Spain
Valga

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    • Day 17

      Day 17: Caldas de Reis to Vilar

      November 5, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F

      Today was a nice walking day, but LONG! I walked at least 25 km today. I started before 9 AM and didn’t get to my albergue until after 5 PM. I kept meeting up with the same pilgrims, some of whom I’ve seen for a few days. We all seem to stop at the same cafés for a snack and a bathroom break, and just to rest for a little while. There was the lady from Ukraine, who’s walking with her sister. She was at the hot springs spa with me yesterday. I met Gus from Maine, who is 22 years old and just graduated from college. He’s meeting his dad in Portugal after the Camino and they’re going to Morocco. I met Laura from Dallas, who has done multiple Caminos. I walked with a couple from Vancouver who I’ve seen for the last several days. I’ve definitely been talking with more pilgrims in the last few days, which has been fun and interesting. After our second stop today, I ran into Laura again and she said that I was emanating joy. I don’t know about that, but I definitely feel in good spirits today.

      At my third stop today in Padron, I met Elena from Venezuela and Alex from Germany. While I was talking with them, Bruce from Australia came in. I met him in Tui a few days ago and we were both dealing with leg and foot issues. I knew I was ahead of him by at least a day so it was a nice surprise to see him again. I also saw Maggie and her mom Mary from New York. Maggie was at the spa with me in Caldas des Rais last night. It’s so cool to keep running in to people I’ve met along the way.

      Tonight I am in a beautiful, historic albergue called O Lagar de Jesus (€60 for large private room w/ ensuite). The owner is a Brazilian man named Elijah, but his mother is Galician and he is now back in his mother’s home country. He lived in Miami for 10 years before coming to Spain. I had a wonderful meal here with other pilgrims from Portugal and the Czech Republic, and enjoyed the best Spanish Rioja wine. 🍷 😀 Elijah gave a special toast about family and faith, and what the way, the truth, and the life means. He called this our Santiago Eve, and it definitely felt like a celebration. Only 20 km to go to Santiago! I will meet my young German friends there and celebrate this beautiful pilgrimage with them.

      Foot report: On my second café stop today, I took care of a little hotspot I was feeling on my heel. I reapplied Foot Glide all over both feet and put some tape on that spot. A small blister was forming, but I think I caught it in time. My shins are feeling pretty good. Still a little sore at the end of the day, but no serious problems.

      I’m feeling pretty happy about making it this far, and I’m looking forward to arriving in Santiago de Compostela tomorrow. 🙏😌
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    • Day 13

      Pedron oh Pedron

      May 4, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

      Made it in the rain and through flooded pathways. Last 6 mls with wet feet. But one more day left. Tomorrow- Santiago!
      Today was absolutely stunning. Rushing rivers, real “spanish” moss, horses, donkeys, succulents, flowers, churches, all of the wonders of nature and gifts from God. I am lucky and blessed and happy.

      Oh, almost forgot. I finally figured out why this is called “find my
      Penguins” and is the “camino app”. After a day walking the Camino, you take your shoes off, and literally you walk like a penguin. So, if you are reading this, you are finding your penguin.
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    • Only 2 more hiking days

      September 28, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 12 °C

      Day 12. 2nd to last day of hiking. It's dark, chilly, and foggy as I start the day at 8 am, and as I walk, the temperature drops, and the breeze picks up. Thankfully, I have my stretch neck head band (a memory from another great hike to a tea house above Lake Louise) to cover my ears.

      Besides the chill, today is again a perfect hike through some town lanes, but mostly country trails in forests. It's Saturday, and I see more local home life, people doing chores, cleaning windows, washing cars, and trimming roses.

      It's funny how this is a religiously inspired pilgrimage hike, and yet there is little religious support or encouragement for today's pilgrims. Most churches are closed, few have stamps for credentials or prayer cards, or any sign acknowledging the pilgrolims visit. Finally, a half mile off the path and 200km from my start in the town of Pontecesures near Padron, I get the first warm welcome too a church from a gentleman who Is cleaning the church and is very excited to give me a stamp and a prayer card. I'm not religious. But Ai expected more church support of The Way.

      In Padron, 24 km from Santiago, there is active interest in the story of St James and accounts of his remains coming here for a time in the first century. The church has a Roman harbor pier where the boat carrying St James was moored on display under the altar, and several paintings depicting him.

