rlr9200
Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- Ingles - June 2015
Portugues - sometime soon, I hope
After all the planning, reading and re-reading of posts here, and finally just letting go, we made our Camino. Here are some thoughts and reflections...
Our itinerary: Ferrol-Naron; Naron-Pontedeume; Pontedeume-Betanzos; Betanzos-Bar Julia; Bar Julia-Meson O Vento; Meson O Vento-Sigueiro; Sigueiro-Santiago.
Day 1 – We arrived in Ferrol at 9:30 Monday morning, after taking the overnight train from Madrid. After the short walk from the train station, we decided to start our journey with cafe con leche and tostada at the Parador. Got our first stamp there, and then started off. I thought the starting point was actually closer to the water, but after a few minutes, we found a nice local man walking along the waterfront who pointed us to the actual beginning. As we were taking pictures, we met a peregrina from Australia who had been on the road for a couple of weeks (I believe she said she started in Gijon) who was very helpful in teaching us to look out for the way markers. We walked with her until our first stop, Naron. We stayed at the Hotel Kennsington (29€ for double room) which we really enjoyed and would recommend. We arrived too late for lunch, and dinner wasn't until 2030 hours! All we had eaten was a piece of toast at the Parador that morning. So, we must have looked dejected when we ordered wine and sat there in the bar. After a couple of minutes the bar tender came out with a couple of small pieces of tortilla and a small dish of tuna fish salad that were left from lunch, along with some bread. His look said it all - "you look like a couple of hungry peregrinos, so eat! What a way to instantly learn what we would see over and over in Galicia - the people are so warm and friendly.
Day 2 – We set out for Pontedeume early in the morning. It was a beautiful day (in fact we saw no rain on our entire Camino) and as we were heading through Neda we stopped for morning café con leche. Just as we were leaving, our friend from the previous day came in the cafe. We briefly chatted then headed out. The walk to Pontedeume was a great time to enjoy the city sights we were leaving behind, and the forest paths ahead. We had planned accordingly for this day, and had some jamon, cheese, and bread in our pack. As we reached the beach at Cabanas, we purchased a bottle of perfectly chilled Albariño from one of the beach bars, and had a picnic sitting on one of the benches and watching several groups of school aged children and their teachers (apparently on some type of field trip outing) enjoying the beach. After lunch we went into Pontedeume and found Bar Luis. As has been said many times on here, this is a very nice place to stay (30€). We ended up walking back to the beach and enjoying the cold water, and then walked around Pontedeume and visited the tourist office tower on the waterfront. Dinner at Bar Luis was delicious.
Day 3 – This was one of our favorite days of hiking - once we got over “The Climb.” It was just beautiful. But oh, that climb out. For those about to take this journey, just know that even though it feels like it will never end, it eventually does. And, by the way, there are more ups and downs the rest of the way as well. Nonetheless, it is a great walk. We stopped in Mino for morning café con leche, and ran into two peregrinos, who also happened to be from Australia. We spoke for a few minutes, the headed out. We saw a small panaderia/pastelaria and decided to see if they had any empanadas for the road. They didn't, but they did have some delicious cookies that we had to take. Behind the counter were two lovely ladies that enjoyed the fact that we spoke (rudimentary) Spanish, and kept us there chatting for 15-20 minutes before wishing us a Buen Camino. As we were leaving Mino, a sign of things to come...there sitting at a Cafe was Lyn - our original Aussie friend. We laughed and talked for a bit. Then on to Betanzos. We splurged on the Hotel Garelos (71€), but it was worth it. We found a bar/restaurant and enjoyed the most delicious tortilla of the trip, along with calamari and ice cold Estrella Galicia.
