Cortica – Ansiao 20.1km

A special stamp for our Compostela

(Alvaiazere Albergue)
Last night our host Carlos treated us to a fine performance. He lined all our compostelas up. Then instead of just stamping them with an ink stamp, he got out his gold wax, lit it, smeared the now softened wax in place and then pressed his specially made seal into the wax. Once all seals had been completed,  we were handed a glass of fine 10yr old port.

Yesterday it felt as if things were finally coming together. The rhythm of the Camino was in step. The countryside beautiful and our bodies stronger.

My feet play up

Today was a different story.We started off strongly.

But then there was a long uphill stretch on a quiet sealed road. My feet rebelled and the last seven kilometers were painful step after painful step. The only redeeming feature was that this last section was on uneven paths alongside old stone walls.

The stony ground helped somewhat and the autumn leaves and acorns from overhanging oaks provided a bit of a distraction. There were figs and walnuts too.

The blue arrows to Fatima now go in the opposite direction.

Abandoned homes

The villages we pass through are a mixture of houses with clean whitewashed walls often trimmed with yellow, the occasional more modern home and many homes abandoned to their fate. First the roof falls in. Broken windows provide little protection to  tattered lace curtains and wooden shutters. Many are for sale. We wonder about the stories that made them end up derelict.

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