It was a really peaceful walk with only a few short stretches where I had to deal with cars. Today I really enjoyed the dirt trails. Some of them still had a little mud but none had the torrents of water running through them making walking nearly impossible, as in the last few days.
There were no towns of any size the entire way. I did find a couple of small cafes to grab a snack though. Halfway through the day I reached into my passport case and was horrified to find that somehow I had managed to lose all of my money! I had a little over one euro in loose change in my pocket and that was all. I had about 250 euros in that pouch yesterday. I think I probably pulled out my passport at my last hotel and the money fell out. Someone had a lucky day, whoever found that. I felt some stress for the rest of the day hoping I would find an ATM somewhere along the way. It was not until I reached Ponte de Lima that I found one. I put half with my passport and half in my backpack, taking out only what I might need for the day and keeping that in the zippered pocket of my pants with the loose change. I can't believe how accomplished I have become at losing things. I hope I can hold onto my passport, credit card, camera and phone for the rest of the trip!
I met a few other pilgrims today. A nice older couple from Canada and three young men from Brazil. Dozens of bicyclists passed me throughout the day. It seems to be a very popular activity in this part of the world.
Ponte de Lima is a lovely town with the gorgeous Medieval footbridge that crosses the Rio Lima. I will pass over it on my way towards Spain in the morning. I scattered a few of my mother's ashes from the bridge. I think she would have loved this town. I feel sad knowing that she never had the chance to visit Portugal or Spain. It was always her desire to do so.
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