      But most intriguing in Padron was learning about the Nobel-winning author Rosalía de Castro 1837-1885. I toured her final home and heard of her feminist stance, and how she is credited as" the greatest Galician cultural icon" having written numerous books and poems in the Galician language (not sure if that's a dialect or entirely different from Spanish).
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    • Day 15

      San Miguel

      May 4, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

      San Miguel was charming township with a small church, but a large graveyard with family named mausoleums with generations laid to rest. This was unlike any other church I have encountered on this trip, and it stood out. There were a couple of older women who were caretaking and cutting flowers at the tombs. Was raining off and on today, so I took the opportunity to catch up on my picture taking.Read more

    • Day 28

      Etappe 26

      June 4, 2023 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 18 °C

      Hoi zämä!
      Anders als vermutet, habe ich mich heute Morgen mit Anmut und Grazie aus meinem Etagenbett geschwungen! Selbst ich war erstaunt, mit wieviel Eleganz mir der Ausstieg von oben gelang! Auch Roland machte eine gute Figur beim verlassen seiner, im ersten Stockwerk gelegenen, Bettstatt! Offenbar sind wir doch noch gelenkiger als erwartet!
      Die Etappe, die wir heute zu bewältigen hatten, führte uns bei Morgennebel, durch schöne Gebiete und kleinere Orte. Neuerdings werden wir in den Dörfern nicht mehr so oft mit Hundegebell empfangen, Nun sind es die "Güggel" die uns mit ihrem lauten "Kikeriki" freundlich begrüssen. 
      In den Waldlandschaften, die wir auch heute wieder durchquerten, wurden wir von Schmetterlingen und dem Gesang der vielen Vögel, die hier leben, begleitet.
      Nicht unbedingt zu unserer Freude, begegneten wir einem kleinen Hund, der offenbar lieber mit uns, als mit seinem Besitzer unterwegs sein wollte! Der Vierbeiner zottelte uns regelrecht hinterher und machte keine Anstalten zu seinem Herrchen zurückzukehren. Roland, dem Hundeflüsterer gelang es, nach einigen Fehlversuchen, glücklicherweise doch noch, den Wau-Wau zur Umkehr zu bewegen!
      Abwechslung in den Tag brachte auch ein Pärchen aus Bern, welches gerade eine Ruhepause am Wegesrand machte. Die zwei sympathischen Schweizer erzählten mit Begeisterung von den Erfahrungen, die sie hier mit den freundlichen Menschen bereits gemacht haben. Obwohl sie sehr unterhaltsam waren, haben wir uns nicht allzulange aufgehalten, denn vor uns lagen noch etliche Kilometer die wir zurückzulegen hatten. Nach 30Km wandern checkten wir, müde und erledigt,  in einer sehr schönen Herberge ein. Von dieser Unterkunft aus, brechen wir morgen zur letzten Etappe, Richtung Santiago-de-Compostela auf.
      Guet Nacht und schlafed guet!
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    • Day 32

      Day 27 to Padron

      May 22, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 70 °F

      Today was another beautiful 13.25 miles along old roman roads that are now country roads through farmland and forest areas. Today we saw real life happening as people were cleaning their houses and working in their expansive gardens. There also were goats and a lot of chickens in the yards. These last two days are more of what we expected the Camino to look like.

      Again, there were many pilgrims and yet many times it seemed that we had the trail to ourselves. The pilgrims all managed to get together at the cafes which were sufficient but not in abundance.

      We didn't meet anyone new today but did catch up with a few old friends that we haven't seen for 3 or 4 days since along the coast.

      We are at a hotel just outside of the town of Padron, so there is nothing here to explore. But the hotel grounds are beautiful and we will enjoy drinks in the garden.

      We had a wonderful dinner at the hotel with pilgrim friends Chris and Chrissy from Texas, Bryanna from Boston, and Alicia from Sweden. It is great baking friends if there Camino! Everyone is looking forward to Santiago!

      Only one day off walking left - under 25 km!!
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    • Day 6

      Routine

      March 27, 2024 in Spain ⋅ 🌧 9 °C

      The the last few days I've gotten into this routine where at 9am I pour my clear whey protein powder into the bottle and shake it for 30 minutes so I can have it at 9.30am. Because the bottle doesn't have the stirrer it takes a while for the protein to dissolve instead of just being one large clump. One of the reasons I came here was yo escape my routine and here I was starting another one!

      There are so many people on the walk that I'm just following people moving along. The rain is getting super intense and people I'm following start dropping off the path. They escape to cafes, stay under bus shelters or dip into restaurants. I'm pretty dry and my feet are still comfortable so I press on. I pass a few of the public laundry fountains. It's such a lovely communal space. I wonder if the people who used to use them back in the day had a set time to go, catch up with each other and clean their clothes.

      The route is pretty hilly now. Up and down these wooded paths. A few cyclists are on this route as well. You only need to cycle a 200km route to Santiago to get the certificate. Lots of Beun Caminos are being exchanged as they bump along.

