Taxi, Taxi ! Day Five on the Camino

#Lalin#Silleda#ViadaPrata#Santiago#the

Longest day 

Lalin to Silleda ... It was a slow start this morning as our "Casa" is a further distance from the Camino route where we finished yesterday. 

Our departure from Lalin was uphill and for the first three kilometers or so we walked along the highway (N525) ...then we were directed onto the "real" Caminos.

Unfortunately my blisters did not heal overnight and my feet were in severe pain today ... probably some more penance!

So to take my mind off my feet, I concentrated on the beautiful surroundings ...

            

The terrain again was varied ... the stony medieval paths were not friendly to our feet and legs.

A couple times we had to catch ourselves so as to avoid a sprained ankle or worse breaking some bones. Knocking on wood as I type this!!!

Madame M. said the landscape has changed from the earlier days ... Here she is walking on an ancient Roman road.

At this point we wanted to go left and enjoy a spa day!

Can you believe this...in the middle of nowhere on the Camino we saw these signs to call for a Taxi...

How do they know where you are?

I wanted to hail a taxi today ... "Taxi, taxi!" ... proudly I can say we ventured on and arrived in Silleda!

Today was our longest day of the walk so far ... over 17 kilometers ... 

Our passports are filling up...

Eventhough Monsieur Guy isn't walking the Camino he has his own passport sheet that he gets stamped at the local cafés / restaurants where the two Señors drop us off and meet us. 

At this stage of the walk Msr. Guy has more stamps than us ... the dedicated "peregrinos"!

A Postcard from the Camino

Dear Family, Friends

Just a quick note to say thank you for your comments and messages. I have read them all.

I plan to reply to them all.

The experience of walking the Camino is amazing ... Today we will reach the half way point.

I Found My Soul on the Camino (Day Four)

#Camino#SantiagodeCompostela#Dozon#Lalin#CasaCasarellos#CasaGoris#Merza

Day four of the walk on the CAMINO ... From O Castro Dozon to Lalin on the "Way" and from Casarellos to Merza, we also changed our Casa today!

Our support team again drove us to the end of yesterday's walk in Dozon and we started on our way to Lalin ... our Señors were left with the task of packing up, checking out from our accommodations in Casarellos (which was our home base for the past three days).

We went to the Albergue to obtain our stamp but it was not yet open ... We had a hurried conversation with a local farmer who was excited about his flock of animals that he was moving (two cows, seven sheep and one donkey).

Luckily we did get a stamp at the local cantina ... Café Bar Canton in Castro Dozon yesterday when we had finished our walk ...

It was a mist filled morning ... and our first steps today were up the ascending road out of town and we were looking for the signs.

                 

                   

          

The Caminos are fairly well posted, but sometimes you need to search for the markings ...

It might be a "Yellow" painted arrow on the buildings, pavement, on a fence post ... or the official clam shell signs!

                           

For the past couple of days there was another "Pilgrim" staying at Casa Casarellos ... 

Madame M. nicknamed him Mr. E. Hemingway ... at breakfast this morning he mentioned he was also walking the same route from Dozon to Lalin ... he left after us and surprisingly passed us on the way and we never saw him again!

He did have the advantage of not carrying a backpack... and this wasn't his first "Camino".

Today it was noticeable that the landscape was changing...

The Caminos were varied from asphalt highways, dirt lane-ways, tunnelled caminos in dappled sunshine and only a little of the way was "rocky" ...

My feet have been very cooperative until yesterday ... the hotspots turned out to be blisters!

I soaked my feet last night and applied my special "Blister" bandaids or in Flemish for Madame M. ...

pleisters.

This morning I tried not to think about my sore feet and atoned for my sins ... as I walked on the "Way" and I found my soul or was it someone else's sole?

Our Señors were waiting for us when we arrived in Lalin...from here we found a surprise at a local restaurant ... 

We were served a most delcious lunch of pork spareribs and sausages cooked on the wood fire with salad, "Frietjes" (French fries), wine and dessert served by the young daughters Laura and Naurie.

                  

Then it was a drive to our next "Casa" (house/home) for the next three days in Merza...

Casa Goris...

After a long, hard day ... 

Soon we need to go to bed ... Tomorrow ... "Will we make it from Lalin to Silleda???"