We were looking forward to seeing the famous Botafumeiro, but we wanted to make sure we had our Compostelas, or certificates of completion. So first thing, we headed down to the Pilgrim Office to receive our Compostela – the certificate we receive to mark the conclusion of our pilgrimage. There …
Pedrouzo was shrouded in mist as we set off to reach Santiago de Compostela. Day 41 of our Camino, and it’s All Saints Day. Some time ago we wondered if we could reach Santiago by this date, knowing that it would definitely be a day on which the famous Botafumiero …
It was the end of daylight saving, and we awoke to find Dawn almost upon us – an hour earlier than we had expected. So we breakfasted quickly and headed out of town, realising that the kilometres were rapidly counting down. Arzua beckoned. We headed out into majestic woodlands, then …
Sarria The next significant place was Sarria – 110kms to the end-point. We missed the arrows when coming into Sarria – fortunately, the GPS and map component of the TrekRight app soon saw us back on the path. It is a largish town, and we climbed the hill and steep …
Once we reached the outer suburbs of Ponferrada we were soon walking past market gardens. We stopped at Columbrianos for coffee, enroute to Villafranca del Bierzo. Then on to Fuentes Nueva (New Fountain) where there was an amazing small church with frescoes painted in the dome and a wonderful altarpiece. …
We came down from the Cruz de Ferro. Manjarin – associated since the C12th with the Knights Templar – came slowly into view. We had Ponferrada in mind. I must confess that at first I thought it was a vagrant’s camp with random tattered flags and half-ruined rubble piles with …
The toy train This morning turned out to be Spain’s National Day and everything was closed for the public holiday. It rained for much of the day, so we took the toy train ride to take in the tourist experience. It was a delightfully absurd way to see the city. …
Up at sunrise, we set off in fog – and our first frost! Our lack of gloves meant that we were quickly walking with both sticks clipped together and alternating one hand in the coat pocket to keep the hands thawed. We were heading to Atapuerca and then on to …
Our destination today is the town of Agés. From Villafranca Montes de Oca the road climbed steeply straight out of the town. Steeply. Towns called Villafranca – are towns that were settled by the Franks – French pilgrims who settled in Spain from around the C9th. Villafranca Montes de Oca also …
