Since the frame created for this Camino was bounded by dental appointments, since early Santiago bus was skipped in favour of dawn walk to the lighthouse at the end of the earth, options include direct overnight bus from Santiago to Seville, later Porto bus, overnight there and early Faro train tomorrow, overnight in Santiago, first Porto bus in the morning, later train to Faro, last train to Tavira ... meanwhile, the 9.45 from Fisterra offers scenic route round coast, a local service for the well populated towns along the way ... the only priority to be in Santiago today to keep dental deadline Saturday ... though even that is negotiable and any perceived limits to freedom are self-imposed ... the frame itself having no inherent validity ... and while this human incarnation will end sometime, the organism is in fine form, feet happy to rest a while, mind turning towards Stanhope, the Camino Primitivo is in the probability field for next Spring ...
At familiar Hospedaria for lunch and potential bed, tardy research reveals 5pm bus for Porto and reasonable beds at Campanha Station, a few metro stops away ... though arrival late, even with extra hour for border crossing ... Seville night bus at 4 pm resisted, though tempted ... staying in Santiago possible after filling menu del dia, though it's not calling ... whether seats are available on either bus, or bed at Hospederia (some kind of religious convention going on which may take up the accommodation) remains to be seen ... psyche moving towards Portugal ...
Wander through old town leads to U.S. evangelist day Albergue for some philosophy with Michael and Mark and by listening carefully some common ground is found ... Mark, retired police officer from Atlanta now works with trafficked refugee women ... biographical info on Mike undiscovered, apart from his current work in Santiago ... which takes us past Seville bus time and onto Porto bus plus hotel reservation near station for early options tomorrow ... late arrival in big city not favourite choice and a little security sought!
The bus and driver are Portuguese, the clock is set an hour behind and three nearby pilgrims are speaking Portuguese. .. time to tune into another language ..
At the bus station, nearby metro goes directly to Campanha and Hotel Poveiro is right there ... perfectly comfortable and once quite grand, with wide staircases ... the single star reflecting lack of lift perhaps ... owner cheers up once we speak French ... he spent 20 years working there, like so many of his generation ... a snack and beer at cafe offers night time station characters, though more sedate than other cities ... even the drunks are reserved ...
As for the morning, the first and fastest train is 5.40 ... let's see!
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