Braga
Caminho da Geira e dos Arrieiros
Braga is a large, historic city and the starting point of the Caminho da Geira e dos Arrieiros. It's worth allowing a day or two for exploration before setting out. The city is one of the oldest in Portugal, and its religious and architectural heritage runs deep.
One site to single out is São Frutuoso de Montélios, a funerary chapel built around AD 660 by the eponymous bishop of Braga. Experts debate whether its dominant features are original Visigothic or later Mozarabic, but either way it's the most important pre-Romanesque Christian building in Portugal and an atmospheric place to visit. São Frutuoso is on the camino about 25 minutes' walk from the cathedral, but it's only open 2pm-4:30pm Tuesday to Sunday — best visited the day before you set out.
Henrique Malheiro, one of the co-authors of the Geira guidebook, lives in Braga and is a wealth of information on the route. He's happy to share his knowledge with pilgrims before they set off. Contact him on +351 963 934 583.
The Sé de Braga (cathedral) is the oldest in Portugal and a natural starting point. The Bom Jesus do Monte sanctuary, with its monumental baroque stairway, sits on a hilltop east of the city and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Braga has all services — excellent restaurants, accommodation at every budget, and good transport links.
Way-finding directly after São Frutuoso can be tricky because there are two sets of yellow arrows — one for the Geira and one for the continuation of the Camino Torres toward Ponte de Lima. To continue on the Geira, look for the purple CMR (Caminho Minhoto Ribeiro) arrows complementing the yellow Geira arrows, both heading toward the IKEA. Way-finding to Caldelas is otherwise straightforward.
Semana Santa in Braga is among the most elaborate in the Iberian Peninsula, with solemn processions dating back centuries. The Festas de São João (June 23-24) are the city's biggest popular celebration, with bonfires, music, and the tradition of hitting people on the head with plastic hammers (or, traditionally, leeks).
Braga was founded by the Romans as Bracara Augusta around 20 BC and served as the capital of the province of Gallaecia. It became one of the most important cities in the western Roman Empire, and the Roman road network radiating from it included the Via XVIII — the Geira — that you'll be following north toward Astorga. The city became an episcopal see in the late Roman period and has been a center of Catholic power ever since. The archbishops of Braga were among the most powerful figures in medieval Portugal, and the city's churches, monasteries, and palaces reflect that influence.