Pase por favor
Day 35 Sarria to Portomarin
28 May 2014
Changing Scenery
Over time the type of farming has changed. The rolling fields of wheat or barley have been replaced by the sights, sounds and smells of cattle and other farm animals. Sometimes in quite close proximity as often the animals are housed beneath the where the farmers live in houses whose old stone wall line the street.
Some of the sights have been quite confronting for a city bred girl. It seems (I hope I am wrong) that some of the cows spend most of the day if not all day inside a shed with their heads between rails so they can’t back out or turn-they can just eat the hay in front of them.
Make Way for the Cows
However today we were almost knocked down by some being taken along the road for milking. Later I was asked to move on when I came face to face with a beautiful black and white beast as I turned a corner.
Confronting for a City Girl
The other night at dinner a man pulled up outside the restaurant and announced his presence to the owner. The next thing I knew they walked in, each carrying a small carcass in a thick blue plastic bag by the trotters into the restaurant. The sounds of butchering continued throughout our meal.
It was difficult to get going this morning. I think I could easily have been persuaded to stay on in the modern hotel where we spent the night. Somehow we got a suite for the price of a double room -something we weren’t going to question, only enjoy!
Mosaics Lead the Way
These beautiful mosaics sent us on our way and my lethargy quickly lifted. The sun shone for the first time in days – it was as if spring had sprung overnight.
There are Many Pilgrims Now
The expected increase of people on the track was obvious especially at coffee stops but we managed to walk alone until the last 5km or so. It’s certainly less personal now. People don’t acknowledge each other and hardly wish each other the standard ‘Buen Camino’ greeting.
However Gideon (now living in the UK but from South Africa) put me on my place when I complained about the change in feeling on The Way. He said that he got excited all over again after sharing dinner with people who were enthusiastic about starting today.
We met up with someone from Lane Cove -our children were in kindergarten together! She is doing what we did 2 years ago. It seems that we blazed the trail then as we were the first for U – tracks and now they are running tours. It’s such a small world.
The next post: The Camino Spirit