... sometimes called organised religion. .. words, of course, have a Power of their own, and Chaos, the word, is rarely used in English as a good thing ... the English language being a highly evolved structure to explain and call into form all sorts of wonders ... its ubiquity evidence of its power, not to mention the serious limitations it imposes on lazy native speakers ... since the language(s) we employ to experience the world(s) determine our perceptions of it/them ... form is everything to a culture conditioned to measure the parts as if the world(s) were nothing except the sums of the parts .... chaos may also stand for the zero point field, the infinite sea of energy, awaiting the calling into form of the inherent potential ... the unfolding of the Implicate Order pointed to by David Bohm ... perhaps ... meanwhile, languages lure us into thinking in bits when it promotes nouns over verbs and ends sentences with full stops ...

Routines are helpful to create some seemingly solid ground from which to operate, especially when they are self-imposed and occasionally broken ... Camino routine is very simple: rise early, walk, rest, eat, write a little, walk, find a bed, sleep ... and process ideas as and when the opportunity arises, which is mostly in the albergues. ...

Rules are trickier, implying something fixed, eternal, outwardly imposed ... possibly created to stave off chaos, as if that might be a good thing ... or even possible ...  which means a book so full of insight, embracing the Tao, nodding to the limits of thought, as The 12 Rules for Life, along with its equally paradoxical subtitle: An Antidote to Chaos, had the front page created tongue in cheek to say the least ... though Jordan Peterson is unlikely to say the least, when another anecdote from his life experience or learned reference from ancient wisdom and mythology is available ...

These Tavira days struggle for routine, as dorm life has its own constraints ... walking for its own sake and as training for coming Caminos, fits the bill ... the circuit to Barril and back along the beach, yesterday to Fuseta, lunch at Green Spirit vegetarian restaurant, train back, today train to Vila Real lunch at Green Buddha there, walk back to Casela for train .... Green Buddha rather trendy, healthy eating focus, light pop on the sound system, chicken on the menu ... Buddha being rather in vogue these days, and why not? The serene smile conveys contentment, suffering having ceased ... who wouldn't wish for that?

Teeth tomorrow ... maybe some sunning and swimming before that ... this afternoon's late running train leads to thoughts of Faro tomorrow evening, since connection times for Coimbra 7 am departure are very tight ... not to mention very early train from Tavira ... let's see !

Keep moving

After Friday's expedition to Vila Real, yesterday was more restful ... mooching around town, a short stroll to Santa Luzia ... partly moving the body, partly seeking convivial spots to study the 12 Rules for Life ... all very entertaining and instructive, though quiet and comfortable spots are not so easy to find ... dorm residents have their own rhythm and cleaners too ...

Spectacular thunder passes in the night ... forecast suggests more today, though no sign so far ... early walk to Santa Luzia, a chapter to consider, along to Barril, and back along the beach in warm sunshine, fresh breeze, one or two dark clouds wondering whether to turn rainy, the ferry back to Quatro Aguas and lunch at an Indian restaurant, one of many in town ...

Jordan Peterson's Rules are quite quirky, hooks for essays really ... Rule 8 is clear enough: Tell the Truth - or at least don't Lie ... leading to this insightful passage, quoted at length for your consideration: "If you will not reveal yourself to others, you cannot reveal yourself to yourself. That does not only mean that you suppress who you are, although it also means that. It means that so much of what you could be will never be forced by necessity to come forward. This is a biological truth, as well as a conceptual truth. When you explore boldly, when you voluntarily confronypt the unknown, you gather information and build your renewed self out of that information. That is the conceptual element. However, researchers have recently discovered that new genes in the central nervous system turn themselves on when an organism is placed (or places itself) in a new situation. These genes code for new proteins. These proteins sre the building blocks for new structures in the brain. This means that a lot of you is still nascent, in the most physical of senses, and will not be called forth by stasis. You have to say something, go somewhere and do things to get turned on. And, if not ... you remain incomplete, and life is too hard for anyone incomplete."
There is no citation for the research, though the writer is otherwise assiduous in this matter ...

Thanks for filling the blog space with such inspiring information ... hopefully copyright infringement will be overlooked this time. It seems highly improbable that JP or any of his friends are reading Wear and Dao anyway ...

