Author: Thom

The village of San Xulián is not large, but its church dates back to the 12th century. Like many village churches in Galicia, it’s surrounded by a graveyard. You might think this a little creepy, to be surrounded by so many graves in such close proximity, but it is oddly peaceful. Date: 29 April 2016 Place: San Xulián (Galicia, Spain) […]

After speed-hiking the last few kilometers, Alicia and I made it to San Xulián in time to reserve four beds and four dinners. For the Albergue in San Xulián is renowned far and wide for its communal pilgrim dinner. And who should we meet there, but Billy! Remember Billy? We hadn’t seen him for hundreds of kilometers, yet here he […]

It was getting late in the afternoon, and we needed to find a place for the night before everything was full. There were four of us traveling together now: Rebecca, Alicia, Francine, and myself. We decided that our faster walkers, Alicia and myself, would power ahead to the village of San Xulián to reserve beds for us all, with Rebecca […]

You can see the history of Spain in this wall. Date: 29 April 2016 Place: Leaving Palas de Rei (Galicia, Spain) Maps of the Day:

Often larger towns and cities will have special markers pointing out the Camino. It can be easy to get lost. I’ve always liked this marker in Palas de Rei, and I’ve even considered using it as the template for a Camino tattoo. Date: 29 April 2016 Place: Palas de Rei (Galicia, Spain) Maps of the Day:

The eclectic nature of the Iglesia Parroquia de San Tirso de Palas de Rei is perhaps best exemplified by this Marian shrine. What you don’t see, however, is that there are several baskets nearby with a signs in various languages instructing pilgrims to take a slip of paper from inside. Each contains a short passage of scripture. Each time I […]

The interior of the Iglesia Parroquia de San Tirso de Palas de Rei reveals the true extent of the restorations and modernizations suffered by this church. Most of the building dates from the 20th century, though there are various bits and bobs dating all the way back to the original founding in the 12th century. The result is less a […]

In the center of the the town of Palas de Rei sits the Parroquia de San Tirso de Palas de Rei. While this church was originally built in the 12th century, it has considerably suffered from extensive modern restorations. In fact, only the main portal is original. The interior (which we’ll take a look at in the next few days) […]

This statue is found in the “Catskills” area just before Palas de Rei. This is how I imagine my Guardian Angel looks most of the time. Date: 29 April 2016 Place: Approaching Palas de Rei (Galicia, Spain) Maps of the Day:

As you approach the large town of Palas de Rei, you pass through a long series of hostels and holiday camps. It’s like the Spanish version of the Catskills. This might be why this is generally considered a stopping place on the Camino for pilgrims. Unfortunately, this area is quite a way from the urban center, and in a town […]