alza's VirtualTourist Home Page

I came back early July from a month walking the Camino to Santiago de Compostela then another month roaming in Portugal, Madrid and Paris et environs. Met great people on the road and now planning to visit whoever invited me... I'll be no trouble at all! :)

First, Salvador de Bahia round Christmas time, then other cities in that country as big as a continent!

Soonest after that, going on a farm near Dublin to meet up again with an eccentric German artist met in Portugal. Never thought about going to Ireland before but Hannes, his daughter and I really hit it off in Lisbon and they live in a way that I want to know too, open-minded and not preoccupied with all the rules imposed from outside. A breath of fresh air!

Photo of me in Paris 30th June 2009. My 2 x 6 smoking corner, the French balcony!

Candide a raison :-)

So I've been tending my garden. I don't take many photos anymore, didn't take notes on my last trip. My whole focus of interest has shifted since my bus trip across the Americas in 2005. Perspectives change.

I was anxious to walk the Camino de Santiago, so closely linked to Western culture, religion and history, but surprisingly, that didn't matter on the road. Always foremost on my mind was going forward, reaching my goal, feeding body and soul, being one of the pilgrims.
I'm very happy with my Camino -- the journey took on even more sense after I finished it. But it wasn't a trip per se and I'm not planning on "building pages" about it...
If I can, I'll be glad to reply to questions about the Camino.

Now back to my garden! :)

The day after I reached Santiago, I got up early and did everything I had to do. Wash my clothes, re-pack, go to the pilgrim's mass at Noon (during the roll-call, I heard "From Pamplona: 68 from France, 37 from Germany, ONE from Canada, 10 from Spain..." I knew that "One" was me of course :))))

then, hug the Saint, a tradition in Santiago... (I left the stonelet I'd carried since Montréal with all my loved ones wishes on it at the Santo's feet when the monk on guard let down his guard.) Finally, lunch on a Plaza where I saw many of my road companions pass by so we said our goodbyes.

Ahhh départ!!! my favourite word! I ran to the bus station and left for Porto. I had over a month to go before my flight home from Paris on 1st July, so I started with 2 weeks in Portugal (Porto, San Martinho do Porto and Alfeizerão, Oeiras and finally Lisbon.)

Since I had to walk across Spain the first month, I only had the bare essentials on my back and that had to do for 2 months... 2 t-shirts, one pair of pants, one skirt and a pair of sneakers)
I didn't do much of note, just hung around, at least until I reached Lisbon. Anyway, I missed the Camino and was disoriented. Took me 3 days to get back to eating regularly, I was too emotional to function normally, that sort of thing. But I could never resist a pastel de Belém! great little pastry!

I've got a few pics I like from Portugal and I'll put them up as soon as I can.

I left Lisbon by bus for a long weekend in Madrid. It also happened that I reunited with long-lost friends there and we spent more time staying up late at their home than exploring the city. God the tales! the cigarettes! Our throats needed regular rinsing...

Rest of my time in Madrid was made up of late mornings, café au lait, reading, bubble bath and then straight into dog day afternoons at the Retiro. It was too hot to breathe but we dragged ourselves from one ice-cream kiosk to another.

I enjoyed my time there anyway, there's something about Madrid that I always liked. And how I love those tapas bars!

By the time I reached Paris, I was ready to come home and anxious to be in my space again. Lucky for me, I stayed at a friend's who worked during the day and understood that our schedules wouldn't always coincide.

I went on long walks in the Arrondissements, following a guide called Promenades du Flâneur (for those who like to wander and dream.)

Spent one whole day in the Jardins du Luxembourg and around La Contrescarpe swinging to les Journées musicales.
Went to the cinema of course.
Visited the Musée Carnavalet to see all the old shop signs. Hilarious sometimes!

Went to Bougival to see Tourgueniev's dasha. I ate at Le Camélia, the best restaurant in Bougival, named after the book by Alexandre Dumas Fils. Dumas's real Dame aux camélias was Marie Duplessis and they apparently met here. (The story inspired Verdi's Traviata.)

I'd seen Giverny in 1986 but my host hadn't visited it yet so I invited her and we had a pleasant visit, then a good lunch nearby in a fresh, modern-style restaurant.

I had a last cigarette on my balcony, the Tour Eiffel was flashing.