Pilgrims on the Way

There’s a lot going on here, little of it good. I suspect this was originally a Marian altar, but it seems to have accreted various saintly statues and images as though it were a shelf for knick-knacks. And three candles? How could you use the altar for its intended purpose with a candle in the middle? Seems strangely appropriate that […]

The Romanesque church of Santiago de Triacastela is quite lovely – I’ll post some additional photos in the next days from the interior – but our experience there was… weird. We went to the evening Mass, and if it was valid, much less licit, I’m a salamander. The priest (I presume), dressed in an alb and a colourful Central American […]

The walk to our final destination this evening was cool and pleasant – and mostly downhill. Although this village hasn’t had three castles in almost a thousand years, the name stuck. I had heard many things about the local village church, which dated back to the time of the town’s importance as a royal fortress. It did not disappoint, as […]

I mentioned the “green tunnel” a couple of days ago, but here’s a pretty decent look at it. The effect is accentuated by the path being worn and rounded into the ground from the stamp of centuries of pilgrims. This particular phenomenon is called a holloway, and they are prevalent on the Galician portion of the Camino. Date: 26 April […]

Although the sign clearly said “Fillobal”, the map just as clearly said “Filloval”. In any case, this village – more of a hamlet really – consists of a few houses strung along the N. VI highway and this lovely albergue on the Camino. In 2013, this was the place that Eamon magically caught up with us. It’s on the short […]

We spent most of the day walking down the mountains from O Cebreiro. While part of the time was spent in a “green tunnel” of trees and vegetation, sometimes we walked the sides of valleys with enormous views of the Galician countryside. Date: 26 April 2016 Place: between Biduedo and Filloval (Galicia, Spain) Today’s Map:

This little church in Biduedo is reportedly the smallest on the entire Spanish Camino. It is certainly the most rustic. There aren’t any doors as such, the entire interior being open to the elements. I’ll include a bonus photo of the exterior so you can see what I mean. Bonus! The exterior. Date: 26 April 2016 Place: Biduedo (Galicia, Spain) […]

We ate our lunch on the long porch of a bar in Biduedo. The Camino runs directly in front of the building, while the highway is just beyond. It was kind of neat to see several forms of transportation that passed our view on both ways as we ate. Date: 26 April 2016 Place: Biduedo (Galicia, Spain) Today’s Map:

Our stalwart troop marches in to Biduedo – or possibly Viduedo, reports vary. We’re looking forward to lunch, and walking with purpose and resolve. This is a good shot of the patches on Francine’s pack. Not sure why we like patches so much. Maybe it’s memories of Boy Scout patches on uniforms and vests. Date: 26 April 2016 Place: approaching […]