For those who do the Camino in its “mini” and started “only” 112 kilometers from Santiago, the first stage is 25 miles, approximately separating Portomarín Sarria. It is the busiest day of this final stretch of the road and, conversely, was very rewarding though, as elsewhere, reached the final piltrafilla fact genuine.
Interestingly, we started to walk with a little cold (and I did not dawn), although the sky was cloudless, the temperature was low and nothing made us anticipate that we would spend most of the day in shirtsleeves. In fact, I think the highlight of the day (and much of the following) was enjoyed in the month of October, almost more like a time August, at least in Galicia.
El Camino Sarria left the upper part of the population (the most beautiful, of course) and after one more hesitant first sections were significantly steeper in the middle of a forest as a top, jutting out into the landscape by which we would be walking along all day in soft terrain areas which were regularly alternating meadows and woodlands.
In half the cost, of course, was one of the most beautiful trees we would see in the five-day trip and still was not as waste from exhaustion, stopped to make the photograph.
One difference in this step of the way is that almost all forests are chestnut or oak, while in the following days as usual were the eucalyptus groves are very nice but for my taste, slightly less pretty, I guess to be less leafy or maybe because it’s trees, out of pure straight, are less photogenic.
Highlights of the day was lunch, not so much for the menu, but the truth is that there was nothing wrong and a more than reasonable price, but by the place they are and that is definitely one of my clearer advice five days on the road: the Bodeguilla of Mercadoiro.
This is a restaurant next to the road and with a nice touch modernorural, a sea of pleasant terrace for lunch and, above all, a wonderful meadow of grass where you can relax in the sun after taking action to fill the belly.
We shared space with a group of pilgrims, young foreigners and guitarreantes (although it is recognized that quite calm and even sympathetic), and a couple of children to which perfectly porculeros could have them sing Serrat’s famous line: “Boy, let and fucking around with the ball. “
But neither managed to break the kids screaming the peaceful charm of the lawn, the beautiful views and warm sun that made it get going again was an effort to overcome laziness infernal little less than overwhelming.
From what remained of the most striking phase, besides discovering that with a few miles downhill leg is almost worse than the ups, was the arrival in Portomarín, a people displaced by the reservoir of Minho has at his side and which is entered through a high bridge which, when the water is low, are the remains of another much older by which to know how many pilgrims had to pass.
As the current Portomarín is new does not have the charm of other peoples of the Way, not that it is ugly, it is not at all, but something is missing or has a certain artificiality that may not perceive if we knew the story but, knowing it is inevitable to feel.
That yes, in the center of the square is St. Nicholas, the peculiar church – fortress which fortunately did not forget at the old location of the people (was brought stone by stone from there, as an Egyptian temple to fly from the Aswan Dam) and that in addition to beautiful details like the decor of your door, has a particularly interesting and beautiful in form, half of half of castle chapel.
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