As for the dorm, Ivan has found a winter let to give him more privacy ... Bernardo and Thomas, the Portuguese chaps are here for a tennis tournament and very considerate ...

Wandering to Vila Real ...

Yesterday's idea was to take the train to Vila Real de Santa Antonio and walk back ... legs this morning had other ideas and set off through the salt pans, following Johannes' yellow arrows ... his enthusiasm for reviving the Eastern Portugal Way to Santiago still evident ... helpful as far as the beautifully restored Cacela Velha and the first coffee ... and on to the more touristy Vila Nova de Cacela, where the beach calls along with an empty restaurant with a friendly owner and a €10 lunchtime special, soup, main course, dessert and a glass of wine .... and a chance to check the route to Vila Real avoiding the yellow arrows to Castro Marim. .. all good training and organism in good shape, slight twinge in left foot arch noted, but settles, other parts fine, including energy levels ... 25 km a decent stroll in warm sunshine ...

Visit to local shopping centre bookshop turns up just three English language titles, two of them Harry Potter stories ... the third is Jordan Peterson's "12 Rules for Life" in hardback, far to heavy for pilgrim walking, but ideal for study in the days left until final dentistry ... helpful to read him rather than try to keep up with his fast paced intellectual delivery ... a chance to examine some of his premises at leisure ... still, he is quite convincing and well worth the effort ...addressing the question considered a few blogs back on chaostability, offering some much needed depth to that post ... references to the Tao already endearing him, despite his rightist reputation ... not really deserved upon examination, just that he takes to task self-proclaimed leftists and their dubious ideas ... the left-right frame perhaps the problem ...better to step out of such limiting labels ...

Current cast of room mates changes, with Ivan, Spanish chef, the only constant. Two rather loud Brazilians are followed by two Indian brothers, trying to be quiet and considerate, though some very loud nocturnal farting indicates variation from norms of dorms ... tonight's Portuguese guests have yet to turn up ... let's see!

Almograve to ... Tavira ...

Plan for short walk to Milfontes changes this morning as message arrives from dentist requesting attendance today for new impression of the disaster zone that is the mouth of your blogger ... and since Almograve appears to be bus free today, local service having been observed in the near distance a few minutes too late, a hopeful walk towards Odemira seems the best solution and is rewarded by a ride from Vasco, taking two of his children to school, before visiting his wife and brand new daughter at the hospital ... meaning a 9.20 bus to Odeceixe and swift transfer to Lagos bus makes the job possible ... mind settled on walking pace after past few days moves up a gear and opens new options for the next week before final fitting and another Camino  ...

At Lagos a "rapido" bus to Faro tempts, research not having been done ... avoiding motorway until after Albufeira suggests "semi-rapido" might be a more accurate description ... still we arrive in time for a swift transfer to the train for the last leg, snack lunch having been taken at Lagos ... home to the Pousada de Juventude before four ... at the dentist Joaquim is between appointments, takes the necessary impressions and is done in ten minutes ...

Dental folk talk of "bite" being important and experts suggest new top implants and associated teeth require better teeth underneath, to achieve optimal performance ... meaning more implants or new denture there, neither desired since biting days are gone and cosmetic bridging of mouth at the front without mobile dentures the only requirement ... to be honest, it's vanity  and the consequences are accepted with equanimity ... the few years of freedom from such attachments, including house, car, books, clothes, sacrificed for comfort, security .... and vanity ...

Zambujeira to Almograve ...

Skies clear enough for Sun to break though and light up the beach for a while ... and inspire some walking after a late start ... next hostel only 22 km, so no rush ... Cavaleiro, just over halfway, reached before noon, firm sandy paths beside seething sea, ozone and scented shrubs teasing the senses ... several southbound hikers pass ....

Restaurant with Sikh staff and Buddhist decor serves delicious dahl with rice, leaving afternoon open for leisurely stroll to Almograve and whichever sleeping accommodation appeals ....

... which turns out to be the Almograve Beach Hostel, recommended by Sophia yesterday ... alternative was the Pousada de Juventude, passed up for something a little consider ... and after sharing with Sophia, from Austria, and Britta, from Germany, last night, today's roommate is Katya, from Germany ... walking South ... supper with her opens up more of her story ... daughter of Russian parents, her father a soldier based near Berlin as the world changed, settled in Germany ... Katya's new boyfriend Spanish, having met at their workplace in the Alps ...

