RestlessRose
Member
The walk was great. I had near perfect weather. I was expecting heavy showers, hail showers, and showers and showers but instead, I had blue skies for all the days (except one).
I left for A Coruna on Dec 6 (Mon) with more than a 3 hr delay, due to weather conditions. The longer I had to wait at the airport the more concerned I became. By the time I landed in A Coruna, it was past 5pm. I was heartened to see some patches of blue as the plane hovered over A Coruna
I decided to stay the night, and bus to Ferrol only the next morning.
Day 1 (Dec 7 - Tue) from Ferrol to Neron. As usual I had more on my back than I should/needed. All of 12kg. And I was walking bent over! Took me all of 4 hours to get from Ferrol to Neron! Already 3pm. Would be nuts to try to continue. Sure I could still have made it, albeit with a lot of pain. So I happily checked into Kinsington Hotel. 20euros. They laughed kindly at me when they found out that I had walked barely 12km. But hey, it was MY pain. I rested well. Kinsington is a lovely place. After a shower and rest, I had a lovely walk along the riverbank, noting the path I wld take in the morning.
Day 2 (Dec 8 - Wed) from Neron to Pontedueme. It was a cold, rainy and gusty day. The Altus worked well for me. Pack stayed dry. Camera in the front stayed dry and ready for my frequent shooting. The sleeves were long enough for me to hide my hands within, so they remained toasty and dry in my gloves; and I was still able to use my walking poles. And was really glad this day was no more than 13km.
In Pontedueme, I had stayed in Bar Louis, for 15euros, and had a wonderful meal of Navajas, Caldo Gallego, and Pescado.
Day 3 (Dec 9 - Thurs), Pontedueme to Betanzos. Walking out of Pontedueme was hard. Lovely weather, glorious sunrise, but the roads so steep. I had lost my way a little. I walked straight on after the sign "Igrexa San Miguel de Breamo 3 km" and came across a "Tabacos" sign way way down the road, on my right. At that juncture, no house no 70 was in sight and at the gesturing of well intentioned passersby, found myself walking along the highway ! I stopped at the gas station and a kindly gentleman drove me a few kms back, to a track where a yellow arrow can be found, and I took up the trail again from that.
In Betanzos, I stayed in Hostel Universal for 15euros. Really convenient as it was a mere 100m from the tourist office. Had a really good meal at Meson Pulperia, which was round the corner from the tourist office. As I walked, I was worrying about day 4. day 4 - 28km; a hilly 28km at that. Maybe I should ditch some things ? A major turning point for me, I tell ya, as letting go is not one of my strong points. No charger. No batteries. No books. No fleece. No sleeping bag. I was down to 8kg. And I could walk upright! I walked out of the post office with an incredible sense of lightness, both physically, and emotionally.
Day 4 (Dec 10 - Fri), Betanzos to Meson do Vento. It was only on this day that I met 3 other pilgrims. Spanish. We sort of walked together. They, yapping away in Spanish, and I got to practice my less than 20 words of Spanish. Isnt it amazing how people are always able to transcend the language barrier ? As we approached the albergue in Burma, an innocuous man rode by on a bicycle, yelling a cheery "Hola! Que tal?" And when everyone started exclaiming how tired we were, he cheerily replied "Es normal!" He turned out to be the hospitalero. The albergue in Burma was nice and cozy. However, I decided to stay in Meson do Vento. Very nice place for 18euros. Lovely people. Lovely food.
Day 5 (Dec 11 - Sat), Meson do Vento to ...... was a day of some adventure. Met more pilgrims. In their late 60s and 70s but all of them could walk faster than I ! Reached Sequeiro well and fine but a peregrino companion I was walking with suggested we walk a little further. That way, we will not need to walk in the dark the next morning. We wld like to be in time for mass at 12. Great suggestion. It seems there are a couple of hotels 2 - 3 kms ahead. Walked on we did, and walked, and walked (the last 2km stretch was along the highway, with speeding cars, and in the dark - mighty scary !!!), and eventually we came to Hotel Castrol which not only cost a bomb but would provide no food except via their restaurant, which was closed! It was past 7pm. We had walked more than 10hrs, and 35km or more. Not another step could our feet take. So we took a taxi into Santiago. Stayed the night in Santiago.