      I hit a wall. My body is aching, my face and fingers are freezing but I'm also too warm under the rain coat, I realise I still have a minimum 3hrs more to walk, the rain is relentless, my mind is racing, I'm trying to look at the bright side and be positive and then the rain stops. Another bit of sunshine comes through. This time it lasts almost 30mins. I seriously needed that break through. Its as if the universe wanted to give me a break to keep pressing ahead. I was already planning out vstoius scenarios of what I'd do if I broke my ankle on this steep wet path. Thankfully I didn't need to use those options.
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    • Day 12

      Tag 12 Briallos - O Pino (Valga)

      August 17, 2019 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

      Hallo ihr Lieben,

      Nach einer unruhigen Nacht (es gibt einfach auch sehr rücksichtslose Menschen in Gemeinschatsschlafsälen, man würde es ja kaum glauben) lief ich los. Ca 15km bis O Pino hatte ich mir vorgenommen. Eine kurzes, leichtes Stück also. Aber heute will es nicht so einfach laufen. Ich glaube ich bin des Laufens heute Müde geworden. Der erste Tag an dem ich keine Lust habe loszulaufen und mich während dem Laufen auch nicht motivierter werde. Es ist grau draußen, aber dampfig warm, kurz vorm Regnen und Juliane und ich haben beide keine große Lust, gähnen ständig vor uns hin und unsere Wehwehchen fangen schon bei den ersten Schritten an zu schmerzen. Kein guter Start. Auch das üppige Frühstück in Caldas de Reis nach 5km macht uns nur noch müder, jetzt wo wir satt sind. Naja wir schleppen uns durch den Wald, lachen über die vielen 'Call Taxi now' Werbeschilder mitten im Wald und versuchen uns irgendwie abzulenken. Bald kommen bekannte Gesichter hinzu und unser gequatsche wurde wirkliche Ablenkung, sodass ich fast an der Abzweigung zur Herberge in O Pino vorbei geschossen wäre, so ins Gespräch vertieft waren wir.
      Aber es ist gut Halt zu machen und nicht weiter zu laufen, auch wenn ich endlich einen Trott gefunden hatte.
      Die Herberge ist groß mit 80 Betten und wir waren bis zur Öffnung um 13 Uhr erst 3 Leute!
      Meine Strategie in den kleinen Ortschaften zu bleiben geht also voll auf.
      Der Ort ist so klein, dass Supermarkt, Café und Bar in einer Location zu finden sind!! Sehr süß 2 Regalbretter zu haben für die Auswahl des Abendessens. Ratet mal was es gibt heute Abend? - richtig Spaghetti mit Tomatensauce 😅😂 viel mehr Auswahl gibt es nicht.
      Ich mache jetzt Siesta - man soll sich ja an die Landeskukturen anpassen, gell?

      Fazit des Tages:
      Ist der Ruf erstmal ruiniert, läuft es sich gänzlich ungeniert (humpeln, hinken, mimimi usw. Ist alles erlaubt)
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    • Day 15

      Caldas de Reis to Padron

      May 5, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 61 °F

      It’s our second to the last day … yikes! Misty rain today, not the heavy thunder showers that were predicted. Most of the path was off roadways, so quite pleasant. We arrived at our rural hotel before 4 pm — and it’s one of the nicest we’ve stayed in. Plus, it has *real* hangers, and towel hooks in the bathroom … again, we are thankful for the small things!

      We met some boisterous Aussies as well as a sweet couple from Ireland and two couples from Calgary. As we sat outside listening to music, talking and sipping wine, the SUN appeared. It was heavenly to feel it on our (three days of rained-on) bodies.

      Our daily morning mantra is “Our only job today is to walk, and be grateful.” We do, and we are. 👣🙏🏽
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    • Day 12

      The short path or the steady path

      July 7, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

      The other day, somewhere in the middle of nowhere, there was a sign with two arrows. To the left, 72 meters and a 15 degree slope up. To the right, 362 meters and a 5 degree slope up. Both paths reconnected and continued the camino.

      In the few minutes I was there, we all took the shorter and steeper path. A quick glance to the right showed a path noticeably less trodden.

      I imagine that somewhere near that sign is a hidden camera set up by a young PhD student. That they are looking for commonalities in those that take the longer path. Is it age? The weight of their pack? The intensity of their camino limp?

      Maybe the student hypothesized that all of us who take on the camino are more apt to take on the harder challenge. Or maybe the student understood that those extra 290 meters are precious steps we may need later.

      I’ve always liked the saying “when you come to a crossroads, take it”. In the days since i was at this specific crossroads, I’ve wondered how many times i’ve taken the steeper but shorter (proverbial) path when the signs weren’t as clear. But more importantly, is that the kind of person i want to be or do i want to start working toward being more prudent and slowing down to explore the possibilities.

      One thing i know about myself - i rarely foresee probable outcomes unless I’ve witnessed them before. I am blinded (and often blindsided) by the new, unexpected, or creative paths that lay before me. Aware of this shortcoming, i am often paralyzed to move forward and rely on my inner circle to help guide me…but when the signs seem clear, i take the short path, even if it’s harder.

      And i am not sure that is serving me (and mine) as well as it use to.
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    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Valga

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