Day 4 – Based on advice on this forum, we had arranged with Antonio, of Meson O Novo (36€ for double), for a pick up at Bar Julia. Along the way, we stopped at the new spot, Meson-Museo, and ran into all of the folks we had seen the previous days, along with a group of Portuguese peregrinos that we hadn't met before, a grandfather-grandson couple of peregrinos, and a couple of Dutch peregrinos as well. Truly a world collection of like-minded folks! The owners at Meson-Museo were great hosts, and we enjoyed tostada with cheese and tomato along with our café con leche. We spent the rest of the day passing and talking with the groups we had come in contact with and it was, to us, a very "pilgrim-like" day. We were hoping that Casa Julia would be open and it was...ice cold Estrella while we waited for Antonio! Staying with Antonio and his family was a very special experience. They are so warm and inviting. Antonio's mom made us bocadillos and also served a small side of Galician chickpea and chorizo stew. Fabulous. I highly recommend breaking the Betanzos-Bruma stage in two and enjoying this place for a couple of days.
Day 5 – After a nice breakfast of café con leche and donuts provided by Antonio's dad, Antonio dropped us off back at Casa Julia for the stage back to Bruma (actually to Meson O Vento for our second night a Meson O Novo). This stage would be tough if done all in one from Betanzos, but breaking it up made it pretty easy - what made it easier was knowing the bocadillos and Estrella were waiting.
Day 6 – This stage was the most difficult. It was the hottest day of the journey, it has the fewest shade opportunities, and is the longest (if you break up some of the earlier stages as we did). It is pretty level, but it just goes on and on. Arriving in Sigueiro we stopped for lunch to regain some energy. Then we walked over to Albergue de Delia (15€/person) and met Maria Jose and Delia, her niece. They let us in, and after we showered, the first thing Maria Jose said was, "how are your feet? Do you have any blistered that need to be looked at?" We were fine, except my wife noticed that, for the first time, she had developed a heat rash all along her sock line and on the top of her foot. Maria Jose quickly grabbed some lotion from her medicine cabinet, told my wife to sit down, then she kneeled at my wife’s feet and proceeded to dab lotion on all the affected areas. It was as humbling as any "washing of the feet" experience for those that understand. By the time we woke from our nap, the rash was almost gone. We were awakened by the joyous noise of teenagers in the hallway. A group of 5 young peregrinos had come in and Maria was tending to their feet. After dinner in town, my wife wasn't sure that the kids had anything to eat, so she decided to bring the kids a large empanada to share. They were in the backyard eating some take out, but were very thankful and said they would eat it on the road to Santiago. We sat in the backyard enjoying wine, watching the kids interact and talking with Maria Jose. It was a great evening.
Day 7 – Absolutely filled with anticipation, we were up and out the door before 0600! It seemed like this stage flew by. Before we knew it we were in the industrial outskirts of Santiago, trying to get our bearings as we headed for the old city. We reached the cathedral, and saw pilgrims of all shapes, sizes and ages! It was a sight to see. We got in line at the Pilgrim's office, and were tearing up when we were handed our Compostela. We had time to check in at our hotel, and then headed back for Mass. I don't know if this is normal for Sunday mass at the cathedral, but it was presided over by the Bishop, which was a great surprise. And, we were fortunate enough to get to see the Botafumeiro. What a thrill that was! We also stayed in Santiago for a couple of days, and were able to enjoy the Hogueras de San Juan - Bonfires of St. John - in the plazas. There was even a small fire for the kids to jump over.
Our journey was complete. It has a couple of challenging stretches, but is very do-able. We walk and hike pretty regularly, but nobody would mistake us for being "in-shape." So if you train a little, and have the desire, this is a wonderful hike. There was time for us to talk to each other, to simply be to ourselves and meditate, and time to exchange with others.
These are the quick highlights. There is simply too much to see and experience to report everything in this thread. We also decided to rent a car the next day and drive to Finisterre to see those peregrinos that were on this stage reach the last waymark - Km 0,00. That inspired us to do a Camino again, and next time walk to the end of the earth.
Thanks to all on this Forum for the helpful advice and information. Thanks to Ivar for making this Forum possible. Thanks to Johnnie Walker for a guide that was our most trusted tool along the way.
