The alburgue last night was great up to bed time. I couldn’t figure out the thermostat for the air conditioner so the room was a tad stuffy. Although the beds were comfortable they were a little small. The other guy in the room was from the Netherlands and he was at least six and a half feet tall. I barely fit in my bunk bed. He did not fit in his bunk bed at all.
All was forgiven when I got up and went to the complimentary breakfast. Scrambled eggs and bacon, toast, ham and cheese, fresh squeezed orange juice and a Santiago cake. I rolled out of the alburgue at 7:00 AM and waddled out of Pontevedra.
It was a beautiful sunny day and the Way was backcountry roads and smooth paths through the forests, fields and vineyards.
Most of the day was very peaceful except the 500 or so mountain bikers who were riding along the Way to Santiago.
For a full hour these guys were roaring by us as we walked along the Way.
At about 10:00 I stopped and had second breakfast.
This is a tortilla española and an Aquarius, the European version of Gatorade.
As I was sitting at this cafe enjoying my second breakfast 100 or so road racing cars roared by.
These were souped up cars with ear splitting loud mufflers. It is Saturday and the locals are out having fun.Who’s complaining? I’m not complaining!I spent at least half the day walking through these beautiful vineyards.These roadside crosses appear every couple of kilometers along the Way. Apparently when you confessed to a significant sin the priest would tell you as your penance you had to erect a roadside cross. The more egregious the sin, the bigger the cross. And everyone in the village and surrounding villages would know who had erected the cross. How embarrassing. So much for the confidentiality of the confessional.This is the river that runs through Caldas de Reis. There is a cafe on the right side of this picture. I stopped there and had lunch at one of the riverside tables.I had beef stew for lunch. It was such a huge serving that I couldn’t finish it.
Look who joined me for lunch.
Ann and John joined me for a nice leisurely lunch.
Caldas de Reis means hot springs. This evening I went down to the communal hot springs and soaked my feet in the warm water along with numerous other pilgrims.
Pilgrims soaking their feet in the warm water.
That’s it from Caldas de Reis, Spain. I hope you are having a wonderful day wherever you are.
I've been retired from the Union Pacific Railroad since 2017. I've been planning to walk the Camino for about 6 months and can't wait to get started.
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AbeAndMarkontheCamino 