Melide to Triacastela

Melide to Palais de Rei - Sunday, September 4, 2011
67 kms from SdC

A Santiago cross outside of Palais de Rei.

 

Without my backpack the walk was delightful, especially through the forests. Walking on either damp gum leaves or pine needles is like walking on carpet. Ah, Galicia - where there are plenty of shady walks on sandy paths. Most pilgrims love walking in Galicia and by this time have slowed down. I took it slowly knowing that if I did not finish I would return next year.

The horse came out to see me pass by - the horse and I looked at each other for the longest time, I thought it was beautiful.

I think this is for birds, anybody know?

I believe this Iglesia (church) is a Magdalene church.

One of the many old bridges along The Way. This could be Roman but I do not have my guidebook because I tear the pages out as I go along and if I need another I buy one.  As I have written before, I am sure John Brierley does not mind.

At Coto I met Veronica another pilgrim going my way.  Veronica is 73 years old, English and lives in Paris, France.  This year Veronica walked Camino Primativo to Santiago and is now walking home from SdC. Veronica will not arrive in Paris until November 2. We exchanged telephone numbers for texting and will let each other know when we are close to Triacastela.  This is Veronica's third walk east and she tells me that the walks from Triacastela to O'Cebreiro and also Molinaseca to Cruz de Fero are horrendous.  Veronica explained that the pilgrims coming down the narrow tracks take an attitude of precedence and will knock you out of the way (it happened to her), therefore she wants to share a taxi. If it works out we are in Triacastela and Molinaseca at the same time then I will share with her.

This is not the horreo (grain storage) that I wanted to photograph (story below) but taken later in the day.

At Casanova I wanted to photograph an horreo because in the mist with a pilgrim sitting there it was a nice shot. The pilgrim stood out because he had on a yellow jacket. Then I noticed the pilgrim had prosthetic legs so I put my camera away.  As I came up to him a man with a young boy (maybe 10 years old) stopped to talk with him.  They wanted their photograph taken so I obliged.  Walking up to the man, I touched my heart and put my hand out to shake his hand.  He smiled warmly and shook my hand. Buen camino's and I was on my way. Blisters, what blisters? The camino showed me that my problems are few when others can walk with such a handicap.

Over the front door of a house ... I think this is one of the most photographed yellow arrows along The Way.

Bakery vans parked along the road. No bread delivery today in the Palais de Rei area or anywhere in Spain on a Sunday. Except on Sunday's bread vans like these are seen all day going in and out of the villages delivering bread to the bars, hostals and private residences.

The language? Gallego. The cheese? Galicia's famous Tetilla which is shaped like a breast.

I spoke with the hospialero at San Xulián and he told me that there are many problems with bed bugs along the camino this year. He sprays every pilgrims backpack before allowing it in the albergue. This was not the first time that I had heard about bed bugs as pilgrims spoke about it and now and then.

It is Sunday and many bars do not serve food.  I was sitting at a bar and Veronica came along, she asked if I was going to use a mochilla taxi to Portomarin. The young man at the bar thinks it will be OK but he cannot confirm until 06:45 tomorrow. Guess I will have an early start. Portomarin is 25 kms and a lovely walk so an early start will be good. If I have to carry my pack I will stop in Ventas Narón where I met Sue Kenney in 2009. This means two days to Portomarin 25 kms with my pack, without the pack I could do this walk.

I overheard a conversation of four young pilgrims.  A nicely spoken English lad said that he adds an o to an English word to make it sound Spanish. When he wants to order more beers he asks for, "two beer-o's for me-o and my mate-o". This gave me a private giggle.

A nice day on the camino. It was cool and misty in the morning, warm to hot in the afternoon however there is plenty of shade on this section to keep a pilgrim cool.

Palais de Rei to Portomarin - Monday, September 5, 2011
90 kms from SdC

I had been seeing the return arrow along the way and decided to photograph this one.

Did I write 06:45? I did. I was downstairs on time for my mochilla to be picked up and it was waiting for me in Portomarin. Veronica came as I was leaving and placed her mochila with mine. She had not had breakfast yet, I left knowing I would see her again.  I did, and as she passed by I thought I would take her photograph.  By the time I had my camera out and took the shot she was just a blue spot in the mist.

The morning dew gives wonders to photograph. Again the path was like a carpet when in the forests. There are sections on quiet roads today and the blacktop is hot on the feet.

