Another notch in our belts.
“Everywhere is within walking distance if you have the time” Stephen Wright
Sunday, August 19, 2018 | Albergue Cruces Inn to Santiago de Compostela, Spain | 21 K
Reservations have been made at Seminario Menor (school, seminary and pilgrim hostel) in Santiago so we allow ourselves time to enjoy breakfast and plan for a leisurely walking day with no worry of racing to score beds. Really? Truth is, we are pretty excited to arrive in Santiago so it seems we keep a steady pace throughout the day.
We enjoy random encounters with friends made along the trail along with interesting conversations with new friends on this final hiking day. This is accompanied with a twinge of sadness knowing, most likely, we will never see them again. But, alas, this is the Camino. We experience a little piece of life together and move on. My hope is that they think of us as honest, decent, and kind human beings.
Thank you to all who took the time and energy to smile, laugh, converse and share experiences as we walked the same pilgrim path for this short while. Truly, the best thing about the Camino is the Camino.
Saturday, August 18, 2018: Caldas de Reiss to Cruces Inn, Escravitude, Spain|26 K
We bid farewell to the Lotus Palace (Does the name sound like it should be located in Asia?) at 5:25 a.m. hoping to put in a longer day thus reducing the distance tomorrow as we enter Santiago de Compostela. The past few days have been alongside the freeway N-550 so it is assuring to know we are not lost if we occasionally hear the busy traffic.
It’s always fun to visit with young people as we walk and Randy enjoys learning and sharing special handshakes, such as “The Squid,” with some of the young men we meet. Laughter is also shared along with the handshake.
We cross the bridge and enter the city of Padron which is the legendary starting point of St. James’ ministry in Spain and also the subsequent return of his mortal remains following his martyrdom in Jerusalem. We spend some time exploring the church and find it well worth the stop.
Challenge of the day is finding our destination of Cruces Inn (a new albergue) located past Padron and Escravitude, but asking directions and the prominent signs posted here and there lead us right to the door.
We locate the friendly owner in his office, check in to our lower bunks and explore the grounds. Cute, clean albergue rooms with storage units, bathroom/showers in two locations and a storage shed used for pilgrim overflow. Apparently, no kitchen so delicious food is ordered and delivered from town, while beer and wine is always on hand. Highly recommend Albergue Cruces Inn. Plus, we are promised coffee and breakfast in the morning ~ double hooray!!
These days of hiking have flown by… Santiago tomorrow!!
Friday, August 10, 2018: Will we walk 32 kilometers today?
After a festive evening listening to boy scouts singing folk songs, we rise at the early hour of 5 a.m. to tackle a long day of walking from Barcelos, Portugal. I appreciate the nice kitchen provided by the author of the Brierly Camino Guide and prepare coffee to help jump-start the day.
Inquiring minds will want to watch the video below… Joan, Randy & Joyce take on Camino Portuguese Day Five.
~Quote by Melody Beattie
We walk back and forth outside the Porto airport while our jet lagged brains and Google Maps try to navigate around the airport parking lot. This proves to be our biggest challenge of the day along with finding yellow arrows. Thank you Camino Angel #1 for showing us the way!
Grateful to arrive at the albergue in time for last three beds available and even more thankful that none are bunk beds.
Belly busting Francesinha sandwich is on the menu. Francesinha means little French woman or simply frenchie in Portuguese. Usually, a francesinha is made with bread (the thicker the better), wet-cured ham, linguiça (a portuguese sausage), steak or roast beef, everything covered with melted cheese and a special tomato and beer sauce. Most times it’s served with a fried egg on top and french fries that you can dip in the sauce. It really reminds me of a beef commercial without the mashed potatoes.
Thankful for the opportunity to burn off the calories in that Francesinha sandwich tomorrow while hiking along the coast to Vila do Conde.
Mother Nature is certainly testing our patience!
I find myself mesmerized by the process as each step is carefully, yet quickly, completed. Noticing the bare hands, I wonder how many burns occur during a typical work week. I know I would need a first aid kit within close proximity.
“Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends.” Maya Angelou
Images and video clips by Joyce Meyer.
Music: The Wrong Direction by Passenger
Thank you to my wonderful family for organizing our team as we finished our third Brookings Relay Marathon, in Brookings, SD. Shout out and thank you to Brandi Brintnall for being an official Meyer for the day. Brookings, SD Marathon event organizers did an excellent job providing an amazing event. Can’t wait until next year!
Images and video were captured with a Samsung Galaxy S4 phone.
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