We are now officially in Galicia and if you ever get a chance to see this part of Spain, please do! It is so green, and beautiful. Ivy covers trees and walls and light shines beautifully through branches. John taught me the Japanese word for sunlight that filters through the leaves of trees “komorebi”. It’s a magical place Galicia…almost like scenes from The Hobbit. I expect at any moment thieves, knights or fairies to appear.

Leaving Triacastela I found this cool babbling brook to send a good morning message to friends and family back home. It is terrific being able to catch up on Facebook but my fans are screaming for more blog posts. I try to stay on top of it but there is so little time and most evenings I’m tired and sore.

Today though, I feel awesome. It could be because there was no pulpo left in my system or because I had a fabulous sleep or perhaps the green of Galicia energizes me. Regardlesss, I left early and made my way towards Sarria. I can’t believe that after today, there will only be 120 kilometers left on this walk. I am not certain where the time or kilometers went and surely wasn’t convinced I would make it considering all the aches and pains.

Today was a beautiful walk and although there some hills, the scenery made it all tolerable. On one hill, I spied a familiar gait. It was John from Washington. We walked the remaining section together and I told him that I didn’t think a smile left my face all day. The air was fresh, and each turn presented another subject for a painting. I could have done with less cow and sheep manure, but the cows were certainly entertaining to me.

John and I found out we led parallel lives, he had worked for International Silver (IS) and I worked for Heritage Silversmiths who represented IS in Canada; he worked for Weyerhaeuser and I bought/sold lumber for Canfor, and he worked for a west coast bank; and I work for RBC. That is the extent of work talk I had for the past 600+ km. Funny how work didn’t come up on this trip. Nobody really cares what you do for a living. We had lots to talk about as we walked along the trail. It was nice to hear how much he loved his beautiful, smart wife and family and interesting to hear about his time in combat.

When we reached Sarria, I helped John locate his pension (pronounced: pen-see-on) where he had a private room before heading out to find my own accommodation.

If I was ever to do this again, I would make an effort to research the albergues more. Those that live in Toronto might remember the motels on Lakeshore Blvd. (now demolished) that could be rented by the hour (not that I ever took advantage of such a deal). This place had bare-bones luxury. It had a bed, albeit a hospital bed with bed rails, a private washroom and shower. I was next to the kitchen and it’s odours. Something made noises in the corner but I was too tired to check it out. For 10 euro it wasn’t bad, but I have had a bunk in an albergue for 6 euro and it was more comfortable.

I am in Sarria walking the streets after a rain and who do I bump into but my Norwegian friends. They were just finishing up dinner. We exchanged pleasantries and took some photos. I have to get their contact information.

Vigdis, if you read this please send me  email address in the comments section. 😁 I would also love a copy of one of those pictures. You were all so sweet and kind to me.

Dinner was at Cafe Miguel where I met Cliff and Holly. They had met on a previous trip and had lost contact for 10 years. She found him on Facebook and are now doing the Camino together. He is from Sydney, Australia and she is from B.C.  The Camino is full of these stories.