Journey to Inner Peace

The day has arrived without fanfare and fireworks. We are finishing as we started…in the rain. How poignant. We decided to leave earlier than usual to beat the “crowd”. It was a leisurely walk, the usual uphill climbs! But the thought of arriving at the magnificent place I had only dreamed about made the walk tolerable and even enjoyable.  Upon stepping onto the hallowed plaza, staring at the cathedral, a warm sense of accomplishment came from within. And then it hit me. I actually did it!  After snapping a few photos we quickly headed to the Pilgrim Office to get our number in line to show proof of our walk. We each carried a credential during the trek that we had stamped at hostels, coffee shops, and churches. A pilgrim must obtain two stamps per day and walk 100 kilometers to Santiago to qualify for a Compostela.  We were surprised to find a short line. My number was up and I approached the lady at the counter, hurriedly handing her my credentials. She smiled and in Sp...

  Everything continues to be uphill. Never seen such foolishness. Today we unhooked our backpacks from our beds (yes we did) and headed from Faramello to Milladoiro. It was a short walk…only about five miles.  I use a transit service for my backpack because my back was hurting. They pick up at 8 and deliver it to your next destination for you. It’s quite nice. If it works. Today I got a message that my bag wasn’t at the albuergue when they arrived to get it. I knew it was BS because it was still there at 9 when we headed out. I stressed a bit and checked the AirTag I had on it all day. Finally at 330 it arrived! Yay!! The language barrier doesn’t help when something goes wrong. But all is well now.  We are resting up for our big day tomorrow! We have a short walk (about 4ish miles) into the grounds of Santiago de Compostela. The spires of the great Cathedral are in sight!! The dream comes true! Unfortunately they are predicting rain. We shall see!  Sleep well good Pi...

Santiago is 17.160 kilometers! Due to struggling WiFi connections I’m posting a day late.  Today we walked from Pontecesures to Faramello. Our last long walk. For that I’m grateful. I can’t lie. We stayed in the closest thing to a municipal albuergue s as possible. We were spoiled with our previous stays as they offered towels and smaller rooms. This was more primitive. Comfortable none-the-less. Great sangria!  Today’s total steps: 21,710

  Portugal and Spain are very flower oriented and for various reasons. Flowers on the front door or on the front of your car are placed to ward off the Devil.  Cala lilies grow wild everywhere! Wisteria and roses are popular.  Today we walked from Caldas de Reis to Pontecesures. It was a sunny and hot day. Very busy with pilgrims all along the way.  Total steps today 25,306

  Today’s adventure took us from Pontevedra to Caldes de Reis.  We walked past waterfalls and grape vineyards. It was very sunny, hot, and humid.  We found giant leeches. Ewwww.   We’ve tried lots of Spanish food and enjoyed tapas. Tonight’s menu was limited so I went with what I thought was a hamburger. Well…it was a burger…made with ground ham! Rather than show you gross pictures of food, I will stick with scenery.  Almost there.  Total steps today: 17,462

  Octopus is a Spanish tradition. So we tried it. A bit like calamari but larger tentacles. 🦑 🐙  Today was a rest day. We boarded the train in Sabaris and rode a quick 15 minutes to Ponteverde. We wandered around town taking in many churches and markets. I set a goal to light a candle in every church I went into. So far so good. I bought a beautiful rosary at one Basilica. I think for a church to be considered old it needs to be growing trees and moss on the cupola   This is a large shopping district with lots of young people. They have a municipal open market that was fun to visit.  FYI….i finally shaved my legs today! Total steps today 10,764

Today we forged our own path. We wanted to walk along the coastline as long as possible. So once we found the boardwalk we just kept walking. We never saw a Camiño arrow until we got past town and headed uphill to our lodging.. Did I mention that EVERYTHING is uphill? One hill is so steep they have a people mover in the middle!  Just beyond this nice turtle is the nude beach. (Sorry no photos).  The Vigo area is mostly shipping and harbor. Cruise ships are here. The upper areas of town are bustling and very “yuppie”. Our lodging is very nice and we enjoyed a little Italian food for dinner. Molly was craving pizza.  Having a transport service for my bag was a great relief. Why didn’t I think of that sooner? Total steps today 17,446

  Today was our first walking day with sunshine! Mary and I decided to split from the group and head to the Glass Beach. I had read about it on the Facebook page for the Camino Portuguese. It was worth the 2.5 extra miles was what the posting had said. When we asked our hostel host about the glass beach, he giggled and said it was nothing but trash. This intrigued us even more. To us it was beauty. It was trash…broken glass that had been tumbled in the sea and smoothed to become sea glass.  We continued our trek after enjoying a lovely beach. Midway to our destination I noticed a twinge in my right heel. Son of a beehive…it was my Achilles tendon. I kept on and spent this evening with ice and Tiger Balm. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.  I did decide to hire a transfer service for my backpack since my back was giving me fits as well. I’m a nightmare. But determined.  Total steps today 15,370

So…. All this rainy weather has brought out the most beautiful snails! When you walk the coastline boardwalk you have to watch where you walk so you will squish the snails.  Today was another walk in rain. We were soaked to the bone. Swampass is an understatement.  But we were rewarded with another beautiful accommodation with an ocean view for thirty euros!  Total steps today 10,853 Our very first decent sunset.

  Day Five Due to the never ending rain we decided to train it to the next stop. We weren’t alone. Lots of pilgrims on the train who were also fed up with the rain.  We found our friends again which was fabulous! Our hostel tonight is also very nice and sits near the ferry we will take over to Spain in the morning. A guy at the last hostel gave me a lone walking stick so I was on the hunt for another. We walked all through the town here and found one in a rummage store. I’m in good shape now!  We had a nice late lunch of pizza and wine. We relaxed and worked on scheduling hostels for future dates as the housing is becoming a problem.  A few pics I found interesting when we went grocery shopping today. It was an adventure! Hot dogs in a jar.  Dried fish.  Squid.  Snails.  Total steps today: 7015