Barbadelo

Today was very unusual because Caroline has damaged her ankle and had managed to get an appointment with a physio in Portomarin (the next large town) at 10 and was going there by taxi. So I set off on my own - although it’s already clear that from Sarria onwards you won’t be on your own for long, if at all, as there are many more people walking now. Also I was fortunate to have Anna leaving around the same time and walking to Gonzar too, so we linked up for quite large parts of this walk.
Today we passed the 100km to Santiago mark - currently at about 80km - which felt an achievement having started at 800 and also quite melancholy as I don’t want this to end. I still love the walking and the whole experience, even tho I’m feeling very tired tonight, and I find myself beginning to plan how I’m going to get back here! Just hoping I can at some point in the not too distant future.
It was a lovely morning and the first and longest part of the walk, to Portomarin, was beautiful. Typical Galician countryside with small farms and tiny villages.
About 2 hours in we came to a doorway leading to a courtyard and garden where a very kind couple had laid out a fantastic breakfast spread - all donativo. As well as coffee and tea, there were home made cakes, tortilla, pancakes, cheese and meat, eggs, croquettes, fruit, walnuts - really everything you can imagine. All done with such kindness. It was an amazing stop and I really appreciated it. Anna and I sat there for quite a while before finally continuing on to Portomarin.
There was a steep downhill section to the bridge over to the town and then steep steps up into the town on the other side.
The main point of interest was a beautiful and simple Romanesque church. I tried to get another credencial but the information office, where I thought I might have been able to find one, was deserted. We had a drink and then continued on the final section, mainly uphill, into the tiny hamlet of Gonzar.
This part of the walk wasn’t as attractive, lots of walking by roads and the day had clouded over so everything looked a bit grim. The temperature was good tho for what was, in the end, a pretty long walk.
The place we are staying tonight seems fine. No cards so I was relieved that I’d managed to get more cash out in Portomarin. It’s been quite hard to use cards for the last few days and most of the places we walk through don’t have banks so it’s important to have plenty of cash!
Reunited with C, who seemed to have had s successful appointment with the physio, we went to eat a late lunch at the nearby Albergue - salad and padrón peppers / and then came back so do the washing (!) and rest a bit. Have now had supper here and have eaten far too much - but the food was fine and managed vegetarian which is always a relief.
Not such a long day tomorrow unless I do the 4.5k detour to a special church. I’m thinking about that!Read more