Fragments of a Camino Part 2

Monday 26 Sept

(I stayed at the Parador, like the people in the film: Martin Sheen Movie "The Way")

After breakfast I went straight to San Isidoro to see the 12th century frescos:

There were many religious scenes, but most interesting of all was the Calendaria Agricola showing peasants' tasks for each month of the year. The first picture above includes September  (picking grapes) and October (feeding acorns to the pig - who gets killed in November).

Then it was on to the Cathedral with its magnificent stained glass: the best I have ever seen. I found the Posada Regia for tomorrow's meeting with the Fresco Tours Group at 2.30 pm. I asked if I could look round the historic hotel. It was full of atmosphere, with wobbly staircases, quaint rooms but rather hot, I thought. I had lunch in a wine bar in Calle del Cid: a big salad and a glass of rosé, then back to my hotel for a siesta. I took a walk later over the bridge across the Ria Bernesga and on the way back I noticed that the Parador had a lovely shady terrace garden, so I went inside for a coffee and a long sit down.

Returning to my room, I found that American Nancy (my room-mate allocated by Fresco) had just arrived. We strolled over to the Posada Regia, which opened for dinner at 8.45 pm. We were joined by Maureen from Ireland, who was walking the last part of the Camino on her own, having done it in stages over the last 5 years.

Tuesday 27 Sept

We packed up at the Parador and transported our luggage over to the Posada. I went back for a last look at the Cathedral's stained glass and did a quick tour of the cloisters and extensive museum. At 2.30 pm we met up with our fellow walkers and received a briefing from Ria and Jason, our guides, who presented us with a dilly bag full of goodies and information about the Camino. We then set off in the 21-seater bus for a 2 hour trip to the drop-off point, with a brief stop at a motorway service place for refreshments half way.

The driver (with Ria navigating) had difficulty finding the exact drop-off, a tiny village called Faba. (Jason had gone ahead driving the second vehicle). The 4 km walk up to the village of O'Cebreiro was very steep and hard going at the fast pace set by those in front. We were also afraid that it would come dark before we had reached our destination. All was well, as we arrived at 7.55 pm, just in time to get our pilgrims' passport stamped by a monk in the Church, 9th Century, and the oldest extant church on the Camino.

Our accommodation was in a renovated house San Giraldo and we enjoyed a delicious meal cooked by Pilar, whose family had been feeding pilgrims for generations:  Galician Soup with kale grown locally, tortilla with green salad, beef stew, hazelnut tart and non-stop red wine.

Wednesday 28 Sept

After a lovely breakfast, which included soft cheese and honey, and some stretching exercises led by Jason, we all set off at our own pace on the steady ascent to the Alto do Poio, the highest point of the Camino in Galicia. I managed to do 21 kms today, without blisters but with much bodily stiffness.

Lunch was laid out for us on arrival at Viduedo, after which it started to rain on us for the long descent into Triacastela. We had a beer and some raspberries at Bar Río, and then got transported by bus to Pazo Torre de Barrio near Sarria.

Enjoying a coffee near the Alto do Poio