Day 25: Gonzar to Melide. We have two days to go!

Tina is a genius.  It was her plan to go one town further than all of the day trippers who started at Sarria.  Our albergue in Gonzar was filled with serious backpackers.  The vibe was totally right.

At an albergue, you do a number of things.  You shower.  You do laundry.  Maybe you eat.  You sleep.  It occurred to me that we never posted a photo of the laundry part.  A few of the albergues have machines that you can pay to use, but most just have wash sinks, like the one in your laundry room at home.  Then, you hang your clothes outside to dry.  Usually, it's bring-your-own-clothespins.  We have seven clothespins, and we picked them all up along the way.

The clotheslines in the yard at the albergue.  This is luxury.  In some, it's just a rack on a window balcony.

We set our alarms for 5 AM and hit the road by 5:20.  We were nowhere near the first to leave.  This albergue was full of veterans.  We walked in the dark for a long time because the sun no longer rises as early as it did when we started. (And, we're much further West.)

Starting so early, you know that coffee is something of a crap shoot.  We were lucky to find two open cafes in the town of Ventas de Naron, about 5 kilometers out.  Unfortunately, the place we picked, had great coffee but nothing gluten free for me.  We enjoyed a cafe con leche, stowed our head lamps, and continued walking.  Our objective for the morning was a town called Palas de Rei, over 17 kilometers from where we started.  This would be our half way point.

Part of why I say Tina was a genius is because most of our day was spent alone on beautiful verdant paths which hours later would be overrun by yesterday's crowds.  Same place, but totally better experience.

The sun trying to break through the clouds, as viewed from a cornfield.  It never succeeded.

One of many tree covered walks that I photographed.  This Camino is almost over, and I feel the need to capture the beauty and serenity.

As we got closer to the half way point of our day, Palas de Rei, we became aware of the presence of the touregrinos from yesterday.  Where did these old people, carrying close to nothing, come from?  Why was there a pit crew waiting with walkie-talkies as we passed?  What was up with the big blue buses?  You too can have an authentic Camino experience!  Our big blue bus will be waiting for you with snacks, a rest room, and maybe a quick ride to an easier part of the day's trek down the road a piece...

First sighting of the touregrino bus.

An hour or two later, waiting at a random intersection for the brave touregrinos...

Anyway, enough snarkiness.  We stopped in Palas de Rei for another coffee and some Spanish Omelet at about 10 AM.  We had made very good time, but getting served took forever because of a large group of Americans who walked in just before us.

We have not seen a lot of Americans before today on the Camino.  We've seen tons of Italians.  Lots of French people.  We told you about all of the Koreans.  We've met lots of Eastern Europeans.  Heck, yesterday, we met a Dutch couple that started the Camino from the front door of their house in the Netherlands.  The Americans were somewhere else until it was time for my delayed breakfast this morning...  20 minutes later, I had my omelet.

The second half of the day was another 15 kilometers (plus altitude) to the town of Melide which has a population of 7,500 but for some reason has the reputation of being the octopus capital of this seafood crazy country.  95% of our walks were on totally isolated country lanes, covered with lush tree canopies.  We walked through groves of white birches and eucalyptus trees.  It was a dream.

Couldn't you walk here all day?

As we approached Melide, in the suburbs, there was a park dedicated to pilgrims who had died along the Camino.  We didn't mention this earlier, but there have been memorials since the beginning to people who have died along the way, and most were really, really touching.  This park had stone markers with names and dates.  Lots of them.

We got to the final outskirts of Melide just after 1 PM.  Here's a photo of Tina just before we crossed the last old bridge.  A car followed us onto the bridge, but there was no room to get out of the way, so he just had to wait.

Almost there!

For a town this small, it feels like a larger city.  Our albergue is in a newer part of town right next to the historic center.  It's very modern.  (We're washing our clothes in actual machines!)  We showered and went to lunch at a pulpería, a family style restaurant specializing in octopus.

Octopi waiting to get cooked

I told the cook that he was going to be famous.

In Galicia, this is called Pulpo a la Feira.  Ourside Galicia, it's Pulpo a la Gallega.  It's boiled octopus, olive oil, smoked paprika and sea salt.  Simple, yet delicious.

Our lunch: octopus, chorizo, padrón peppers and a mixed salad (ensalada mixta.)  These salads have become a daily favorite, with all kinds of greens plus superb quality tuna on them.

After lunch, we walked into the old town and visited the main church in town, Sancti Spiritus from the 14th century, where we sat for maybe five contemplative minutes until we realized that all of the old ladies there were probably about to start a rosary.  We left having taken this one photograph.

We went to the supermarket to pick up some fruit, some sausage and some gluten free bread.  Yesterday, after some difficulty, we made a reservation at an albergue for tomorrow night, and we're not sure that there will be food available.  We won't starve, but it won't be like today!

So, tomorrow, we'll walk something like 36 kilometers to an albergue outside of Santa Irene, and the next day we will arrive, after 27 days (including two days off) at Santiago de Compostela!

Tina will fill you in on tomorrow.  Oh yes, rain is in the forecast.