Day 24. Arcade
This hostel has bunks with curtains.. all of which are firmly closed as peregrinos remain sleeping when I step outside. Out on the street a confused peregrino can use some help direction wise, which I am happy to provide.
[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”60″ gal_title=”cp-24″]
The road leads outside the city into suburbs. Further ahead I spot a line peregrina figure ahead.. its the Danish girl. She heeded the advice and is doing better in sandals, but wisely taking it a bit slowly.
It is interesting for me to note that my walking speed is amazingly normal… even a bit brisk… almost like I’m walking without 10 kg on my back. Comparing this Camino with the previous one two years ago is fascinating … from this perspective it seems that previously I walked like a turtle on crutches.
The next village is all in the Camino spirit… arrows and shells everywhere… specialised store, albergue and bar where I came across Ithar and the Italians. from Tui. Nice place for a break and cafe con leche.
The Way continues… uphill. All over Galicia there are stone pillars with the crucifix on top. Interesting and apparently quite popular local tradition. From the top of the hill downwards the path follows the old Roman military road. On my way down I pass by the small hilltop belvedere with an interesting view of the foggy valley below.
For a while now a Spanish peregrino from Valencia was walking ahead of me… until I finally caught up with him. As soon as he heard I am from Croatia he fired back “Toni Kukoc, Drazen Petrovic, Velimir Perasovic” … a true basketball fan.
The Way reaches Redondela… small narrow streets… typical medieval town. After exiting the neighbouring villages I reached the main road with a Camino sign warning that the crossing is muy pericoloso. Well in that case… lets grab a snack at the bar before trying it out. At the bar Irmau from Barcelona. Sandwiches… like all food on the Camino… taste great, if a tad spicy.
Since the road has good visibility on both side the crossing didn’t prove to be so dangerous. A bigger challenge is uphill section ahead leading into the forest. On a small forest clearing someone built a wooden frame with dozens of shells with pilgrim notes.
After a couple of km more… this time downhill… another road but with a wide pedestrian path to the right. And finally there is Arcade. I took a slight wrong turn I found the hotel with albergue … guess a big building with a huge sign wasn’t enough of a clue.
Albergue opens in 45 minutes… but a cold beer makes waiting easier. The hospitalero… a fellow with longer hair than Rapunzel … arrives on time.
A few hours later more peregrinos show up… Italians, Germans and Scottish – Irish couple.
That was day no. 24.