Aljezur to Zambujeira do Mar ...

Amazigh experience shows lots of young folk from Eastern Europe about ... Dimitri and friend from Russia on staff, Thomas and friend from Hungary surfing for a week or two, a Ukrainian couple at the cafe in Arrifana, a Latvian couple arrived on foot from Zambujeira ... today at Hakuna Matata a Polish pair check in along with other hikers on the Vicentina, some going North, most going South ...whilst iaround town folks from further east in evidence ... Nepalese finding work picking the fruit and veg grown on the sandy soil hereabouts. .. nutriments added with the water ...

An early start enables 40 km day ... out in the dark along known route, waking the dogs at the shelter, past the campsite before dawn seeps in slowly, due to cloud cover, which produces a little rain before Odeceixe, making the cobbled descent into town rather tricky ... fast pace on firm tracks means the first 18 km is done by 10 am ...

After crossing the Seixe, the border between the Algarve and Alentejo, rain turns heavier and wind picks up, making for a challenging stage on soft sand tracks close to the cliff edge ... and a change of clothes plus picnic at the closed restaurant 9km before Zambujeira, though a missed marker means an extra couple of kms via a very large field of lettuce, easily entered, but needing a fence climb to exit onto a road, leading to Brejao and finally back to the coast ... exactly the unintended diversion from last time, learning process clearly slowing down ...

Finally at the hostel for 4.30, tired and ready for a hot shower ... weather not conducive for a swim ... perhaps as well ... storm forecast to pass by tomorrow, whether to stay a day or head for Almograve is a question for the morning ... evening meal at restaurant overlooking sunset seascape needing extra imagination or return when the sky is clearer ... divine chocolate mousse may influence the decision ...

Messages for today ...

Early start in ten bed hostel room means silent exit and an hour before dawn for FB and You Tube ... Dennis Skinner on why he always opposed joining the EU, Yanis Varoufakis on why he favours reforming it from the inside ... whilst a mainstream theme from the department of mass manipulation seems to be promoting a rerun of the referendum or a General Election with the in or out question the main item on the agenda ... just another drama inviting our attention and opinions and distracting us from other possibilities ... like the Nature of Reality ... capitalist bogeyman Warren Buffet posts insightful information that as long as we allow words to evoke our emotions we are at the mercy of other people's agendas ... Jordan Peterson, identifying as on the political right, offers brilliant analysis of what's going on through psychology, mythology and other ologies, an insightful tale of limit breakers risking all to push past current levels ... his style compellingly emotional, since the pretence may engage our attention more than cool logic ... meanwhile, over at Findhorn live, information at another level from compelling cosmologist Jude Currivan amongst others ... the webcast freely streamed, though Findhorn folks still struggling with money question, maybe influenced by North American notions of abundance, missing the essential element of simplicity ....friends find the events expensive, the webstream initially offered for a fee, presumably with low response ... an experiment with Charles Eisenstein's Beautiful New World event offered within Gift Economy frame, though not repeated ... perhaps it's a question of trust in the process ... feelings here in line with Land of Joy model, common in Buddhist retreats, though far from ubiquitous ... Plum Village, for example, with a clear pricing structure ...

Amazigh crew of volunteers as always enthusiastic and owner yet to be seen ... many hostels employing the work for bed and board model enabled by Helpx and other platforms ...undermining paid employment for local youngsters, creating opportunities for itinerant youth from around the world ... including a Russian couple this time round. ...new economic forms inevitable in swiftly changing world, opinions rather redundant, better maybe to move with the creative edge and help shape the version of Reality we seek ...

Morning walk rehearses tomorrow's extra early departure, planned for pre-dawn to enable double stage to Zambujeira do Mar ... and loops round to Armoeira beach for 10 am coffee and blogging at otherwise deserted bar ... weather, and more importantly, weather forecast, deterring Sunday swimmers and surfers ... there is some cloud about and Sun too ... van load of surfers finally arrive and return route follows cliff and pine woods for brisk walk to Amazigh and lunch ... Mona has left in her hire car, accepting that it has become her cage on this holiday, swiftly moving from town to town, beach to beach, hostel to hostel, safe and secure in her isolation ... which is not to be confused with solitude ...