Until our next one… Buen Camino to all!
Our itinerary: Ferrol-Naron; Naron-Pontedeume; Pontedeume-Betanzos; Betanzos-Bar Julia; Bar Julia-Meson O Vento; Meson O Vento-Sigueiro; Sigueiro-Santiago.
Day 1 – We arrived in Ferrol at 9:30 Monday morning, after taking the overnight train from Madrid. After the short walk from the train station, we decided to start our journey with cafe con leche and tostada at the Parador. Got our first stamp there, and then started off. I thought the starting point was actually closer to the water, but after a few minutes, we found a nice local man walking along the waterfront who pointed us to the actual beginning. As we were taking pictures, we met a peregrina from Australia who had been on the road for a couple of weeks (I believe she said she started in Gijon) who was very helpful in teaching us to look out for the way markers. We walked with her until our first stop, Naron. We stayed at the Hotel Kennsington (29€ for double room) which we really enjoyed and would recommend. We arrived too late for lunch, and dinner wasn't until 2030 hours! All we had eaten was a piece of toast at the Parador that morning. So, we must have looked dejected when we ordered wine and sat there in the bar. After a couple of minutes the bar tender came out with a couple of small pieces of tortilla and a small dish of tuna fish salad that were left from lunch, along with some bread. His look said it all - "you look like a couple of hungry peregrinos, so eat! What a way to instantly learn what we would see over and over in Galicia - the people are so warm and friendly.
Day 2 – We set out for Pontedeume early in the morning. It was a beautiful day (in fact we saw no rain on our entire Camino) and as we were heading through Neda we stopped for morning café con leche. Just as we were leaving, our friend from the previous day came in the cafe. We briefly chatted then headed out. The walk to Pontedeume was a great time to enjoy the city sights we were leaving behind, and the forest paths ahead. We had planned accordingly for this day, and had some jamon, cheese, and bread in our pack. As we reached the beach at Cabanas, we purchased a bottle of perfectly chilled Albariño from one of the beach bars, and had a picnic sitting on one of the benches and watching several groups of school aged children and their teachers (apparently on some type of field trip outing) enjoying the beach. After lunch we went into Pontedeume and found Bar Luis. As has been said many times on here, this is a very nice place to stay (30€). We ended up walking back to the beach and enjoying the cold water, and then walked around Pontedeume and visited the tourist office tower on the waterfront. Dinner at Bar Luis was delicious.
Day 3 – This was one of our favorite days of hiking - once we got over “The Climb.” It was just beautiful. But oh, that climb out. For those about to take this journey, just know that even though it feels like it will never end, it eventually does. And, by the way, there are more ups and downs the rest of the way as well. Nonetheless, it is a great walk. We stopped in Mino for morning café con leche, and ran into two peregrinos, who also happened to be from Australia. We spoke for a few minutes, the headed out. We saw a small panaderia/pastelaria and decided to see if they had any empanadas for the road. They didn't, but they did have some delicious cookies that we had to take. Behind the counter were two lovely ladies that enjoyed the fact that we spoke (rudimentary) Spanish, and kept us there chatting for 15-20 minutes before wishing us a Buen Camino. As we were leaving Mino, a sign of things to come...there sitting at a Cafe was Lyn - our original Aussie friend. We laughed and talked for a bit. Then on to Betanzos. We splurged on the Hotel Garelos (71€), but it was worth it. We found a bar/restaurant and enjoyed the most delicious tortilla of the trip, along with calamari and ice cold Estrella Galicia.
