We decided to leave the early this morning because of the increased number of Pilgrims hiking the Camino. We were up and out the door by 5:20am. We were having a beautiful morning hike as the sun was coming up.
We came across this cafe/bar/albergue that we decided to stop at for a morning coffee. Omar, the barista, asked us where we were from. When I told him Minnesota, he replied, “oh yes, the Timberwolves”. I was really surprised that he knew where Minnesota was. Usually people don’t know and if they do, they assume we are permanently living in winter.
This cafe had beautiful cakes. The cheesecake had a thin layer of strawberry jam as a topping. That morning I had already had eaten some chocolate. I went ahead and ordered a slice of cheesecake, a cafe con leche, and a freshly squeezed orange juice. Make sure to order orange juice in Spain. The machine dispenses two oranges, squeezes the juice out of them, straight into the glass. It is so refreshing and tastes so good. The cheesecake was so good that Sonali had a second piece. These 3 Frenchmen that stayed in the same albergue with us the evening before stopped in for a coffee as well. They ordered cheesecake as well.
We left the cafe, me in a sugar coma, and headed on our way towards Melide. There was a group raising money for the Spanish Paraolympics. They were putting old fashioned wax stamps in your Pilgrim Passport for a suggested donation of €1. Of course we participated, I think this organization is so inspirational.
As we approached Melide, we thought it be best to try to make reservations somewhere just so that we knew we had a place to stay. Since it was raining, we stopped at the first cafe we came across. Megan found this great apartment in Azura on Bookings.com. It was cheap and pretty big. Megan said that it’d be great if we could find two more people to stay with us to get it even cheaper. Just as she said this, the CA couple came walking up. We had seen them everyday and always chatted with them. We asked if they were interested in staying with us and they were. Everyone was excited about the prospect of a kitchen and a washing machine.
We were about to leave when I decided I should eat some real food. All the sugar that morning was making my brain foggy and I could not think straight. We had been sitting there for about a half hour before I decided this. This is what can be annoying for other people when you are hiking with friends, you go off of other people’s needs. Then Sonali decided she should eat and we convinced Megan to eat some soup because it was chilly from the rain. Luckily by the time we were through with lunch, the rain had stopped. This was really good for Megan because she could switch out of her shoes that would hit the back of her Achilles’ tendon and into her comfortable Birkenstocks.
This is the bridge into Melide
Once getting through the town, we entered some eucalyptus forests. They smell so good. These forests are controversial because they are not native to Spain and they really took off. Some people want them and some people want them gone.
Sonali was suffering from shin splints on one of her legs, so after a while of hiking we stopped again so she could rest it. I massaged it for a while. My feet were still hurting so I finally tried on Megan’s hiking shoes that she couldn’t wear because they hurt her Achilles’ tendon. They are size 8 1/2 and I wear a size 7. They felt heavenly on my feet. The front of my feet and my toes had so much space. I can’t believe I waited that long to try them on!!!
We pressed on past one of the oldest albergues. Patrick and Laura were staying there. It was beautiful and right on the river. I’d like to stay there sometime. Megan stayed here before with her husband and raved about it.
Google maps took us a crazy long way through Azura to get to our apartment. We were all so happy once we arrived. Megan and I were going to run to the store when Mark and Eileen arrived bearing wine. We drank some wine and chatted before running to the grocery store. Nothing like shopping on a wine buzz and smelly from hiking all day.
Megan cooked and was happy doing so. We had a fun night getting to know Eileen and Mark.
It felt so nice having some clean clothes and a clean bed to sleep in. Life is good!!
This day of walking was dedicated to my oldest daughter, Gretchen. She is my adventure partner in crime. She is so interested in so many things from climbing, to learning to wind surf, to sailing, to horseback riding, to hiking all of the Superior Lake Hiking Trail. She has always loved animals. When she was a baby, my friend Jeanna and I took her to the Miracle of Birth Barn at the State Fair. When we were leaving the barn, she became so upset and was pointing and reaching for the animals. She has a really tender heart for animals. She is a huge lover of nature and the outdoors. She also really enjoys all four seasons and has passions in all of them. Winter is her season for cross country skiing and snowboarding. Gretchen also really loves to read and is a very imaginative writer. She really has a zest for life. Gretchen can be her own hardest critic as well. I love life with Gretchen in it.
Mama With Wanderlust 