People Watching

CAMINO PORTUGUÉS – Day 7: Monday 1 June 2026

The granite traveller who greets the weary *peregrinos* entering Tui from northern Portugal

It is all change today: a new month; Spain for Portugal and a new language to languish in; a time zone shift that caught me out on arrival last night; and a day without donning my walking boots and rucksack. The hot weather though seems to be a constant, and has been a factor in my spending of a second night here in Tui – a chance to see the sights, to catch up with my route and accommodation planning, and for some rest and recuperation for my feet and shoulders.

Tui is represented by the clumsy blue blob in the centre of the map – the town where I am recuperating today from the heat and dust of the Camino

I was also able to celebrate the passing of the halfway mark on our Porto to Santiago Camino Portugués pilgrimage last night with Vivek and Daniel, so perhaps a few facts and figures are in order. According to my detailed Brierley guidebook, the total distance of the Porto to Santiago inland route is 251 kilometres (156 miles), of which I have now covered 131 kilometres (81 miles), at an average of 26 kilometres (16 miles) per walking day, whilst climbing a total of just under 2,000 metres. The journey to date has taken me around 36 hours (inclusive of diversions and rest stops, etc) and it has entailed just over 200,000 steps (including additional evening excursions, etc). Maybe it is time to wake you all up now from the statistics with some pictures of my day in Tui.

First stop, the Catedral de Santa Maria for the ‘half price for pilgrims’ tour

Externally the fortress-like features allude to the building’s early 12th Century origins . . .

. . . then around the well-tended cloisters . . .

. . . the opulent ‘Tabernacle Chapel’ . . .

. . . the ‘Treasure Room’ housing medieval robes . . .

. . . and the quite awesome interior to the nave

Next up, a riverside ramble along the Rio Miño (as the Portuguese Minho is known across the border in neighbouring Spain), looking back over towards Valença . . .

Some stunning vistas across the water . . .

. . . and again to the east, as I climbed back up to the town centre . . .

. . . for an alternative view of the Cathedral

Following the narrow streets of the Old Town . . .

. . . past the Igrexa de San Telmo . . .

. . . to the Convent of St Clare; where the nuns, behind a screen, maintain their centuries-old offer of fish-shaped biscuits to passing pilgrims – while stocks last!

The shade in Tui’s main square proved an attractive place for a light lunch, and indeed for an evening aperitif, either side of a dip in the hotel pool

I have just about switched mindset today from trekker to tourist: aside from my visit to the Cathedral and my walking tour of Tui this morning, I have spent most of the hotter hours around midday sat by the hotel pool and in the main square, watching the world go by. I have caught up with the necessary route planning and admin that goes with a self-guided ‘point-to-point’ walking holiday such as this, and I have done all my washing and had a sort through of my pack to dispose of a few superfluous items. So I am all set for the next leg of my Camino Portugués, Tui to Santiago, that (all being well) should take me six more walking days. Tomorrow I return to the trail and, all things said, it is better to be a participant than a spectator – even if today has been a rather welcome break from any major exertion. And talking of changes, my day’s delay may result in a new cohort of walking buddies to get to know on the trail over the next few days.

Just when I thought I would be finding dinner with just my guidebook for company I bumped into Eithne from Scotland (starting her Camino from Tui in the morning), and we enjoyed the €13 Pilgrim Menu at an Italian eatery near the Cathedral

’People Watching’, my Blog heading for today, is taken from the song of that name by Geordie artist Sam Fender, which was a major hit in the UK last year. The number is the lead single and title track of Fender’s third studio album released in November 2024 – and if you haven’t heard his work and are into heartland rock in the vein of Bruce Springsteen then you might just find the driving rhythm of this song music to the ears.

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