Wednesday 14 May 2014

Requejo to Lubian 19.5 km

Today was cold and sunny and I wore ALL my clothes even though we were in for a climb. As there were only a few in the Albergue we didn't have to creep around in the morning. We were all up at the same time. It is interesting how people are breaking these days up. We had a surge of pilgrims and now we are only a few again. I didn't sleep all that well as Andrews bunk above mine squeaked all night. I also was a bit cold, had an aching heel and generally was alert. I finally took a Nurafen and grabbed another doona and slept at last.

We are climbing the highest part of the trip today. I had made jokes about climbing to the wind turbines and sure enough we are heading towards them. The hills are scarred with tracks for power lines, wind turbines and access roads. The vegetation is like heather and low shrubs as it is at the snow line.

The route is confusing due to all the construction for the fast train and so we end up on the road for some time.  Finally we can get off the highway  into the woods.  The wind is really cold and blowy so my rain jacket stays on until we get to this old bridge over a rushing mountain stream. 

We stop for a breather and talk with a fellow pilgrim who is from Switzerland and actually knows where Tegerfelden is! That is the home of my great grandfather. The pilgrims name is Nick. We press on and end up over the mountain before we know it. Walking on the road is always an anticlimax. Now over the mountain the wind picks up again and it is really cold. We see the little village of Padonelo where there is a bar and order hot drinks. The owner is very friendly and offers us some Hierebus, the liqueur, to go with our coffees! It is 9:15 am. We accept of course. It is a better quality and not so much like cough medicine. 

The Austrians arrive and the husband orders a glass of wine while his wife has tea. There are lots of jokes about the Austrian's strength and constitutes . The wife speaks no English but is really friendly and is forever telling me to slow down. They are a nice couple. I can't believe he walked all morning in his shirt sleeves. Now we head down the mountain on lovely rustic paths. There are lots of glittering stones under foot( is it Micah or what we called fools gold as kids?) it is windy, those turbines aren't here for nothing. We miss the turn off to Aciberos and after checking the App we retrace our steps uphill to enter this little village of twisting streets and pick up the Camino path again. This eventually leads us past a goat herd with young kids butting heads and a shepherd who wants to know where  we come from. 


It is a picturesque walk though quite rocky underfoot. Eventually we come out to the construction site and carefully avoiding large trucks we find the last Camino post before we enter Lubian and find our Casa rural Irene. It is a charming property but I have got the last room - a broom cupboard almost. It is fine by me. No squeaking beds, snoring or other disturbances. I will sleep well tonight. 

We do all our washing because it is blowing a gale and though the sun is warm I am cold but the washing of windcheaters requires such weather. I go for a wander while Andy emails Karen. It is a charming town, probably invigorated by the construction works. There is a lovely church and surprise,it is open! What is more interesting is that there is beautiful chanting, singing music playing to give a wonderful sense of peace. A delight. This is a typical town with shops all over the place and the bars on the main road that passes above the town. A lot if homes are being redeveloped alongside old. It is very quaint. 

Andy gets to the supermarket before siesta and decides to buy the makings for dinner as we have access to a kitchen at the Casa rural. We eat at an a ungodly hour of 5:30 pm but it is so nice to not face another Menu del Dia.  I wash up and retreat to my bedroom hoping the wifi will penetrate the brick walls. I actually had a nap after my walk and I felt weird when I woke up but I am tired so I will be glad of an early night.
I am loving the walking in the mountains. There is always a different view.

2 comments:

  1. wow wow love your blog, when youre back will you turn it into a book? greetings from me at bhi!

    ReplyDelete
  2. hey Kath...Pamela Gary L and Corey in cold Tweed Heads...how are you going? Hope you are enjoying your big trip. cheers

    ReplyDelete