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- Día 10
- martes, 2 de septiembre de 2025, 10:58
- ☁️ 66 °F
- Altitud: 105 p
EspañaVigo42°14’21” N 8°43’35” W
To Pontesampaio

It was pouring rain this morning and that relieved our guilt for sleeping late a tiny bit- we needed it and the rain was really coming down! We had breakfast which was scrambled eggs (they call this an omelet!), a huge piece of home baked bread and some fresh squeezed OJ- perfect to get us going. Once the rain let up a little we set out to explore Vigo a bit before strapping on packs. We headed down to the waterfront which is full of boats of all sizes- there was a large cruise ship moored as well as smaller sailboats. Vigo port is well known for its seafood processing and exporting. We saw the Jules Verne memorial - it’s a bronze statue of JV sitting on an octopus- very cool! He mentions the bay of Vigo in his book 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and is thought of as an ambassador for the area. Next we visited the old town of Vigo with its many shops and cafés and immediately went in to the Church of Santa Maria, the Cathedral of Vigo, the Igrexa Colexiata de Santa Maria. It’s a large church with short stairs to the front doors that wind naturally around with the flow of the climb and I think they draw you in. The locals call this church La Colegiata and it houses the statue of El Cristo de la Victoria, the Christ of Victory. He’s so named because the town believes his intercession helped them defeat the French in the War of Independence. This statue is paraded in town during a festival in early August each year. There are beautiful mosaics all over the front and sides of the altar wall- we were able to attend Mass there this morning and felt it gave our day a wonderful beginning. We got our credentials stamped and decided to go back to the hotel, get our bags and start walking. Impulsively I left my Keen sandals there at the pilgrims table for another pilgrim. I couldn’t wear them because they shredded my feet and they were too heavy to keep carrying. Actually once I thought of my blisters and Luke recovering I just couldn’t push enough for that long climb out of the city and up Mount Vigo so we took a cab over to the Senda Litoral and started from there. The morning went quickly and we were in Redondela in time for lunch. This town has the Igrexa Santiago de Redondela and the chapel of Santa Mariña. One large, one small, both right on the Camino and a good place to stamp a credential and rest and say a prayer. After lunch Luke went ahead to save his strength and take my backpack while I limped in to Pontesampaio. There were many more pilgrims today since the way has actually begun for people who prefer to only hike the last 100K of the Camino. I met and walked with a couple of guys from Ireland, girls from Germany and Italy, a mom pushing a stroller with baby Margarita and young people from Australia and Toronto. The world seems small when you’re on the Camino! We came to one point where we were given the choice of roads. One had an elevation of 15% and was 70 meters long vs. having an easier climb at 5% elevation change and 369 meters- of course we all chose the hardest one- peer pressure is a wonderful and dangerous thing! The afternoon got hot but it wasn’t long before I made it to Pontesampio with its medieval bridge. The origen of this bridge is Roman but the current bridge dates back to the Middle Ages and it’s still in use today! It was great to see Luke there sitting on the bridge encouraging me in and pointing to our hostel. There’s construction at the entrance to the town so cars are diverted so Luke had to carry in both backpacks for the last mile and a half… not the rest he was hoping for! He’s feeling better though and made a delicious dinner of pasta with cheese sauce for us tonight as I did laundry. It’s an early night (a luxury on the Camino) and we are tucked in getting ready and excited for Pontevedre! The view from my window is the town church and I hear its bells ringing us good night.Leer más
Viajero
How did they get your shadow on wall?
ViajeroKeep up the great work!
Viajero
Love this ancient Eucharist themed water 💦 station !