No Time to Rest: Sustenance

I know what you are thinking... What does a pilgrim on the Portugese Camino eat?

Well, I just happen to have 12 days of intimate experience on this topic and I am happy to elaborate for you.

Bread.

That pretty much answers the question. Next!

Actually it is bread AND pastries...

And cheese...

Except for dinner which includes a protein and additional carbs. Salad is a luxury that often must be requested as an extra when it is available at all.

Why is this even a topic at all you ask? Well, for people like me that rely on a steady supply of green, leafy veggies to maintain their intestinal functionality. In the absence of leafy greens, the plumbing stops-up and bad things happen. This was the case for me during the first week of the cross-country Trans-Am trip, and was once again a problem here. The only remedy I know aside from regular intake of leafy vegetables is a daily dose of laxatives. Aside from these symptoms, the food is actually pretty tasty.

Breakfast is generally bread with a thin slice of cheese or lunchmeat, a pastry, a piece of fruit, a sweet fruit juice, and espresso. Sometimes there is a rudimentary cereal like corn flakes. Breakfast is generally around 5e and served around 8am. For pilgrims this is difficult as getting on the trail by 6 is the only way to aviod heat-stroke later in the day, therefore, you have to improvise if you are doing any more than about 12km in a day.

Lunch is generally bread with a thin slice of cheese and meat (A sandwich sans condiments of any kind) and/or a pastry at a cafe along the way. Water or fruit juice as the drink. Figure around 3e for lunch.

Dinner, if you are at an Albergue or hostel is added at a cost of 10e per person. It is generally referred to as a 'pilgrim dinner' and is taken family-style at a long table in the albergue. Dinnertime is 7pm at the earliest. Most locals go to dinner at 8pm. For pilgris, this is not easy. You are done hiking at just after noon, and have to wait until late for dinner. You ar hungry and ready for bed at the same time.

This is perhaps the only full meal of the day. Often it is 'Bitoque,' or meat with an egg on top, french fries, and salad...or more often... rice. Bread (of course) comes with the meal and sometimes a soup. The meal usually comes with a carafe of red wine from the Porto region.

Due to the high temperatures we have been leaving our accomodations each day before daylight around 6am. This means we get a 'picnic breakfast' which is the same thing as the normal breakfast, but without coffee. :-(

Today we had instant coffee left with our picnic breakfast. Better than nothing, but not very satisfying.

We find lunch at cafes along The Way when we can. On some parts of The Way we do not have a cafe option. In those cases we pack a 'sandwich' or eat gorp from our food reserves.