Day 4 – Based on advice on this forum, we had arranged with Antonio, of Meson O Novo (36€ for double), for a pick up at Bar Julia. Along the way, we stopped at the new spot, Meson-Museo, and ran into all of the folks we had seen the previous days, along with a group of Portuguese peregrinos that we hadn't met before, a grandfather-grandson couple of peregrinos, and a couple of Dutch peregrinos as well. Truly a world collection of like-minded folks! The owners at Meson-Museo were great hosts, and we enjoyed tostada with cheese and tomato along with our café con leche. We spent the rest of the day passing and talking with the groups we had come in contact with and it was, to us, a very "pilgrim-like" day. We were hoping that Casa Julia would be open and it was...ice cold Estrella while we waited for Antonio! Staying with Antonio and his family was a very special experience. They are so warm and inviting. Antonio's mom made us bocadillos and also served a small side of Galician chickpea and chorizo stew. Fabulous. I highly recommend breaking the Betanzos-Bruma stage in two and enjoying this place for a couple of days.
Day 5 – After a nice breakfast of café con leche and donuts provided by Antonio's dad, Antonio dropped us off back at Casa Julia for the stage back to Bruma (actually to Meson O Vento for our second night a Meson O Novo). This stage would be tough if done all in one from Betanzos, but breaking it up made it pretty easy - what made it easier was knowing the bocadillos and Estrella were waiting.
Day 6 – This stage was the most difficult. It was the hottest day of the journey, it has the fewest shade opportunities, and is the longest (if you break up some of the earlier stages as we did). It is pretty level, but it just goes on and on. Arriving in Sigueiro we stopped for lunch to regain some energy. Then we walked over to Albergue de Delia (15€/person) and met Maria Jose and Delia, her niece. They let us in, and after we showered, the first thing Maria Jose said was, "how are your feet? Do you have any blistered that need to be looked at?" We were fine, except my wife noticed that, for the first time, she had developed a heat rash all along her sock line and on the top of her foot. Maria Jose quickly grabbed some lotion from her medicine cabinet, told my wife to sit down, then she kneeled at my wife’s feet and proceeded to dab lotion on all the affected areas. It was as humbling as any "washing of the feet" experience for those that understand. By the time we woke from our nap, the rash was almost gone. We were awakened by the joyous noise of teenagers in the hallway. A group of 5 young peregrinos had come in and Maria was tending to their feet. After dinner in town, my wife wasn't sure that the kids had anything to eat, so she decided to bring the kids a large empanada to share. They were in the backyard eating some take out, but were very thankful and said they would eat it on the road to Santiago. We sat in the backyard enjoying wine, watching the kids interact and talking with Maria Jose. It was a great evening.
Day 7 – Absolutely filled with anticipation, we were up and out the door before 0600! It seemed like this stage flew by. Before we knew it we were in the industrial outskirts of Santiago, trying to get our bearings as we headed for the old city. We reached the cathedral, and saw pilgrims of all shapes, sizes and ages! It was a sight to see. We got in line at the Pilgrim's office, and were tearing up when we were handed our Compostela. We had time to check in at our hotel, and then headed back for Mass. I don't know if this is normal for Sunday mass at the cathedral, but it was presided over by the Bishop, which was a great surprise. And, we were fortunate enough to get to see the Botafumeiro. What a thrill that was! We also stayed in Santiago for a couple of days, and were able to enjoy the Hogueras de San Juan - Bonfires of St. John - in the plazas. There was even a small fire for the kids to jump over.
Our journey was complete. It has a couple of challenging stretches, but is very do-able. We walk and hike pretty regularly, but nobody would mistake us for being "in-shape." So if you train a little, and have the desire, this is a wonderful hike. There was time for us to talk to each other, to simply be to ourselves and meditate, and time to exchange with others.
These are the quick highlights. There is simply too much to see and experience to report everything in this thread. We also decided to rent a car the next day and drive to Finisterre to see those peregrinos that were on this stage reach the last waymark - Km 0,00. That inspired us to do a Camino again, and next time walk to the end of the earth.
Thanks to all on this Forum for the helpful advice and information. Thanks to Ivar for making this Forum possible. Thanks to Johnnie Walker for a guide that was our most trusted tool along the way.
Until our next one… Buen Camino to all!