Day 6 (Dec 12 - Sun), took a taxi to A Sionlla (it was here that we left the trail and walked on along the highway) and walked into Santiago from there, arriving at about 11am.
Long queues to get into church. Long queue to visit Jamie. Queue to receive the compostela. Crowded. Standing room only, but wonderful wonderful ambiance. The most rapturous applause broke out after mass and the grand finale of the swinging of the butafumeiro.
Celebrated with the most wonderful seafood paella lunch !
The few times I was lost, some kind soul would find me, and walk (or drive) me back to where I needed to be. Other than those minor misadventures, mainly due to my misreading or lack of attention, the guide by JohnnieWalker was wonderfully detailed.
Love this little route. My only tiny twinge of regret is not taking the time to visit Igrexa San Miguel de Breamo. The additional 6km on top of a difficult 28km for the day sounded too challenging. The next time around, I will consider staying an extra night in Pontedueme. Pontedueme is a nice town. And it has a market, and I like markets. I was so tickled to note the stone patch work of piggies on the road, leading towards the mercado. Poor piggies. Delicious piggies :twisted:
On another note, I had the opportunity to visit the Mercado de Albastos in SdC. Well worth the visit, if you wish to see how your food looked like prior to being presented on your table. Also a place where most locals (and very few tourists) do their shopping. Opens every day from 7am to 2pm. Closes on Sunday, with the busiest day on Sat.
What I had noticed of myself on this camino ? I think I have learnt to be kinder to myself. Allowing myself really short distances for the first two days, and offloading my pack. I hope this mood stays. I can do with some tlc to myself.
In my previous camino, I walked all 800km odd with 15kg, through majorly blistered feet, and punishing distances, each day. In hindsight, I have no idea how I had made it then. Must have been going through a really stubborn streak lol.
For now, my camino urges are satiated.
I left for A Coruna on Dec 6 (Mon) with more than a 3 hr delay, due to weather conditions. The longer I had to wait at the airport the more concerned I became. By the time I landed in A Coruna, it was past 5pm. I was heartened to see some patches of blue as the plane hovered over A Coruna
I decided to stay the night, and bus to Ferrol only the next morning. Day 1 (Dec 7 - Tue) from Ferrol to Neron. As usual I had more on my back than I should/needed. All of 12kg. And I was walking bent over! Took me all of 4 hours to get from Ferrol to Neron! Already 3pm. Would be nuts to try to continue. Sure I could still have made it, albeit with a lot of pain. So I happily checked into Kinsington Hotel. 20euros. They laughed kindly at me when they found out that I had walked barely 12km. But hey, it was MY pain. I rested well. Kinsington is a lovely place. After a shower and rest, I had a lovely walk along the riverbank, noting the path I wld take in the morning.
Day 2 (Dec 8 - Wed) from Neron to Pontedueme. It was a cold, rainy and gusty day. The Altus worked well for me. Pack stayed dry. Camera in the front stayed dry and ready for my frequent shooting. The sleeves were long enough for me to hide my hands within, so they remained toasty and dry in my gloves; and I was still able to use my walking poles. And was really glad this day was no more than 13km.
In Pontedueme, I had stayed in Bar Louis, for 15euros, and had a wonderful meal of Navajas, Caldo Gallego, and Pescado.
Day 3 (Dec 9 - Thurs), Pontedueme to Betanzos. Walking out of Pontedueme was hard. Lovely weather, glorious sunrise, but the roads so steep. I had lost my way a little. I walked straight on after the sign "Igrexa San Miguel de Breamo 3 km" and came across a "Tabacos" sign way way down the road, on my right. At that juncture, no house no 70 was in sight and at the gesturing of well intentioned passersby, found myself walking along the highway ! I stopped at the gas station and a kindly gentleman drove me a few kms back, to a track where a yellow arrow can be found, and I took up the trail again from that.
