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Camino de Santiago

April - May 2024
A 34-day adventure by Diane Read more
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  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    Day 2

    First Day

    April 5 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    Arrived in Santiago de Compostela the worse for missing a nights sleep and a rollercoaster-type landing.
    We are staying in a former monks cell in an amazing monastery.
    We ate dinner in the majestic dining room at the monastery. A three course dinner with a huge bottle of water and a bottle of delicious red wine set us back 15 euros. We slept well in our monks cell.Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    2215
    Day 3

    Day 2

    April 6 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    After a delicious breakfast at the monastery (the crushed red stuff was tomatoes, not fruit), we dropped off our suitcases in the storage room and walked on cobblestones through the tiny alleys of Santiago, passing shops selling amazing looking empanadas, breads and pastries to arrive at the bus station two hours before the next bus to Ferrol!! Oh well, the bus was on time and very comfortable. The journey was about 1 1/2 hours which is funny since it will take us nine days to walk back. Our hotel for the night is the Parador de Ferrol which is a former mansion and is stunning. We took a walk around the marina and the town itself and were disappointed by the poor condition of an obviously once thriving community. So many businesses and restaurants were closed and boarded up, it was sad to see.
    We are currently enjoying our first Galician beer back in the hotel bar and trying to decide what to eat for dinner. It is 8pm and the restaurant has just opened. So different to Houston.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    31111112
    Day 4

    Day 1 As Pilgrims

    April 7 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    We are officially Peregrinos!! After an unbelievable breakfast at our hotel, we walked down the hill to the official starting point of the Camino Ingles by the marina. We got our first stamp in our pilgrims passport and we were off. It took a long time to actually put the town of Ferrol behind us and we did see a different side to the town today. Many attractive looking shops and a few bakeries.
    Our walk was a mixture of urban and rural. Early in the morning there was hardly anyone else on the streets, but later in the morning we saw more people jogging, walking, and cycling, but very few fellow pilgrims.
    We arrived at our lodging for the night around 2:10pm only to discover that Chris’ backpack, which we had stuffed full of everything that we didn’t need on our walk had not been delivered 🙁. However, the extremely kind receptionist from the last night’s hotel just delivered it on her way home.
    We are planning to explore the town and find some dinner as soon as we have finished our local beer.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    Day 5

    Day 2 as Pilgrims

    April 8 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    We woke to rain this morning 🙁
    After a light breakfast of toast and jam, the rain eased off so we donned our rain jackets and headed off to Pontedeume. We hadn’t gone too far, however, when the rain got heavier so we sheltered at a bus stop and put our waterproof pants on. We saw many more pilgrims today, we even met a group of young people from England at our lunch stop, an amazing restaurant attached to a gas station. Lunch service only began at 1pm!! After lunch the weather improved with only the occasional April shower.
    We came across several structures that were used as wash houses back in the day, built over a stream with constantly running water, and huts built on concrete stilts that are used to dry corn. Lots of small farms too and more abandoned homes. One was even for sale for 15,000 euros.
    Our accommodation tonight is considered a boutique hotel. We had to call for someone to let us in. The lady did not speak a word of English and we had a hilarious time using Google translate. We are the only guests and she told us to enjoy the house and left. We did a lot of climbing today just to reach Pontedeume but the hotel is out of town and that involved some more climbing. Someone stopped to chat on our way up and told us it was a mile straight up. The streets are unbelievably steep.
    At least we have a jump start for tomorrow.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    Day 6

    Day 3 as Pilgrims

    April 9 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    What an amazing hotel last night and an unbelievable breakfast spread by the male owner. There were croissants, toast, muffins, yogurt, ham, cheese, and of course, crushed tomatoes, which we now know go on toast and are delicious.
    The service here is wonderful. People take a real pride in the presentation of food and there is always a small extra.
    After breakfast, we continued uphill FOREVER!! The weather was cool and sunny and we walked on some delightful wooded trails. Since this was a short day, we arrived at our beach hotel by 1:00pm and were able to check-in, take a rest and enjoy sardines and empanadas for lunch, then take a walk on the deserted beach. Another rest and a refreshing shower and it was time for dinner of giant shrimp and grilled cod. The restaurant was full of football fans cheering on Madrid who were playing Manchester City. Even Chris was cheering for Madrid because Man City are big rivals of Liverpool.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    Day 7

    Day 4 as Pilgrims

    April 10 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    What an amazing day. The weather was beautiful - cool in the morning and sunny. We had a light breakfast in the hotel and set off along the beachfront, through the town of Neda and bought fresh bread and ham along the way. We easily picked up signs for the Camino and off we went towards Betanzos. We saw quite a few other pilgrims today and we greeted each other with the customary ‘buen Camino’.
    We actually ate our lunch at a bus stop and shortly afterwards, after slogging up a particularly long and steep uphill, we ran across a man who had set up a little pop-up snack bar. We stopped for Fanta and lemonade and sat in the shade. We heard English voices and struck up a conversation with Chris and Mark and then Kay from New Zealand joined us. We walked in close proximity for the rest of the afternoon. When we reached Betanzos we went our separate ways to our accommodation but arranged to meet up with Mark and Chris later. We enjoyed a couple of beers and dinner of Tortilla Betanzos, croquets, and steak with them. They are staying in an albergue tonight but funnily they will be moving into our apartment tomorrow and staying an extra day. All in all a very good day.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    Day 8

