Day 28 - Ambasmestas to O'Cebreiro

 

Amazing viaduct structures in the early part of the day.

We set off from Ambasmestas with the temperature at eight or nine degrees - very pleasant conditions for walking. We'd been the only guests in the hotel, very sad for such a great place - everything about the hotel was nice, including the food.

Vega de Velcarce.

The first six kilometres of our day followed the minor road along the valley floor, with small villages every half hour or so.

Spain is full of small, carefully-tended allotments.

Between the villages, we followed along scenic streams and vegetable patches.

Why have one viaduct when you can have two?

Many people object to the intrusion of large manmade structures into this scenic area. I would have hated to be there while the construction was going on but I think they're very graceful and so impressive.

A little dip in the road before we began the big climb.

We were soon approaching Herrerias, at 6km, where we had serious designs on coffee and toilets. The toilet was welcome and the coffees were extremely strong. 

Four-legged taxis await.

At Herrerias it's possible to rent horses for the 8km climb ahead. 

We had no such designs. we soon turned off the road and on to tree-lined tracks. After the solitary start to the day, we were encountering more and more walkers.

After three hours of walking, we'd gained several hundred metres in altitude and were starting to see some big views.

A traditional palloza.

The sun came out for a short time and things warmed up. We were in danger of arriving at our destination by 11am, far too early, so although we were only 2km from our destination, we stopped for another break at Laguna de Castilla. We passed a traditional palloza, a feature of Galicia. It was a bit premature as we were still in Castille, but it was a warning that we were about to enter a new province of Spain. Cathie was a bit over coffees, so she had a freshly-squeezed orange juice. It's a feature of many bars and restaurants that they'll have a pile of oranges and a machine to squeeze them. 

Hold on to the coffee.

The sun had realised the error of its ways and gone back behind the clouds, so we had to make a grab for our fleeces - by now we were at an altitude of nearly 1150m and apparently conditions can change very quickly up here. As is typical, the tables and chairs from the bar spilled out on to the street and we had to lean backwards to avoid the sharp-looking horns of these passers-by.

The taxi service had to follow at the speed of the cows on this multi-use village street.

Rejuvenated, we set off for the last stretch. 

Welcome to Galicia.

We soon arrived in Galicia, a region that stretches all the way to the Atlantic Ocean. Finisterre, on the coast, has a similar significance to Cape Reinga in New Zealand - it's the end of the earth. In NZ it's where the spirits of the dead leave the earth. Does this happen in Spain?

A little rest after the climb.

By now we were close to O'Cebreiro. Members of the taxi service were parked in the cool beneath the trees. I've heard it said that the horses are released to find their own way back down the 8km slope.

Iglesia de Santa Maria Real.

And so we entered the ultra-scenic postcard town of O'Cebreira. The church dates from the 9th century and is the oldest church associated directly with the pilgrim way.

The palloza at O'Cebreira.

Also at the entrance to the village is a well-maintained palloza, with plenty of sign boards and explanations about how these family structures worked - unfortunately all in Spanish.

We arrived at our hotel at 11.30am after four hours of walking, but were told we were too early and to come back in an hour. And so we did, filling in the time with a short stroll and lunch. We had a piece of empanada, a Galician pie with a fairly thick crust and a filling of bacon, onion and I'm not sure what else.

Since then, we've checked in, showered and performed the obligatory siesta. We found the tiny supermercato and bought beer, water and snickers bars and then I retreated to our room, where I've been perched on the edge of the bed typing for the past hour or so.

In the meantime, Cathie has been exploring the village. I wanted her to type her experience here, but she declined, only explaining what a moving experience it was to go into the old church.

We've been blessed with not a drop of rain so far on our walk, just a little heat at times. Fires in the east have caused the closure of much of our first week of walking, between Roncesvalles and Logrono, with pilgrims being bussed through this stretch - what a blow that would be. We've really had the best of conditions, slipping into a near-perfect window of opportunity.

A change in the weather.

As I sit here typing, the hills in the distance have vanished into the cloud. Rain is falling and it seems tomorrow we'll be walking in the rain for the first time. 

An honest little earthenware bowl full of soup.

We've been out and had dinner. A lovely Galician soup full of vegetables, including a very fibrous but unidentified green leafy substance - we know it will have done us good.

Here's today's Relive video: https://www.relive.cc/view/vwq1BXpLYBv

Here's today's photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/aLHoWQQvQs9wUHXTA

Finally, music. After bonding over a large and expensive whisky to celebrate Lucien's birthday last night. we'd invited him to contribute today's music, but I think he's still pedalling. We'd talked about classical music and opera and a fairly general way, so I have to interview myself instead. I have a few favourite operas, but probably the one I know best is Madame Butterfly. Here's a favourite from that opera: https://youtu.be/0f1k14GQmNE