I took a photo for a father who was walking his two little girls (7 and 9 yrs) hand-in-hand uphill on the stony path. Charlotte would be happy to know they were in black pants with bright pink, white, and black fleece jackets. With their black hair pulled into long ponytails they were very cute.

My granddaughter grew a sunflower in a pot and was so proud of it. I decided that sunflowers will be my Charlotte reminder. Charlotte is my Camino Angel thinking of her cheers me up along the way.

A stop along the path. It was so quiet and peaceful giving just the solitary feeling one hopes for when on the camino.

Before Gonzar a woman was walking very slowly and she looked to be in pain. Then I noticed she was in prayer and walking with bare feet. Bare feet to SdC!!

Walking the last few kilometers into Gonzar there is a very steep uphill for the westbound pilgrims (for me it was downhill). One woman reminded me of myself in 2009 ... slow step, slow step, slow step. A man came along and he was not riding his bike but pushing it uphill.  I said, Buen Camino as he passed, then I hear fart, loud fart, I giggled and walked on.

At the Bar in Gonzar the barista saw me taking photographs and asked me to take a photo of her and the man she was with.  I asked for her name and address and here is what she wrote, (no name) Bar Gonzar, Gonzar, Portomarin. I bet the photos will arrive.

A group of French teens walked past singing and they sounded wonderful.  The teens were followed by a man playing a Jews Harp, two nice experiences along The Way.

 

In Portomarin some decades ago they moved the village up the hill to allow the reservoir to be built.  All the stones of the church were numbered and the church was rebuilt stone by stone. But now after two years with very little rain the reservoir is extremely low and the old bridge and village are uncovered. You can see the water level on the new bridge.

Portomarin to Sarria - Tuesday, September 6, 2011
110 kms from SdC

A morning of errors. I went the wrong way out of Portomarin, what was I thinking following the pilgrims to SdC? That cost me at least a kilometer. Then at a three way junction with no pilgrims and no arrows to be seen (big clue here) I chose one way.  A woman came out to tell this errant pilgrim the way she should be walking. I had missed an arrow about 100 mts back from the three way.  Another 1km.

I should have remembered that I needed to go down these stairs to leave town and NOT over the iron bridge. Following are some scenes from along the way today.

What is this? Did the pilgrims forget to leave their stone at Cruz de Fero? Are they discarding stuff to lighten their packs? It is an interesting reminder that you are on the camino. Unfortunately some pilgrims consider it a rubbish dump and have left garbage. Not everybody is a careful pilgrim.

As I came along two cows were on the path, one moved off, but this cow was not moving for anybody.

It was a long downhill on this track and only one pilgrim came towards me as I neared the end.  Being the old lady on the trail I stood my ground and she went onto the stones for me to pass.

The Bar at Morgade, one of my favorite stops on the camino.

A couple passed me with what appeared to be twins, one on each parents back instead of their backpacks.  They must be using a support vehicle. I have seen a few babies in trekking strollers or backpacks. It would be tough work bringing a baby along the camino.

Another touch the heart moment. A young man was coming towards me and of course I noticed the crutches and one leg. I smiled at him while touching my heart and said, "hola, buenas dias, buen camino". He gave me a smile that could melt ice (he was extremely handsome) and replied, "gracias, y usted - buen camino". Again, I thought about my blisters and knew that I had nothing to complain about. Veronica and I both spoke of this lovely young man at dinner as his smile was captivating, we remembered him for his smile and I think I will always remember him.

The pram was on the road, the pilgrims were laying on a blanket in the field.  They called out to me, "aren't you going the wrong way". No, I am not. I asked about the pram. They told me, "no baby, just a good way to carry our stuff".

I have never done it before but this time I left my mark - Luiza 2002, 2007, 2009 and 2011.

At Mercadorio I asked for José whom I had met in 2009.  In 2009 José had told me he was a collector of effectivo (note money) and asked if I had $US1. I did not. So this year I carried some notes for him including the rarely used $US2.  He was cleaning the albergue but the hospitalero serving at the Bar called him for me. José was thrilled with the notes and told me to have a Café con Leche y Tarta Santiago (coffee and almond tart) on him. So, if you are going to be walking through Mercadorio carry some notes from your home country for him (probably not the Euro).

I now have seven blisters.

