Camino Day 2: Wading into Galicia
We pass through the numerous towns and villages like ghosts, with most of the locals so used to the sight of rag-tag walkers they don´t even acknowledge our presence. Even the dogs don´t consider us worthy of a growl or bark. Only the signs talk to us. "Breakfast, sandwiches, dinner, 100m" says one in four languages. "Free water for all" says another. "Lodging, pilgrims welcome!" says a third.
As no caretaker ever arrived to collect the lodging fee, I self-stamped my Credential and departed the albergue for another 40km day. I met few walkers early on, but started passing small groups on the ascent to Cebreiro, at the border of Galicia. Just before the border, I stopped for an herbal tea at a strangely out-of-place hippie hut, with a bonfire burning in the middle of the room, a full-size teepee outside, and young English-speaking hosts selling a variety of gypsy-styled trinkets.
The terrain was quite hilly and the roads were slippery and muddy from the rain, which continued with varying intensity the entire day. Galician mud replaced Leonese mud under my feet, and Galician rain began its assault on my not-entirely-waterproof clothing. A chilly October wind completed my first impression of this Spanish region, which is most often compared to Ireland.
The meal I consumed at a restaurant on the Camino´s highest point (1310 m) could also have been Irish (or Russian for that matter): cabbage soup follwed by boiled potatoes and overcooked meat. It wasn´t fancy, but it provided some much-needed warmth and energy for the latter part of the day, which only grew colder and wetter as I progressed westward.
Towards the end of the day I ran into Carlos, a Brazilian walker who was a cheerful and talkative companion up through the albergue, where the two of us shared the same dorm room. I ran off to the store and bought some vegetables for a massive salad, since I was feeling rather vitamin-deprived after too many bread-and-cheese meals. The albergue was small and not very crowded, with a decent kitchen and a dining room, which I shared with a couple of French women from Toulouse. We chatted for a bit and then I went off to sleep, hoping my clothes and boots would be reasonably dry in the morning.
As no caretaker ever arrived to collect the lodging fee, I self-stamped my Credential and departed the albergue for another 40km day. I met few walkers early on, but started passing small groups on the ascent to Cebreiro, at the border of Galicia. Just before the border, I stopped for an herbal tea at a strangely out-of-place hippie hut, with a bonfire burning in the middle of the room, a full-size teepee outside, and young English-speaking hosts selling a variety of gypsy-styled trinkets.
The terrain was quite hilly and the roads were slippery and muddy from the rain, which continued with varying intensity the entire day. Galician mud replaced Leonese mud under my feet, and Galician rain began its assault on my not-entirely-waterproof clothing. A chilly October wind completed my first impression of this Spanish region, which is most often compared to Ireland.
The meal I consumed at a restaurant on the Camino´s highest point (1310 m) could also have been Irish (or Russian for that matter): cabbage soup follwed by boiled potatoes and overcooked meat. It wasn´t fancy, but it provided some much-needed warmth and energy for the latter part of the day, which only grew colder and wetter as I progressed westward.
Towards the end of the day I ran into Carlos, a Brazilian walker who was a cheerful and talkative companion up through the albergue, where the two of us shared the same dorm room. I ran off to the store and bought some vegetables for a massive salad, since I was feeling rather vitamin-deprived after too many bread-and-cheese meals. The albergue was small and not very crowded, with a decent kitchen and a dining room, which I shared with a couple of French women from Toulouse. We chatted for a bit and then I went off to sleep, hoping my clothes and boots would be reasonably dry in the morning.
posted by Dmitri Evseev at 7:55 PM
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