Nitram, previously known as Christian, from Bulgaria via Suffolk and London stops by en route for Shambala, a project nearby ... philosophy ensues for an hour or two ... more of which another time ... plenty to process!

Arrifana circuit ...

After yesterday's sedentary day, a proper walk is called for and the Vicentina Arrifana Circular, despite previous experience, turns out to be longer than anticipated on a rather warm day ... heady herby perfumes for the first stage, coffee at beautiful, surfy Arrifana, ozone and seascapes for the second, tough enough on soft sand tracks ... at Armoeira and low tide, an exciting river crossing, despite safety signs advising against ... below waist high at its deepest ... an hour on the road back to the hostel ... good training for proposed long stage to Zambujeira do Mar on Monday ...

Before which, a warm encounter at the market, recognition from the Dutch woman running the fruit and veg stall, a reminder of her Christmas present in 2016, a purple sweet potato, with instructions on how best to cook it (boiled in its skin and spooned out with a little oil and salt) ... and a lesson on the value of small acts of kindness, since she has forgotten about the gift, having given it from the heart ... how many smiles, cheerful greetings, sharing of food and stories have been offered without expectation of reward and yet resound throughout the universe?

Today's philosophy is with Mona, from Germany, on holiday from her work as a midwife, with a childhood in a Protestant Christian cult, resonating with K's phrase: Truth is a Pathless Land ...

At the hostel a family from Germany with four small children check in to liven things up and just maybe quieten things down later ... though first they need feeding ...

At the seaside ...

The Isle of Tavira offers a wonderfully quiet beach, approached by ferry at one end and bridge at the other ... between the two a three or four kilometre expanse of sand, perfect for barefoot walking at low tide and discreet enough for bare body sunning and swimming to top up the vitamin D ... after two days of which today's elemental experience includes walking west into the approaching storm, wet but warm enough ... and a welcome coffee at Barril, albeit dear, due to logistical issues, what with vehicle free facilities there ... miniature railway the main option ... at Barril, Andrea, Italian room mate, on short break from job in Lisbon, the 300 km trip done by scooter ... and a discussion on Portuguese economy, currently picking up and attracting workers from around the world ... specifically evidenced at the hostel by Andrea, Lokinder from Nepal and Arbi from Brazil ... low wages and tax breaks drawing in multinational corporations, low wages made up by warm climate and friendly locals ...

On the dental front, implants accepted by host bone which has grown around it, meaning much chipping and scraping for next stage of vanity project ... impressions finally taken and two weeks free before final fitting ... so, how to spend the time?

Options, as brief stormy period clears the air, include walking the Algarviana from Alcoutim and a trip south to the Guadiaro ... yearnings for camino postponed awhile, with thoughts of Portugues and return via Santander ...

Stanhope to Tavira

Early evening flight from Newcastle leaves lots of time for leisurely trip via Crook, Durham, Newcastle and the airport ... 4 different buses and four different bus companies ... just over three hours and time for lunch at Dobbies, with Christmas shopping delights on display ... slightly gentler ambience than the portal to another world which is the airport and its own shopping opportunities ... an hour delay increases exposure to frazzling electromagnetic pollution, sensitivity to which perhaps raised, or maybe it's the increased pollution all around, especially in urban settings ... flight a delight with sunset lingering on the horizon for most of the way ... quickly through passport control and baggage reclaim to find city bus waiting ...

Faro Pousada da Juventude located and straight to bed on the top bunk with snorer beneath and lights overhead until late night younger folk settle down ... some adjustment required for sleep, but it comes and early waking leaves an hour before dawn to wander Faro before a cafe is found for cakey breakfast then first bus to Tavira ... which feels like home again ... a warm greeting from Joana, pleased with previous Krisnamurti book and delighted with next one, The Limits of Thought, where two of the greatest thinkers of the age, K and Bohm, explore those limits and what may lay beyond ...

Now for a walk to the beach ....

Tavira to Aljezur ...

This question of power continues to fascinate ... at every level ... if it's right "as above, so below" as intuited and expressed by Hermes Trismestigus, along with "as within, so without", coherence requires a perspective broad enough to integrate it all ... and while the perennial wisdom may be pointed to for a conceptual glimpse, coherence demands experiential knowledge, the babbling of second hand opinions soon seen as inauthentic ... well maybe, though the gullible in search of gurus to do the work for them may delude themselves for a while ... perspective allows time to define "a while" broadly ... time itself, it seems, a relative concept allowing a workable frame, along with space, in which to taste each incarnation ... eternity and infinity being beyond even the cleverest minds to comprehend ...

