Author: Thom

The Camino is littered with various cafés and bars, and they’re especially thick on the ground for the final 40 or 50 kilometers. I think we’ve stopped at this one in Calzada on each of our three Caminos. I think it’s because you become extremely conscious of the approaching end, and you want to make this glorious experience last. It’s […]

Galicia contains many abandoned buildings and even whole villages. Folks left the rural countryside to find work in the cities, and many of these abandoned properties can be had at an absurdly low price. I remember seeing a village for sale that was less than we paid for Pistachio House. With the spread of the Internet and work-from-home culture, there’s […]

This is a better photo of the woodlands beyond Arzúa, which we walked in the morning light, although our doughty pilgrims are noticeably absent from the image. Date: 01 May 2016 Place: Approaching As Barrosas (Galicia, Spain) The final map:

Our determined pilgrims walk the forests beyond Arzúa, which are beautiful in the morning light. Some day I’ll learn to take these kinds of photos without shadowbombing them. Date: 01 May 2016 Place: Approaching As Barrosas (Galicia, Spain) The final map:

After a week off due to being hit by a car and my subsequent body aches and brain fog, the Camino Photo of the Day triumphantly returns to Arzúa. In today’s photo, it’s just after eight o’clock on the morning of May 1, 2016, the Feast of Saint Joseph the Worker. We pass this marker on our way out of […]

Thanks to Rebecca’s German-language Pilgrim Guide, we found a lovely albergue just down this little alley, the Rúa Hippocrates. She also found us a fantastic place to eat, with more locals than pilgrims. Recently this guide has been published in English, and I will certainly purchase a copy prior to our next Spanish adventure. Date: 30 April 2016 Place: Arzúa […]

This is the interior of the Iglesia de Santiago de Arzúa, which features a devotion to Santiago in two different guises. On the high altar, if you look closely, you can see images of him as a pilgrim (Santiago Peregrino) and as the Moor-slayer (Santiago Matamoros). This is reinforced on the low altar, where what initially appears to be a […]

Our albergue was down a narrow street in the older part of the city, cobbled and closed in by overhanging medieval-style buildings. Here we are exploring a nearby lane, probably looking to find our way back to the central square for dinner and church. Date: 30 April 2016 Place: Arzúa (Galicia, Spain) Maps of the Day:

The walk into Arzúa is through some pretty cheerless urban landscape, but once you get nearer to the city center things start looking better. The city is famous for its cheese. So much so, that you find this statue in the plaza near the Iglesia de Santiago de Arzúa. Is it any wonder that Francine and I call this place […]