The Way today seemed to be uphill all the way and when I looked at John Brierly's Guidebook it was confirmed, it was uphill until Brea.

Sarria to Triacastela - Wednesday, September 7, 2011
110 kms from SdC

The route via San Xil (San Chil) is lovely and the last 4 kms are all downhill. I took the road down through the forest, there is an alternate path to the alternate road route. The verges were soft with old leaves - again, it was like carpet.

My blisters do not hurt because they are on my toes.  I took out the gel insoles today, like duh! Having the insoles in my boots gave my toes less space, lets see if this makes a difference. I realized my mistake, I had tried the boots on without insoles. Oh, how I wish that I had my Timberland boots. It was so nice walking without blisters and this year with new knees I was so looking forward to a pain free walk.

There were fewer pilgrims today for two reasons: 1), I am now past Sarria the starting point for the last 100k pilgrims, although many newbies were waiting at the taxi rank this morning - not wanting to walk more than 100 kms they get a ride to the marker, go figure! Yes, I spoke with some pilgrims who were waiting, no judgement from me I just don't get it, and 2), many pilgrims take the alternate route to Samos to visit the Benedictine Monastery.  It adds one day to their camino but the walk to Samos is lovely.

Your PERFUME stinks! I want to mention something here .... PERFUME for both men and women. Usually ONLY those with little or no backpacks, those that many call bus pilgrims who use support transport and have large suitcases i.e. everything but the kitchen sink, you know who you are. Phew, when a perfumed pilgrim walked past I would gag and then look back, sure enough they would have a little pack or no pack at all. Normally I do not notice perfume .... this was a first. Hang on, men too, your aftershave stinks.

 I love this albergue sign at Triacastela, bicycles welcome!

At 14:30 I was having lunch when along came Veronica. She had used a mochilla taxi and her backpack had not arrived. She was worried. We are both staying at Casa David for convenience of the taxi tomorrow morning to O'Cebreiro. Casa David is a nice, clean, Casa Rural and I highly recommend it. By the time Veronica returned to Casa David her pack was there.

After lunch I again found time for the Internet as I needed to buy my air ticket from Bilbao, Spain to Düsseldorf, Germany. This for my visit with Christine and Rolf in Duisburg. It seems all the packages that I mailed have arrived and my friends have received their postcards.  I usually do not send postcards from the camino. This year I will be sending to Charlotte who always sends her Gran a card from places she visits, so I added a few to my friends. I did not Blog today as I was too tired.

Santiago to Melide

Santiago de Compostela (SdC) - August 30/31, 2011

The cloister at Hostel Hospedería San Martín Pinario, SdC which is an old monastrey. Kees y Vicente recommended that I spend my two nights in SdC at this hostel, I did, and now I recommend it to you.  Hostel San Martín

Many pilgrims come to this point when they arrive in Praza do Obradorio at the finish of their pilgrimage.

Standing beside the shell (above photo). I am ready for the retorno journey tomorrow morning.

I arrived at SdC airport in late afternoon of August 30, 2011. It was raining and it did not stop raining until I reached the limits of the city on September 1st.  I want to say that it always rains in SdC but that is not so.  However, it rains frequently. The Galician mountains are the first range inland from the Atlantic Ocean stopping the rain clouds.

I was able to obtain a new Credencial from the Pilgrim Office.  I am officially a retorno pilgrim. That settled, I went about getting gifts for Charlotte, Sophie, and the family to add to the gifts I had from Madrid for them.  I wanted to mail the packages before leaving tomorrow as I do not want that added weight in my backpack.

From Rolf´s Bar in Santiago I spoke with Rolf from Duisburg, Germany (Camino 2007).  If you know of my friendship with Rolf then you know that I dedicated my 1,000 kms Via de la Plata (2009) camino to him.  Unbeknown to me, as I walked the VdlP he drove from Germany to greet me when I walked into Praza do Obradorio.  The day before Santiago I looked up to see Rolf walking toward me outside of Pedrouza.  Rolf had arrived in Galicia and could not wait another day, this was a special moment for us both.  Maybe now you can understand why when he asked, "Luiza, do you have days at the end, can you come to Duisburg?", I immediately replied, yes.  So instead of going to Paris and Chartres I will fly to Duisburg and visit Rolf and Christine.  For me, this is wonderful.  BTW, Kees y Vicente tell me that Chartres Cathedral is under scaffolding until 2014.  They are in the process of taking down the windows for cleaning and as you might know the windows are one of the many things that Chartres is famous for .... the windows are so magnificent that they have named a color after them, Chartres Blue.

