Hola Espana

Was a brutal night , our housemates were a group of VERY noisy Italians. They crashed in and out as late as 130, and as early as 430. In between were some fireworks sounds, just to mix it up. Glad to see a big pot of coffee at the breakfast table! And, the owner of the fortress hostel too, as it turns out this overflow hostel is created at his home. Over breakfast we get some advice, information, tips and recommendations we wouldn't have otherwise. So, a silver lining.

And we walk across 1886 built International bridge, 400 metres across the Minho and from Portugal into Spain.

The city of Tui is much bigger and busier than Valenca, but beautiful too with wide avenues in the old section and a spectacular cathedral. Which is unfortunately closed as we arrived early. A somewhat surly attendant did not provide the stamp for the credentials, merely pushed the stamper towards us. He has likely already seen far more pilgrims than he wants to. There is a sizeable increase in the numbers of walkers around us, cyclists too. Starting here gives you the 100km needed to earn your Compostela, hence it's popularity.

There seems to be a diversion from the regular path which creates some confusion, but we ultimately sort it out. We're expecting to do about 22km today, so aren't too keen on any additional distance.

Some bright spots today were bridges, such as the serene forest glade around the Ponte das Fevres, where the patron saint of Tui fell ill on his way to Santiago in 1246. It's such a peaceful memorial spot. There's a few other romanesque bridges too. The design is so esthetically pleasing and structurally sound at the same time, I so enjoy form AND function.

However, we toil along some pretty industrial boring long stretches as the day heats up. In good time we come across what we think is our first furancho, a uniquely Spanish event where a winemaker will sell their extra wine to the public. Often food is offered, and there are some strict criteria around dishes offered and opening season. We intend to search for another one in a day or two, but it's a refreshing stop nonetheless.

On and on and on...it's late and we're quite sore when we arrive in Mos, at Cafe Flora where a few pilgrim rooms are added above the downstairs bar restaurant. And happily meet up with Chrismi, a Korean man we met at casa Carolina a few days ago. We had dinner together, and Chrismi declared he and Brad to be brothers, as they were born in the same year.

And that's as far as our nights gone, as the end result according to the Google oracle, is 32 km travelled today. Way too much walking!Read more