Well, Amarante was nice ... its youth hostel excellent ... vegetarian cafe a bonus ... today speeds the journey considerably ... bus to Vila Real, connection to Covilha ... wine territory much of the way ... mountains terraced from long ago ... the motorways quite a feat of engineering ... and Artur, the driver, demonstrating not only good English, but also a love of the culture ... our dear queen and all that ... strong opinions on lots of subjects ... his son diagnosed with autism, high functioning ... Arthur critical of special education provision ... and of politicians in general ... rats in a sack, he says ... born in Angola and returned after the revolution, spent some time in Venezuela ... father seeking the standards to which he had become accustomed in the colony .....
At Covilha, under an hour to switch to a train to Castelo Branco ... so lunch skipped ... a hostel found, not the Pousada de Juventude from before, but A Esplanade ... an interesting cross between a hostel, with kitchen to use, and a B&B ... and since a meal is required, a trip to the shops finds spinach, long craved, and other vegetables for a stew ... a bottle of Dao wine, since we crossed the river at speed after Viseu ... diospiros, in season all around ... rather like mangos without the stone ... and cake, of course ... DIY cookery is the best answer to ensure optimimum nutrition ... without bacalhau ...
Communications with Penamacor folks feeding the dogs is tricky ... no phone here, no internet there ... Jan, working in Sussex for a few weeks, mediating ... let's see what tomorrow brings ... a midday bus to Penamacor likely ... a lift possible ...
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