SdC to Pedrouza - September 1, 2011

The walk to Pedrouza was delightful after the rain stopped.  The moist ground through the forest was a little muddy and the eucalyptus fragrance brought memories from childhood.  To see the smiles on the faces of pilgrims coming toward me made the walk all the more special.  Of course, being helpful, many tried to tell me that I was going the wrong way.  I would point forward and say "no, y vuelta, SJPP" but after awhile that became tiring so I changed to Roncesvalles (which the Spanish understand better).

This day was only 17 kms, a nice easy walk as I was soon to find out.  There are many pilgrims on the way, groups and solo, many without backpacks.  It is busy, busy, busy on Camino Francés. There are so many pilgrims coming towards me. Walking the retorno gives me a different view of the number of people on the way and how each pilgrims pace differs.

Sign near the airport runway.

The camino goes alongside the SdC airport and it is quite noisy when an airplane takes off. I heard an aircraft revving up for take-off in 2002 but nothing in later years.

 Nearly there, just 1 km to walk to where I am stopping for today.

The eucalyptus forests are beautiful but they will slowly be taken down and hopefully replaced with native trees.  Australian Eucalyptus were planted around the globe 100+ years ago and now the Spanish government realizes they are a fire hazard.  I have been told the farmers are paid for each eucalyptus they fell.  Still, I enjoyed walking through this little reminder of Australia.

Pedrouza-Arzuá - September 2, 2011

When in the forest there is shade, it is delightful walking here.

Guillermo Watt, Pilgrim, died one day from SdC. Pilgrims leave tokens in remembrance of him when they pass by.

It is a lovely sunny day but that means hot when walking under a cloudless sky. I am wearing two pair of socks and my hat for the first time on the camino. Why? Because my boots are hard (even with gel insoles) and I have some hot spots (future blisters). Walking east the sun is directly at my face in the morning.

I was lost this morning although I did not know it, as often happens, a lady from a farmhouse showed me the way. Later, I desperately wanted to pee and enjoy a café con leche but had not found a Bar.  I stopped at a path intersection and when looking around I saw a sign almost hidden by blackberries, BAR 50m. I cleared the blackberries from the sign (for other pilgrims) and went to the Bar.  Ah, I felt better! The N-547 is constantly near and with cars and trucks zooming by it is noisy. I do not remember being so aware of the N-547 on other camino walks.

In Calle I stopped for lunch at Bar Dolores. It was near here in 2007 that our group came across the owner on the ground moaning in pain. Wolf and I went ahead and found a Spanish man to call an ambulance while Maureen and Martin stayed behind. M&M checked his pockets and found a card, he was a diabetic. M&M always had food in their packs so they gave him juice and sweets.  I mentioned this to him today, he was all smiles, shaking my hand while kissing my cheek he said ... thank you, by the grace of God you came along. I said, me and five others.

Lesson learned? 112 is the emergency number in Spain. The folks at 112 will understand English. Always carry sweets, juice or both on the camino.

There was a large group on horseback today, maybe ten or twelve riders.  They were in a Bar having lunch while their horses were resting in the shade.

I also passed three pilgrims with a donkey. Two were walking happily alongside it without backpacks. I do not envy them as caring for a donkey is a lot of work, read travels with my donkey: One Man and His Ass on a Pilgrimage to Santiago (Tim Moore).

There were many happy pilgrims with the usual question, ¿y vuelta?, ¿retorno? or ¿otro vez?, now I simply smile and respond with Sí, retorno. The pilgrims are happy because their goal (SdC) is close.

I am exhausted! I started at 08:30 today and with many stops, including the long lunch in Calle, I did not arrive until 18:00. My feet are sore and I am hot and sweaty. The two sock experiment did not work for me and I have two blisters - the dreaded beasts of the camino. The last 5 kms killed me.

Arzuá, I am getting close but still maybe 2 kms to go from here.

