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Day 35: Lavacolla to Santiago (Guendolinam’s version)

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  Everything Bob said is factual, so I won’t repeat the story of our walk to Santiago, only to add that much of it was disappointingly similar to the walk into other biggish cities, standard suburban and urban sprawl fare. I also found that while Bob had an extra spring in his step today, I kept unintentionally walking more slowly, apparently unwilling to have the walk end. On the outskirts of town, we passed rows upon rows of what looked like bunkers. Bob hypothesized they were military, government, or industrial buildings. I guessed an albergue. When we came to the heart of the complex and saw they had a laundromat, store, cafe, restaurant, and farmacia, we knew I was right. We later passed two pilgrims squatting outside one building with an open door, next to lines of drying laundry. I’m grateful we are staying in the complete opposite to the albergue bunkers—a parador.  The Parador dos Reís Católicos was commissioned by Ferdinand and Isabella in 1499 as a pilgrim’s hospita...
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Day 35: Lavacolla to Santiago (Bob’s version)

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We finished! I had a difficult time staying asleep last night because I was so excited about finishing the Camino. We got up in our cozy bunk beds—Wendy and I each had bottom bunks in our own little four bed section—and we packed up and left in the dark. The sky was clear and we started the day climbing, so I was hoping for nice sunrise pics on our last day. Unfortunately, the path curved the wrong way and then ducked into trees, so that’s too bad.  [Imagine a nice sunrise picture] With a couple miles to go, we climbed a little hill to the side and spotted the cathedral in Santiago for the first time. You can barely make it out in the center of this photo.  We got closer… And closer… And then we made it! We picked up our certificates, which include the Latin versions of our names (Robertum and Gwendolinam), and then hung out in the large plaza outside the cathedral. This is where pilgrims enter from different portals depending on which route they took.  In the plaza, we g...
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Day 34: Salceda to Lavacolla (Wendy)

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  The end is in sight. There were definitely moments during our walk when we wondered how we could make it to the end. In addition to shipping my bag ahead for a couple of weeks, I think the closest we came to making modifications was when we looked into getting bikes for the Meseta.  And of course, we adjusted stage lengths occasionally. Like today. We’re 10 km outside of Santiago. We could have finished today, but we want to get there earlier in the day before the crowds, so will walk in tomorrow morning. By my reckoning, today delivered nearly every classic moment we’ve come to expect from a Galicia stage: Morning walk through a foggy mist? Check. Picture-worthy sunrise? Check. Tree tunnels? Check. Sweeping pastoral vistas? Check. Delicious mid-morning coffee and snack served by a friendly barkeep in a cafe/bar with just the right mix of local families and peregrinos? Check. Wide, smooth paths through forests and picturesque villages? Check and check. I especially loved the...
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Day 33: Melide to Salceda (Bob)

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There are 3 holidays that Americans do better than anyone else: Thanksgiving Day, the 4th of July, and Halloween. We’ll be in Spain for Halloween.  We still haven’t figured out the right way to do the stages From Sarria to Santiago, which is by far the busiest section. The problem we’re having is that the off-season just hit, so a bunch of albergues and cafes shut down for the year. But it’s not coordinated. We’ll walk 10 kilometers without seeing an open bar, and then we’ll see a cluster of 4 cafes open in the same town. We’ve been off stage for this section, but maybe we should have joined the crowds in the more popular towns.   Even though we occasionally need to eat makeshift picnic foods, the scenery is gorgeous. We wind along “tree tunnels” and pop out to view open vistas.  Here’s what I mean by a tree tunnel.  And I can probably take a hundred different pictures a day of scenery that looks like this.  If we wanted to walk as far tomorrow as we walked toda...
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Day 32: Lestedo to Melide (Wendy)

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Last night, we stayed in another converted set of buildings, this time an old rectory. It was a gorgeous space, with a back library that had floor-to-ceiling windows looking out over the back meadow where we enjoyed our post-walk drinks and snacks.  Our bedroom had a tile tub as big as a baptismal font where I took my last Epsom salt bath. The attentive, friendly staff, two young people named Julia and Humberto, took great care to make sure we were comfortable, including opening the restaurant at 6:30 this morning so we could have a delicious breakfast before we headed out.  However, this was clearly a hotel, albeit one that caters to pilgrims. We missed the warm, homey love that the owners from Casa do Regó showed us the night before, including the communal meal they made for us. As delicious as a menu del día might be—and last night’s was amazing, including gluten-free bread and good wine—it’s never quite as satisfying as those homemade meals shared around a big table with o...
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Day 31: A Pena to Lestedo (Bob)

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Gracious hosts are one of the best parts of the Camino. The hosts in Pena yesterday were especially wonderful. It’s clear that they get joy from helping their guests have a fantastic  experience. As we Peregrinos sat at the dinner table and chatted in English and Spanish, the host (Michael/Miguel) had a big, kind smile on his face. He and other hosts pour their hearts out for us travelers.    It warms my very cockles.  To start the day — another long 19-miler — we left early and walked several miles before crossing the river into Portomarín.  After another great breakfast, we walked along dedicated paths and weaved our way through the hilly farm country.  At one point, we took a quick detour to visit old Roman or Celtic ruins. No one else was there. Wendy is really curious as to why the Celts play such a prominent role in this part of Spain, and why this place turned to ruin. Maybe she’ll figure it out and share her findings.  We did pass our hermit fr...
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