It’s been a few days since my last post – wifi has been challenging and honestly, I lost a little inspiration. I think I’m just tired. We’ve walked a long way! We were very lucky to have met this lovely lady – Susi from Casa Susi. A little piece of Australia in the tiny hamlet of Trabadelo, 10km past Villafranca Del Bierzo. Susi was a florist in Rose Bay and heard the call of the camino- she has put a lot of love into designing her gorgeous albergue from scratch. Only 12 beds. Actual beds, no bunks. Lovely exposed copper pipes, real toilet paper (not the sandpaper that passes for loo paper in most places here!), and a delicious home cooked Neil Perry meal shared by all guests. You need to put this place on your list of ‘must stay’ albergues. It was a lovely warm Friday evening so we put on some music and danced in the street. We even got some cherries given to us by one of the locals who was clearly entertained by the dancing!

The next day we were lucky enough to meet Victor – a foreign exchange broker from Madrid who now runs El Paso, the horse riding company who will take you from Las Harerias to O Cebriero on horseback. He walks it behind the horses every day!

The scenery was breathtaking. Yes, I know I did one of the worst climbs of the Camino on horseback. To those of you who are going to take me to task on ‘cheating’ (you know who you are!), it was 10km of the 800km. And parts of me that had never been sore before, suddenly were, and sitting down has been difficult for a couple of days so…hope that helps you feel better.

After Cebreiro we walked the never ending walk to Fonfria through some really, really stinky towns (it’s a farming area, and boy can you smell it!). Stayed at the only albergue in the ‘town’ La Reboleira – would definitely recommend. It’s family run and Danny (the son) who used to be in IT and now works in the family business, designed it on what he needed when he did his own Camino. Great showers. Great wifi. Great food. We tasted the local cheese (made next door!) in a simple tomato salad. Kind of like ricotta but better. Muy yum.

I did meet this lovely creature too. Dog cuddles. Have one almost every day! The Camino provides…

The next day we walked into Galicia. Above the clouds, in the clouds, through the clouds. Doing this as the sun was rising reminded me again of how lucky I am to experience this. 

The walk through the forest was mystical. I expected to see fairies and sprites at every turn. I looked for them, as I thought they might be the source of enlightenment, but alas no luck in finding them or it.

The end of the Camino is looming. Almost 700km done. Next stop Sarria…