I did not remember the walk from Pedrouza to Arzuá as being so tough in other years. Then it hit me, mochilla taxi (backpack taxi).  On previous camino walks I have used a mochilla taxi for this stretch.  Because it is early days, my pack feels heavy by late afternoon even though it is 1.5 kilos lighter than other years. It seemed like today was uphill all the way. About 2 kms from Arzuá I missed the path and a man came out of his home to tell me that I was going the wrong way. Pointing back he was telling me SdC was the other way. He wanted me to get off the road and go downhill to the Camino Historico (which I had missed) but knew I would come near it soon. It was a standoff, he stood at his gate until I turned off to go down to the camino. I stopped for five minutes saw that he was no longer there and continued on the path at the side of the road.

Arzuá-Melide - September 3, 2011
With a heavy backpack and three blisters later I decided on a taxi to Melide. I needed to buy supplies for the blisters and rest my feet. This could mean a better walk tomorrow to Palais de Rei. I have walked the last couple of camino's without blisters so I was not fully prepared for this today. I had a needle and thread but not enough plasters or tape. I am so disappointed and annoyed with myself for not replacing my Timberland boots with Timberland boots, what was I thinking?

In Melide I went immediately to the Farmacia (Pharmacy) and bought more plasters, tape, and foot creme. My Ureadin Rx 20 was almost finished so I bought Dr. Scholls Hirschtalg foot creme, now hopefully I can fight those blisters! I will not try the two sock thing again as it did not work for me, it works for so many pilgrims but not for me.

I met a wonderful Irish girl who told me that from SJPP she has had 25 blisters.  She said, "I had so many I started to name them". What a good idea, I am naming my blisters after pilgrim friends because they understand "No Pain, No Gain". She was walking with three others and all were excited that they only had three walking days to SdC.

Having this day off allowed me to find time to use the Internet.  I checked email, facebook and Blog. The Internet is not always available along the way. Some days I am too tired to compute and at other times I simply do not want the Internet to intrude on my day.

Ester Vaikma
It is with sadness that I mention the matriach of one side of our Estonian family.  Ester, the sister of Garry´s father, was always happy when we saw her.  She was a bubbly loveable person who had a pretty tough hand dealt her in Soviet times.  Yet she came through with a smile for the family.  God Bless you Ester, you will be missed.  To the family I extend my sincere sympathy.

A busy Sunday

Today was the unofficial opening day of the galleria.  For those who do not know, in Europe many businesses and shops are closed for the month of August, it is vacation month.  So before what should be the official opening of the galleria Kees and Vicente opened today to test the waters.  Many people passed through looking at the art work and antiques and placed pieces on hold for pick-up next week.  It was a very successful day.  It was tiring with the early start, the walk to and fro, and the longer hours today.  The alarm system would not work and needed to be checked by the alarm company so we sat around while they tried unsuccessfully to fix the problem.  We did not finish our lunch till five o´clock and now it is a late siesta time.  I am not resting because after yesterdays long siesta I did not get to sleep until about 0230 this morning.

The Metro
Kees met me at the airport on Thursday morning and we came into Madrid by Metro.  The system is fast and clean for those pilgrims wishing to use it.  However, to get where we needed to be took three changes so I am happy that Kees has told me that he will go with me on Tuesday for my flight to Santiago.

The Terrace

Instead of a penthouse this apartment building has a community terrace which was not used by the folks.  Kees is Dutch and is used to being able to walk in a garden or see the sun through the windows of his home in the Netherlands.  In this inner city apartment block the sun is hidden behind other tall buildings.  So as a surprise to Vicente for his birthday Kees cleaned up the terrace, placed potted plants around the area and bought in outdor furniture.  Now the terrace is a nice space for relaxing and watching the evening sunset.  Each night we have gone up there with our books and sit for an hour or so, it is delightful.

The view from the terrace - looking south

I love the tiled roofing

Each night we have watched a Siamese cat walk/run along the roofs across the street.  It goes out of sight then about a half later returns followed by a black cat.  They chase each other and are playful to watch.

Saturday in Madrid

This morning we visited the Real Basilica San Francisco el Grande to see the beautiful restoraation of the fresco´s and the paintings by Spanish artists in the museum there.  The restoration took twenty-seven years to complete but now the work can be seen in all its splendor.

There are mirrors placed on the walls around the room so that the priests, royals, or high ranking visitors did not have to crane their necks.

Afterwards we went to the galleria to place locks on the display cases and then it was time for lunch.  After lunch comes siesta, and I needed a siesta today.  Now at nearly 2000h or 08:00PM we are going to the movies and for tapas.