Today we left our hotel at 9:30 am and made our way to Ponte de Lima. On our way we stopped at the Bom Jesus do Monte church in Braga. The Bom Jesus is a sacred hill that was a pilgrimage starting in the 14th century. Over the years, stairs were erected and monuments built as you make your way to the church. Instead of walking the 600 stairs, there is also a funicular which is the oldest functioning water balance funicular in the world. Work to build the funicular began in March 1880 and was completed 2 years later. 
After walking the stairs to the church and exploring the grounds, we visited the city of Braga and had some lunch. It was then off to Ponte de Lima and checked into our hotel. The Camino de Santiago trail passes right by the hotel and it is one of the trail hotels. We had a few hours before dinner so I walked around town. There is a European canoe marathon that started today and goes until Sunday. So I watched that for awhile. I then saw Patty and walked around town with her. We went into a pharmacy and the pharmacist was very chatty. We also walked into a clothing store with some very cute things. I will likely go back tomorrow and do some shopping. We had a traditional Portuguese dinner at Vaca de Cordas. We had the dried cod, which was made with potatoes, meat, salad, beans and dessert.
Cod dish
Photos
