Cee to A Picota a Mazaricos 11/28/23

 

Hola!

Leaving Cee, I found this Pilgrim tribute.

The first part of today's 18-mile journey was forests and all up.  Pant Pant Gasp Gasp.

Stunning scenery, and I met several other hikers, all headed the opposite way.  Many - most people - walk to Finistere or Muxia and then take the bus back to Santiago de Compostela.

My map and the markers did not agree with what I saw.  My map (downloaded to my phone) insisted that I turn on a trail that wasn't there.  In fact, it chirped and told me I was lost.  I went rogue and walked parallel to where the phone erroneously insisted on.  It was a bit muddy, but I felt like a real pioneer.  I finally got back to the actual trail, and my phone map congratulated me for being back on it.  Things have changed for hikers from when I started in Europe more than 30 years ago.  I still prefer to follow the trail markers, but it is nice when I am not sure which way the markers mean. Well, at least, when the phone map is correct!

I love being out in the fresh air and farmlands.  And today was a nature lover's dream.  There was too much uphill for sure, but such scenery and vistas made it work worth it.

From Indo New York, "The Costa da Morte brings back from the Middle Ages the werewolf most feared by pilgrims, and it does so with a festival in his honor.  The Vákner, which is the name of the mythological being, will have its own musical event hosted by internationally renowned groups such as Luar na Lubre.  This intriguing beast that is trying to be recovered lived in the Dumbría mountains that separate the Xallas plateau and Fisterra, in the middle of the Jacobean Way between Santiago and this place known as the end of the world.  The legend of this being occurs just one year after the discovery of America, in 1493, and is carried out by a bishop from Arzendján, Armenia (now Turkey), who continued the ancestral route from the city of the cathedral to Fisterra.  The clergyman, named Martyr, assured in his testimony that he had encountered the beast during the tortuous path he took and narrated it in his travel notebook as follows: "We found the Vákner, a large and very harmful wild animal." His adventures caused great astonishment among the population: «How, they told me, have you been able to save yourselves when companies of twenty people cannot pass?» he wrote, adding that after that, he was treated «with the greatest consideration» and that he was taken "From house to house in admiration that he had escaped from the Vákner."  Interestingly, I am listening to "Relic" on my iPad about a creature brought back from a grave in South America who is killing people in a NY Museum.

I was lucky with today's weather.  There was an 80% chance of rain, and it was dry for the first 60% of the journey.  Just as it started to drizzle, I spotted this beautiful bar.  It was the first bar I saw for the first 10 miles.

Usually, I picnic on the way, but when I saw this little bar had Omelet Bocatilla, I couldn't resist.  The omelet is more of a French omelet.  It is very flat and not fluffy like American Omelets.  It is cooked in something yummy like duck fat or lard and served on this incredible bread.  It is one of my favorite meals in Spain.  And to top it off - Coke Zero.

Welcome to Dumbria.

Look how clear this water is.

I followed this river from high up in the mountains for a good part of the second half of the hike.

A trail tunnel.

A most welcome sign.  I know I am getting close to my hotel.  Mazaricos is actually like a county.

The Pilgrim tributes never stop, and I love to see them.  Spanish people are so friendly and welcoming.

Denis and I loved this appetizer.  I can't quite place the flavor, but it was familiar.  It was like cream cheese in texture but more blue cheese or goat cheese in taste.  There were four of them, and right after I snapped this photo, this one was gone, too.  I had a veal cutlet with fries, and Dennis had a pork cutlet with fries.  The fries here are not frozen ahead of time and are more like home fries. Irresistible.

We had a choice of yogurt with fruit or ice cream cake.  Guess which one we chose?  Was that even a reasonable question? 

I am exhausted today.  The trail kicked my fanny.  So I bid you goodnight.

Finisterre to Cee 11/27/23

 

Hola.  We are leaving Finisterra (English) or Fisterra (Spanish) en route to Cee.

Look at all the seagulls.  It looked like a party.

Dennis and I had to cross a small stream of clean seawater that was headed back into the ocean.  The water was about 16 inches deep.  There was no jumping across it. I finally accepted that my boots would be wet and crossed it.  Dennis didn't want to get his shoes wet, so he sought an alternative.  I hiked about a half mile, looking back periodically, and D wasn't progressing.  I walked back and could see him, so I walked further ahead. After about 2 miles of this back and forth, suddenly, there was no Dennis.  I couldn't imagine what happened to him. I must have looked so concerned that a man on the beach started to help me look.  Dennis had decided to walk through a bog of canes so thick that he had to strong-arm them out of his way, all because he saw a bridge in the distance.  At one point, his shoes sank so low that he thought he was in quicksand. When I finally found him, not only were his shoes wet, but his pants were wet and muddy. We wasted about 45 minutes, and I wasted about 2 miles of hiking. The moral of the story is that sometimes it is just easier to endure a little water than walk through the bog and scare your wife!

