Climbing Lane :)

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Santiago to Palais de Rais, about 70 kilometers.

I know that there are days ahead of us when we will be cranky because we’re tired or hungry or lost or whatever. But today was a great “first day on the Pilgrimage Route,” a perfect introduction to the next 1500 kilometers, from Santiago de Compostela, on the far west coast of Spain, to Le Puy, in central France.

In the eleventh century, over half a million people per year traversed, by foot, this arduous route-- some for personal reasons, most for religious reasons. Today, we can attest that the route continues to attract those pilgrims. Much of the ride today on nicely surfaced roads paralleled the actual Camino de Santiago, with its hundreds of pilgrims with their back packs, traipsing from village to village, stopping here and there for a coffee or just a water break.

This morning, as we were leaving the campground in a light mist, we talked with two men from Holland who had just finished cycling the 2500 kilometers. Maybe ten kilometers later, we met up with a woman from Bremen, Germany, who had walked the route over the last eight weeks and was headed to the airport for the flight home, rejoicing in both her pilgrimage and in the anticipation of seeing her husband this evening! She may have been in her late 60’s, but she had the enthusiasm of a much younger woman. A bit later we talked with two Canadian men who were just 20 kilometers from finishing their walking pilgrimage -- friendly, enthusiastic, and at peace with God and themselves. Those five people are just representative of those we’ve talked with who have taken on the personal goal of walking the Pilgrim Route. There seems to be no “typical pilgrim.” Young, middle-aged, old. Spanish, Chinese, German, English. (When you meet up with someone, it takes a few sentences to figure out what language you have in common. We’re all polyglots and sign language experts.) What seems to be the glue that holds them all together is their vitality, their flexibility, their optimism, and their sense of self and of the world around them.

Though the highlight of the day was definitely the people, the terrain comes in a close second. Actually, that’s where the title of the blog comes in. For all but a few kilometers today we were on N547, a nicely surfaced road with at least a small shoulder much of the way. The guide book we are using warned us of “arduous climbing” over this section. Believe me, after Portugal, this climbing was a piece of cake. In fact, most of the climbs featured a “climbing lane,” a specific lane for slow moving vehicles (that’s us!) as they ascend the 3 or 4 kilometers up the mountain. As Bill notes, that lane is both good and bad. Good -- it makes us less vulnerable on the road. Bad -- it tells us that there is a climb ahead of us. Really good -- when the signs indicate that the lane will end soon, you know you’re near the top!! One other comment about the roads -- I love kilometers. They are so much more gratifying than miles. When we were young, we liked to average 70 miles a day. Now, we like to average 70 kilometers a day!!!

We stopped for a snack in Arzua and still made it here by 3 this afternoon or so. Found a room with a shared bath and a garage for Lady and the The Tramp for just 20 euros. No campground in town, but the price is so low, we’d probably take the room anyway. Dinner was again (I know, you all get tired of hearing about our gastronomic experiences) delicious. Interestingly, this part of Spain -- Galicia -- is autonomous (I’m not sure how autonomous) from the rest of the country and the people speak a different language, which seems a bit similar to both Spanish and Portuguese but gives us one more language to learn! With that in mind, I decided to try a traditional Galician dish, callado gallego (I think). Had no idea what it was, still didn’t when the waiter explained it to me in his best Galician. It turned out to be a potato and “something green” soup. Absolutely delicious and the perfect appetizer on this rather cool and damp day. I then had “rib roast,” which turned out to be tasty ribs!!! Bill had plain old ordinary salad and chicken. Mine was better!! Of course, the bread and wine and dessert also appeared magically on the table, all for less than 20 euros. We’re getting spoiled with these prices; better save up for France and Germany and Switzerland!

Right now I am sitting in the room, windows open (there are no screens anywhere in this country because there are so few flies) and our clothes are hanging on a makeshift clothesline. It’s only 7:30, so there’s even some time to just read for a while before we tuck ourselves into bed. Tomorrow takes us to Sarria or beyondJ

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