In Betanzos, I stayed in Hostel Universal for 15euros. Really convenient as it was a mere 100m from the tourist office. Had a really good meal at Meson Pulperia, which was round the corner from the tourist office. As I walked, I was worrying about day 4. day 4 - 28km; a hilly 28km at that. Maybe I should ditch some things ? A major turning point for me, I tell ya, as letting go is not one of my strong points. No charger. No batteries. No books. No fleece. No sleeping bag. I was down to 8kg. And I could walk upright! I walked out of the post office with an incredible sense of lightness, both physically, and emotionally.
Day 4 (Dec 10 - Fri), Betanzos to Meson do Vento. It was only on this day that I met 3 other pilgrims. Spanish. We sort of walked together. They, yapping away in Spanish, and I got to practice my less than 20 words of Spanish. Isnt it amazing how people are always able to transcend the language barrier ? As we approached the albergue in Burma, an innocuous man rode by on a bicycle, yelling a cheery "Hola! Que tal?" And when everyone started exclaiming how tired we were, he cheerily replied "Es normal!" He turned out to be the hospitalero. The albergue in Burma was nice and cozy. However, I decided to stay in Meson do Vento. Very nice place for 18euros. Lovely people. Lovely food.
Day 5 (Dec 11 - Sat), Meson do Vento to ...... was a day of some adventure. Met more pilgrims. In their late 60s and 70s but all of them could walk faster than I ! Reached Sequeiro well and fine but a peregrino companion I was walking with suggested we walk a little further. That way, we will not need to walk in the dark the next morning. We wld like to be in time for mass at 12. Great suggestion. It seems there are a couple of hotels 2 - 3 kms ahead. Walked on we did, and walked, and walked (the last 2km stretch was along the highway, with speeding cars, and in the dark - mighty scary !!!), and eventually we came to Hotel Castrol which not only cost a bomb but would provide no food except via their restaurant, which was closed! It was past 7pm. We had walked more than 10hrs, and 35km or more. Not another step could our feet take. So we took a taxi into Santiago. Stayed the night in Santiago.
Day 6 (Dec 12 - Sun), took a taxi to A Sionlla (it was here that we left the trail and walked on along the highway) and walked into Santiago from there, arriving at about 11am.
Long queues to get into church. Long queue to visit Jamie. Queue to receive the compostela. Crowded. Standing room only, but wonderful wonderful ambiance. The most rapturous applause broke out after mass and the grand finale of the swinging of the butafumeiro.
Celebrated with the most wonderful seafood paella lunch !
The few times I was lost, some kind soul would find me, and walk (or drive) me back to where I needed to be. Other than those minor misadventures, mainly due to my misreading or lack of attention, the guide by JohnnieWalker was wonderfully detailed.
Love this little route. My only tiny twinge of regret is not taking the time to visit Igrexa San Miguel de Breamo. The additional 6km on top of a difficult 28km for the day sounded too challenging. The next time around, I will consider staying an extra night in Pontedueme. Pontedueme is a nice town. And it has a market, and I like markets. I was so tickled to note the stone patch work of piggies on the road, leading towards the mercado. Poor piggies. Delicious piggies :twisted:
On another note, I had the opportunity to visit the Mercado de Albastos in SdC. Well worth the visit, if you wish to see how your food looked like prior to being presented on your table. Also a place where most locals (and very few tourists) do their shopping. Opens every day from 7am to 2pm. Closes on Sunday, with the busiest day on Sat.
What I had noticed of myself on this camino ? I think I have learnt to be kinder to myself. Allowing myself really short distances for the first two days, and offloading my pack. I hope this mood stays. I can do with some tlc to myself.
In my previous camino, I walked all 800km odd with 15kg, through majorly blistered feet, and punishing distances, each day. In hindsight, I have no idea how I had made it then. Must have been going through a really stubborn streak lol.
For now, my camino urges are satiated.