As usual, the hostel produces philosophers for discussion, notably Celeste from Austin, Texas, via Seattle ... seeking deeper meaning after romantic heartbreak and heading for nearby plant medicine retreat with yoga and meditation ...  plant medicine, in case you wondered, is a euphemism for psychotropic tripping ... a route described by inner space travellers from a previous age ... Terrence Mackenna, Aldous Huxley, Alan Watts amongst many others ... and on the subject of coherence, premature experience of plant assisted parallel worlds often unhinging the psyche .. after agreeing that everyone has a story and is potentially fascinating, a shyer, older woman, Pasquale, from Quebec, tells of her Camino from Le Puy and much wandering around Portugal ... her pack an amazing 3 kilos .... an earlyish night, leaving Andrea and Celeste fascinating each other and planning the beach for today ... happy to discover only Andreas' stuff in the room, though woken later by newcomer climbing to top and squeaky bed ... and snoring ...

Yesterday's expressed options change this morning, since Aljezur appeals and Lagos train plus direct bus enable simple enough trip and friendly hostel for wander up the Vicentina Way, coastal variant ... sunny and busy in Lagos and surprise earlier bus means the delights of town are skipped ... the centre of West Algarve and with undoubted charm ... the benefit of not being Albufeira though not quite Tavira either ... Amazigh has friendly welcome, lower bunk bed for three nights, booked and into restaurant opposite for 1.35 lunch ... quite an efficient trip across the Algarve ... having left Tavira on the 9.38 ...

Arundhati Roy's wonderful second novel, The Ministry of Utmost Happiness, inspires with very broad perspective, radical political analysis, glimpses of the numinous to offset the otherwise desperate story of Kashmir in recent history .... stories told from different experiences helps explain how barbarity may beget barbarity ... though cycles of violence have to be broken or transcended sometime .... when will they ever learn? And who are they if not us? 

Chaostabilty

Life, it seems, is best lived at the fine line between chaos and stability ... the creative edge and maybe the eternal present moment ... balance essential as psyches teeter on the brink, momentarily resting in the place to be, sometimes frazzled in chaos, other-times bored in stability ... this observation retrieving memories of a brief enterprise with three directors and many associates, having fun challenging the inertia that is so often the public sector in this region and maybe in general, since bureaucracies tend to evolve to meet the needs of their staff above those of their customers and the key need for the staff who stick around and rise to their level of incompetence is security ... salaries, permanent contracts, paid sick leave, holidays and finally the hard earned pension ... the business cards had: Director of Chaos, Director of Progress and Director of Order, playing with the image of the three legged stool ... one of the drawbacks of this provocation was the resistance of the potential customers, the public sector staff rather than the end user, the public themselves, to anything likely to upset their security ... and whilst sympathetic individuals encouraged us, the layers of bureaucracy stifled most of the action, their power being of the negative type ... unable or unwilling to risk security for excitement the power of no held sway ... maintained by slowly decaying forms, organisations transparent and opaque. ..

Fine Autumn weather inspires a trip to the Land of Joy for the weekend ... joining a woodland working party trying to eradicate a particularly persistent invasive species of rhododendron to make space for native trees ... some interesting folks in the party and two days of hard physical work makes a nice break from the gentler regime in Stanhope ... getting a little deeper into the community at the Land of Joy, though not especially into the more esoteric forms of Tibetan Buddhism practised there ...

Just one week before the flight south to Faro, some sunbathing to top up the vitamin D between dental appointments, then maybe a walk to Santiago from Lisbon, Coimbra or Porto ... FB sends a reminder that two years ago the walk from Irun began ... Ivar's Camino Forum reports attacks on pilgrims and others in Santarem and other places, mostly south of Porto ... opening the question of whether reading such material is wise ... fear being the main obstacle to overcoming excessive attachment to stability ...

As for attachments, walking the Caminos may be one ... though the time will come soon enough when that is no longer possible ... meanwhile, the joys of putting one foot in front of the other all day for a month, the physical, mental and spiritual benefits continue to inspire escape from the simple security of Stanhope ...