Friend from Barquinha
Veteran Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- None yet; perhaps the Portugese (2021?)
Just posting this because our neighbour has put his family home up for sale. The land we own, along the caminho, was subdivided off this property about a decade ago and we purchased the land thinking perhaps we might like to build/run an albergue: the location is unbeatable!
But our plans have gone in other directions with the land. We really enjoy seeing and greeting the peregrinos who walk past our smallholding almost every morning, and when we have extra fruit I often leave it out for passers-by. (We have a lemon tree and 5 orange trees, plus 5 big fig trees, and a loquat (ripe in April) and grapevines at our house up the hill, so there's often something we can share.)
We have JUST (as in literally, yesterday!) completed our application for temporary residency, so now we can stay in Barquinha all the time. I can think about other things besides packing and government paperwork, which is a very good thing!
Meanwhile, the matriarch of the family who own the adjacent home can no longer look after herself--she lived in the house alone--and her son and daughter are putting the house up for sale. It strikes me that it might make a very good albergue: it has a separate small suite downstairs that could suit the hosts as a separate spring>fall home, with the upstairs--4 bedrooms plus a finished attic--working well for visiting peregrinos. The finished attic (sotão) could make a couple of decent-sized dorms, I would think, with a bit of renovation.
I think a fair bit of the home's furniture and appliances could be available with the sale of the house. And the neighbours are friendly and supportive!
As is the concelho (municipality). They seem to be going all-out on supporting religious tourism, including the Caminho de Santiago, through our area, so it's quite possible there would be some municipal incentives for someone taking on a project like this. There are hotels in our concelho, but nothing that really would meet the needs of peregrinos wanting more basic accommodation.
Knowing the son, not sure there's much wiggle room in the price. Probably pretty fair by today's standards.
After owning our place 7 years, with about 1/3-time residency, and having just now settled permanently here in Barquinha, I'd be happy to fill in any local knowledge that I can, for anyone interested.
Edit: I know the son who's been maintaining the house. It is well-looked-after and pretty solid; your classic Portuguese concrete construction, thoroughly done.
Bom caminho!
But our plans have gone in other directions with the land. We really enjoy seeing and greeting the peregrinos who walk past our smallholding almost every morning, and when we have extra fruit I often leave it out for passers-by. (We have a lemon tree and 5 orange trees, plus 5 big fig trees, and a loquat (ripe in April) and grapevines at our house up the hill, so there's often something we can share.)
We have JUST (as in literally, yesterday!) completed our application for temporary residency, so now we can stay in Barquinha all the time. I can think about other things besides packing and government paperwork, which is a very good thing!
Meanwhile, the matriarch of the family who own the adjacent home can no longer look after herself--she lived in the house alone--and her son and daughter are putting the house up for sale. It strikes me that it might make a very good albergue: it has a separate small suite downstairs that could suit the hosts as a separate spring>fall home, with the upstairs--4 bedrooms plus a finished attic--working well for visiting peregrinos. The finished attic (sotão) could make a couple of decent-sized dorms, I would think, with a bit of renovation.
I think a fair bit of the home's furniture and appliances could be available with the sale of the house. And the neighbours are friendly and supportive!
As is the concelho (municipality). They seem to be going all-out on supporting religious tourism, including the Caminho de Santiago, through our area, so it's quite possible there would be some municipal incentives for someone taking on a project like this. There are hotels in our concelho, but nothing that really would meet the needs of peregrinos wanting more basic accommodation.
Knowing the son, not sure there's much wiggle room in the price. Probably pretty fair by today's standards.
After owning our place 7 years, with about 1/3-time residency, and having just now settled permanently here in Barquinha, I'd be happy to fill in any local knowledge that I can, for anyone interested.
Edit: I know the son who's been maintaining the house. It is well-looked-after and pretty solid; your classic Portuguese concrete construction, thoroughly done.
Bom caminho!
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Providing one with surplus fruit, in season, seems more our style...right now, we're knee-deep in figs, for example!