Walking along the beach today was glorious.  I love the sound of the waves crashing.

Looking close!. You can see this dog with a broom and a dustpan.  I assume this is a lost dog poster, and I hope he finds his dog.  Sounds like a clever dog.

Dennis is hot on the trail.

Beautiful inlets.

From the ocean side to the woodsy trail.  There was much up, but it was a good hike.

Entering the city limits of Cee, (population 7,712) where Hotel Larry is located. We made many bad jokes about staying at Hotel Larry before we arrived.  It was quite a nice hotel with very friendly owners.

The shell sign is located on this mosaic column.

A tribute to pilgrims overlooking the bay.  I am sure this pilgrim must be from Jamaica because of his build and his attitude. Mon.

Are you tired of seeing Galacian Soup photos?  This was the best of the soups that I have had.  This one had sausage and pork in it, and it was scrumptious.

I don't know what type of mushrooms these were, but they were amazing.  They were cooked in olive oil with a fair amount of garlic.  YUM!

Our last course was Merluza (Hake) with real fries cooked in something awful like duck fat or lard.  The fish was perfect.  I was too full for dessert, but D got a piece of chocolate cake, and I felt bad for him having to eat it all by himself, so I pitched in like any good wife should.  LOL

Until tomorrow.  Much love and prayers!

Lires to Finisterre 11/26/23

 

Hola.  We got a good start off this morning. So good to have him hiking with me. We found the trail immediately, but that was not so hard when there were only 141 people in the town.  Guaranteed to be a small town. When Dennis first told me the population of Lires, he told me 142.  Yesterday, we saw a funeral procession; when he looked again at the population, it was 141. Yikes!

I don't know what this succulent was, but it was the color was stunning.

This is the Gallego plant that goes into the Galician Soup or Caldo Gallego as it is called in Spain.

We had beautiful scenery all day.  It alternated between views of the ocean and mountains to lush green forests.

Such diversity.  On the right was a garden, on the left there were cows, and just past the cows a hórreo (grain storage) and behind it all - the ocean.

Awe-inspiring

As we approached Finisterre, there were more houses.

My first pilgrim ant. Well except for the time Dennis sat down for lunch on a red ant hill.  Fastest I have ever seen him move.  He literally had ants in his pants - the biting kind.

Finisterre and the streets leading into it were narrow, with businesses, bars, and apartments all in the same block.

I love this crazy restaurant.  If you look closely, next to the door is a mermaid(?), sticking out her tongue in defiance. 

Not a white spot on him.  He was not particularly afraid.

We stopped in this cute little restaurant/dessert bar for a much-earned Coca-Cola Zero.  

Dennis made a new friend.  Mr. Beard (name unknown) works hard at selling postcards.  He told us that he was originally from the Basque area of Spain, then proceeded to tell us his life history whether we wanted the details or not.  I learned that he has a grown daughter in Hawaii.  He liaised (was that polite?) with her mother when Mom was on a cruise to Tahiti.  Mom's family was quite wealthy, so I am sure they were not exactly thrilled with a pregnant daughter and a father who seemed to be a n'er-do-well.  Not judging - only relaying the story. We think he has/had some mental problems or maybe a drug history, but he was clean and very nice. By the way, I bought a postcard from him. I would rather support someone who is working at ANYTHING than some whiney person just asking for a handout.

This was our favorite course. If you have never had a real tomato then you are missing out of one of life's greatest pleasures.  Most people have only had store bought tomatoes which are barely worth eating. This salad was practically orgasmic. It had onions, corn, and Spanish tuna dressed with a simple olive oil and vinegar. Sometimes simple is best.

For our main course, we had pork and potatoes and broccoli.  Normally, I like my broccoli on the crisp side but the brocolli was so flavorful that I couldn't get enough of it.  

Dessert was a raisin cake typical of Galacia.  This is the kind of dessert that grows on you like Benedictine.  I have had it before so I already knew that I liked it. The texture is a little different from most cakes but the more you eat the better it gets. 

A little Galacian coffee flavored after dinner kerosene.  It wasn't too bad considering that I don't like coffee.

Today turned out to be about 11.5 miles after we walked around town.  So much easier than 20 or 24.

So until tomorrow - sleep tight!