#27- Walking the Camino-May 18, 2016

The 25th day of walking

De Ferreirros aPortomarin

Book - 5.4 miles

Map My Walk - 6.83 miles, 4 hr 10 min

Fitbit - 17,557 steps,  7.48 miles

Elevation - 390 meters (lowest inquire a while.  Probably means tomorrow we'll see more climbing)

Another point of interest is that we are at 42deg 48 min north which means sunset isn't until after 10pm

I wanted to show you the sun room (community room) of our hostal last night. I love it!  Inside and out

Let me explain how most meals work when they are offered at pilgrim places. Breakfast starts at 7:00, period. It is coffee (hot chocolate) bread or toast and maybe a sweet bun or a cookie. Dinners are from 7:00 to 9:00 and are two courses. Plate one is soup or salad or macaroni something. Second is potatoes with beef or chicken or fish. And it takes Forever!!!!  Especially if you're being served as a group. And for someone like me is who is challenged by chit chat- especially with people in a foreign language- it is difficult. What is your name?  Where are you from?  Where did you start? What sort of work do you do at home?  I'm done by 7:30 and we haven't even gotten to the chicken!  And we're ready for bed!!

But this albergue works for the pilgrims and not for tradition. The kitchen is open all day, you can eat whenever you want and you can order what ever you want. At breakfast this morning, at a late time of 9:00 am, we ask for a menu. The girl asks what we want.  Want??  I want two fried eggs with toast,orange juice,and hot  chocolate. Voila!!!

We left this delightful alberge and walked into a misty foggy morning. 

Passed an interesting cemetery

Saw Apple blossoms, calla lilies, and a perfect tree. I hope it was an oak

Remember the tractor from yesterday that was scooping up cut grass and blowing it into a trailer?  Well, we found a trailer for closer inspection. It must be in for tire repair and rotation. And take a look inside the trailer. There is a conveyor system to get the grass out. 

We still haven't figured out how all this grass is stored and used but the cows seem happy. 

We saw a different kind of rock walls today - large flat slabs were interspersed in the wall

Oh no!  A breach in the wall!  Swordsman to the gap and women and children to the keep. 

And this wall with missing stones but repaired with old tires. Kinda hard to see, but the tires are black. Sing, "reduce, reuse, recycle."

Mostly the trail is nice with occasional water obstacles that challenge forward movement. But today there was a long muddy part that really was a stream where culverts should have been installed. And add tractor travel, mountain bikes, and cows and their droppings - it was nasty

Yesterday Dad had worn his crocs the whole day to give his toes a lot of ventilation and room to spread out. 

But with all that germ infested mud he switched back to boots. Me?  I happily had my Hoka One One all terrain running shoes and had no trouble at all :)

Our goal today was Portomartin a relatively large town (with banks and ATMs and grocery stores!!!!). Here it is in the distance

And the river crossing. 

And, gasp, a staircase at the end of the bridge 

Found our pension

Our room and kitchen where I'm writing today's post cuz that is the only place I can get continuous wifi

Dad sitting on porch off kitchen healing his toes

As a side note. Across the street there is a cliff that goes from a back yard down to the street. Not suitable for families with small chickens. So one of the chickens from the yard fell off the cliff and ended stuck on the edge. 

So the lady above was trying to push the chicken with a big branch down to the lady on the street. The chicken was having none of this. Pretty soon a guy came along, climbed up the cliff a bit, grabbed the chicken and then with a flourish, mightily flung the chicken up to the yard. By this time there were a lot of people watching and we all clapped and4/ shouted "bravo"

Here is your knowledge test of the day

Medieval pilgrims carried a bordon which was a wooden staff with a metal point on the bottom and a hook to hook to hold a drinking gourd. The staff was a symbol of the wood of the cross of Christ. Not me, thank you---I have Black Diamond trekking poles with ergonomic grip cork handles and plastic water bottles. I think the poles are aluminum and the cross was not metal

Second symbol was the escarela, a leather bag. Ummmmm - I have an ultra light Osprey Exos 58 liter small frame backpack

The third symbol is the scallop shell. 

The Codex Calixinus describes the shell as representing the fingers of an open hand, symbolizing the good deeds expected of a pilgrim. Another interpretation is that the lines of the shell, which converge at a single point, represent the pilgrimage roads converging in Santiago. One legend tells that when St James' body arrived in Galicia, it spooked a horse carrying a groom in a wedding, and they fell into the sea. The groom was saved and emerged covered in shells. If you died along the Camino, you were buried with your shell

If I had been on the street today I would have helped rescue that chicken. So tomorrow I'll find another good deed to fulfill a Scout requirement to. Do A Good Turn Daily

10:00 pm and it is still light outside