    Day 5 as Pilgrims

    April 11 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    We really enjoyed our apartment, so clean and modern. We were a little sluggish this morning after having several drinks and dinner with Chris and Mark last night. A delightful couple of guys who both live in England now but Chris was born in Africa and Mark was born in California.
    We walked through the town of Betanzos and bought empanadas to eat later. We met a delightful lady who was walking her dog. Naturally she spoke to us in Spanish and, of course, we could not understand her so then she spoke to us in German which wasn’t a whole lot better!! But it was fun.
    Today was much warmer than past days and we were climbing for most of the day so it was hard going. Our destination, Presedo, does not have any accommodation except for a municipal albergue so we had made reservations at Rectoral de Cines, a 1,000 year old former convent. It is stunning.
    We ate a lovely dinner of cod (me) and veal (Chris) then we took a walk around outside and enjoyed an amazing sunset before bed.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    Day 9

    Day 6 as Pilgrims

    April 12 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    The convent life suited us well. We slept well and ate well. We were dropped off in Presedo, where we ended yesterday and began walking to Hospital de Bruma. I need to research why the town is called that.
    I have to admit feeling nervous this morning knowing that today we would face our biggest climb yet. The weather was gorgeous and for the first couple of hours the path was delightful. Along country lanes and through forested areas with the birds singing and all the beautiful country smells. We came across Kay from New Zealand who we have seen a few times and she was waiting for a couple from North Carolina to catch up. After a quick Orange Fanta (my new favorite) the climbing began but honestly, even though it was steep and long, it wasn’t as brutal as I had dreaded. We made it to Casa Avelina which is owned by Mary Carmen, who is famous for her amazing hospitality, in time for lunch. She brings small stools for your feet and plies you with appetizers and cookies and is just wonderful. It was only about 2.5 kilometers further then to our albergue.
    We ate dinner just down the road and ran into Mark and Chris, our friends from two nights ago and also Dennis from the Netherlands and Maryanne from Germany. Then a Chinese influencer joined us for awhile. Everyone is so friendly. I don’t think I took enough photos today.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    Day 10

    Day 7 as Pilgrims

    April 13 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Our first stay in an Albergue was wonderful, although we did pick a posh one where we had our own private room and bathroom. We ate breakfast along the way at Cafe Uzal, coffee and croissants. Kay showed up with the North Carolinians whilst we were there (still don’t know their names)!! There was a sculpture garden across from the cafe with a dinosaur and other interesting things.
    We stopped again at Cafe Novo for Fanta. There is no accommodation in Poulo so we walked a further 2.5 kilometers to the town of Ordes to Hotel Alda Camino Ingles. We ate the equivalent of a cream tea for lunch and then we chatted with two Canadians whilst we waited to check in.
    Our room is basic but lovely and spotlessly clean with a beautiful view and lovely light. We went off to find dinner after a nap and a shower. We chose A Campana and we were not disappointed. The first course was a stir fry of mushrooms, shrimp, and octopus, followed by sliced ribeye which we cooked ourselves at the table with salad and fries. Dessert was cheesecake. As a surprise (there is always a surprise) we got to choose a liquor each.
    We took a stroll around town and are ready to crash now 😴    Read more

  • TravelerCamino de Santiago
    Day 11

    Day 8 as Pilgrims

    April 14 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    We started walking this morning from Ordes, 2.5 kilometers from the Camino. We thought about taking a taxi back to pick up the Camino but we ate so much last night that we needed to walk extra today!! Breakfast in the hotel was nice so we took extra for a picnic lunch.
    I had one of those moments today where all was well in my world. I started to reflect on our journey and I felt such gratitude for this opportunity and for the fact that we had the time, the means, and the physical stamina to do this. Best of all, I am doing this with the love of my life ♥️
    Mother Nature has been all around us all week and I have so enjoyed all the sights, the smells, and the beauty of everything; the ocean, the different flowers, the eucalyptus trees and the farmyard smells.
    The weather was hot and sunny today, particularly the last stretch but the Houston heat had us well prepared we found our hotel and showered and crashed for a while.
    We have just returned to our hotel from a lovely dinner of Cesar Salad and Risotto. Wherever we have been to eat, we have been presented with a surprise, either a small appetizer with a beer, a small piece of cake with coffee, last night we had a delicious liqueur after dinner, all complementary and offered with pleasure. It is so refreshing to be served this way.    Read more

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