17.5mi Palas de Rei to Ribadiso

25th day on the Camino! The gang and I stuck together and picked up Arthur 🇺🇦🇮🇹 on the way! It was a tough day physically and mentally. We weren’t sure if this was caused by the mugginess or the fact that the end is coming near 😔. There was a moment this morning at coffee where a girl told us to move because she had put her bag at the table to reserve it. She proceeded to sit down at the table alone, on her phone. It was one of those
moments the last 100km where we saw the difference between pilgrims and tourists. The pilgrim mentality is very much welcoming of company and conversation in the present moment. It made me sad to see, but also aware of how easily we can forget that beautiful mentality out in the hustle and bustle of our daily lives. Something I will have to keep at the back of my mind moving forward.

There were also so many good moments today!! We started the day with hugs all around and a little bit of tree hugging 😂❤️🌲. We had a few dogs follow us and finally saw horses on the trail. Davide graced us with his singing, we saw a little bit of Dyna’s Slitherin side 🤭, and I finally found Tarta de Santiago cake that was moist 🥮.

Towards the end of our trek we met author Kelly Field from Seattle. She told us her story 💕. She was the director of innovation at Nordstrom’s in Seattle and she felt she had to quit the corporate world. Her husband encouraged her to walk the Camino and she was so inspired by her journey. She wrote a fiction novel based off the stories she heard on the way “The Grief of Goodbye” 📖. Now she lives on the Camino with a lavender field 💜. She is building cabins for pilgrims and I may go volunteer with her next year. She gave me the encouragement to finish strong when she told us she saw the light of joy and openness in our faces.💛

I found an Irish fan at the Albergue who lives in Austin now, and we had a beautiful ice bath in the river! We met Patrick 🇦🇺 swimming and he joined us for dinner. Dinner was a blast. There was a wedding reception, a men’s futbol club ceremony, a birthday party, and a few pelligrinos all in the single small bar in town. It was noisy, but welcoming ☺️💛. I’m ready to see what the last two days bring on the trail! Buen Camino! ❤️Leggi altro