Walked Today: 6.6 mi / Camino2022: 281 mi
After a 20 minute shopping spree, we were back on the trail with a slight deviation. In 2019, we found a route that was a bit longer but allowed is to walk around the base of Sarria. This route merges with the official Camino, which takes a torturous route straight up to the pinnacle of the city, then back down again. Not that we can’t weather a few ups and downs, but no point in asking for trouble.
We arrived at the merge point which is the Ponte de Áspera, a Romanesque bridge of medieval origins with some 18th century renovation. This bridge has particular significance, because our daughter, Amy, used one of our photos of this bridge to rekindle her artistic talents. Her painting hangs in our home and stokes our Camino memories constantly. We think we’ll refer to it from now on as “Amy’s Bridge”.
Once we arrived at Barbadelo, we called a taxi to take us back to Casa Cines. We wanted to stay here for the night but it was booked solid when we tried to reserve a room several weeks ago.
We’re employing our “ taxi hop scotch” technique to deal with lodging shortages. We’re staying at Casa Cines for 3 nights. We’ve stayed here on all previous Caminos and want to get to know the family better and give them our business. So staying here longer enriches our Camino experiences and hopefully theirs.
The taxi driver who brought us back from Barbadelo today agreed to return here tomorrow morning at 8:30 to take us back to Barbadelo, where we will begin walking where we left off. When we finish our walk, we’ll call a taxi to return us to Casa Cines.
We got back to Casa Cines at noon, got showers, had lunch and arranged to have our clothes washed and dried. We both napped for a while before doing some routine items.
Linda had a cold (a mild one) a few days ago and has completely recovered. Jim mysteriously got a cold a couple of days ago, also a mild one, and is about to get over his, too. We only mention it because neither one of us have had a cold for over 3 years. What’s interesting is, in spite of dealing with cold symptoms , we’re still able to walk our normal distances, and carry on with our pilgrim existence without restriction.
Núria, our hostess, prepared a delicious lental soup for our lunch today. Jim was still hungry and Núria suggested he try a plate of homemade chorizo sausage, cooked potatoes and green beans. When Jim had lapped it up, he complimented Núria on the soup. When he asked about the chorizo sausage, she pointed to her father who was seated at the opposite end of the dining room. He was looking Jim’s way and when Jim gave him a smile and thumbs up, he reciprocated. Núria said he not only made the sausage but also raised the pig! We made a great decision to stay here for 3 days.
Jimandi 