Quian

Our penultimate day on the camino! With our bags a lot lighter the walk was leisurely and pleasant with good weather for walking. We all had a good sleep and a good breakfast at the albergue, so we left much later than was usual for us. Quite a bit of this section was on tarmac and so the occasional off-road bits were a relief, we only had a few ascents but they did not present any difficulties, it was the descents which were longer and steeper. I was worried how Anita was coping with her bad knee but she is tough and resilient and she coped well.

We stopped for coffee at Ponte Ulla and got a few things from the supermarket as there were no shops in the towns ahead of us. It was only 20 km but felt a little longer due to the rolling hills, but we arrived at the Albergue Reina Lupa about 1345 and were welcomed by the very lovely owner. The albergue was outstanding, it was brand new, spotlessly clean, and the beds were well spaced out and each one had a nightlight and USB sockets in the wall. Each bed had a generously sized locker next to it. The best thing of all was that we did not have paper sheets, we had crisp white linen sheets freshly washed and pressed, and a large incredibly soft fleece blanket. We could have cried. It was albergue heaven, and yes the toilets and showers were great, and there was also a washing machine. The crisp white linen sheets meant that it just beat the albergue in Leiras as the best albergue between Sevilla and Santiago.

When we came in there were two older ladies chatting in the reception area - Australians, it turned out that one of them lived on the same street as Anita, small world.

We went along the road to a restaurant recommended by our hospitalera and it was really busy with locals (a good sign) and we had a fabulous dinner, before wandering back to the albergue to pack our bags for the last time on the camino. We had decided to get our bags transported to Santiago the next day. Most of us were staying at The Last Stamp and we couldn't check in until 1400, so it would save us carrying our bags around the city all day.

We got some bad news from Anne, it wasn't the humidity that was bothering her, it turned out that she had covid, so she would not be arriving in the city on Monday after all. On a more positive note, Mirjam messaged to say how much she was enjoying being in Finisterre and how glad she was to have gone. I was really happy for her and looked forward to seeing her on Sunday night and hearing all about it.

We all went to bed and despite the excitement about arriving in Santiago tomorrow, we fell asleep in minutes.Read more