Day 5 - Melide to Arzua
First, a picture taken last night of the whole group. Unfortunately, the people in the back are hard to make out - but you can see that we are all having fun!
The path today was very different than it has been the past few days. While on the other days it was like being part of a walk-a-thon - almost like a big party - today people were few and far between. I began the day walking with a husband and wife from Perth, Australia. After only a kilometer or two, they stopped to discuss which way to go when there were two routes to choose from; I chose the route to the right and kept going. I then walked a very long way without a companion. The scenery was beautiful, and plenty of cows mooed at me to keep me company.
It was refreshing to see a few signposts whose distance markers had not been vandalized. Here is one:
For the entire week, we have been watching the countryside and seeing many houses with storage areas that are separate from the house. They are almost like small barns. They are always on stilts or raised platforms, and have plenty of ventilation. They are used to keep produce (grains and vegetables) well aerated, but making it difficult for rats and other undesirables to reach. Some have been quite ornate, while others are very plain. If I understood correctly, they are called "orreas". Here are a few that I saw today:
I passed a gas station - the first one I've seen since arriving in Spain. The price is given in Euros per Liter. For perspective - there are about 3.7 liters in a gallon, and about 1.2 dollars in a Euro. The cheapest gasoline is 1.12 Euros per liter. So the price per gallon is about $5
/gallon!
Of our roughly nine miles today, I ended up waking about half of them by myself. However, there were two Spanish young ladies that I met up with three different times. They did not speak English well, but we had plenty of time together! One has a daughter in Texas where she is studying for a Master's Degree, so perhaps she will visit the United States some day. One woman is from Catalan and the other from Andalusia - so they are not locals! We exchanged names only moments before parting, and I have forgotten the names, but they were very good company! Here is our picture - a selfie taken by the woman with the daughter in Texas:
After we parted, I found the rendezvous location where I was to meet the rest of the group four hours later. Arthur showed up a few minutes later, and we had a delightful lunch together and then a drink (since the restaurant had neither beer nor Coke Light!). We then waited in a nearby park where the rest of the group showed up a few at a time. We were kept company by some very friendly pigeons:
Yes - that is my foot with two pigeons a few inches away!
Finally we were transported to our hotel a few miles away. It is in a converted castle over 500 years old - the stone walls are over a foot thick. We were escorted to our rooms by a woman whose English is not very good, but who insisted on carrying all of our suitcases and then fed us a wonderful dinner! Here is my room:
The path today was very different than it has been the past few days. While on the other days it was like being part of a walk-a-thon - almost like a big party - today people were few and far between. I began the day walking with a husband and wife from Perth, Australia. After only a kilometer or two, they stopped to discuss which way to go when there were two routes to choose from; I chose the route to the right and kept going. I then walked a very long way without a companion. The scenery was beautiful, and plenty of cows mooed at me to keep me company.
It was refreshing to see a few signposts whose distance markers had not been vandalized. Here is one:
For the entire week, we have been watching the countryside and seeing many houses with storage areas that are separate from the house. They are almost like small barns. They are always on stilts or raised platforms, and have plenty of ventilation. They are used to keep produce (grains and vegetables) well aerated, but making it difficult for rats and other undesirables to reach. Some have been quite ornate, while others are very plain. If I understood correctly, they are called "orreas". Here are a few that I saw today:
I passed a gas station - the first one I've seen since arriving in Spain. The price is given in Euros per Liter. For perspective - there are about 3.7 liters in a gallon, and about 1.2 dollars in a Euro. The cheapest gasoline is 1.12 Euros per liter. So the price per gallon is about $5
Of our roughly nine miles today, I ended up waking about half of them by myself. However, there were two Spanish young ladies that I met up with three different times. They did not speak English well, but we had plenty of time together! One has a daughter in Texas where she is studying for a Master's Degree, so perhaps she will visit the United States some day. One woman is from Catalan and the other from Andalusia - so they are not locals! We exchanged names only moments before parting, and I have forgotten the names, but they were very good company! Here is our picture - a selfie taken by the woman with the daughter in Texas:
After we parted, I found the rendezvous location where I was to meet the rest of the group four hours later. Arthur showed up a few minutes later, and we had a delightful lunch together and then a drink (since the restaurant had neither beer nor Coke Light!). We then waited in a nearby park where the rest of the group showed up a few at a time. We were kept company by some very friendly pigeons:
Finally we were transported to our hotel a few miles away. It is in a converted castle over 500 years old - the stone walls are over a foot thick. We were escorted to our rooms by a woman whose English is not very good, but who insisted on carrying all of our suitcases and then fed us a wonderful dinner! Here is my room:
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