Sometimes you just need to know when to lay low. After yesterdays Foresthill March in the rain, I suggested that George should take a Zero. His feet were bothering him and he started walking oddly. What do you think about relaxing for the day, taking a taxi to our next destination and letting me slackpack? After much deliberation, George agreed that this was a solid plan.

We headed downstairs for breakfast. These Hotels serve a darn good and hearty breakfast. There’s never a lack of meats, cheeses, pastries, yogurts with toppings, coffee, juice and more. Every place is a bit different but I have never walked away unsatisfied.

I made my way back to the room, packed up my daypack and left my big ole’ backpack downstairs. George will transport it to the next hotel and I can be free to walk without a burden on my back. The weather was a bit funky but no rain, as of yet. I headed out and followed the coastline.

While I was walking, George was interviewing the hotel staff. There were two stone cutouts that he was looking at. The clerk explained to him that when the Convent was here in the beginning of time, 16th Century, these two turnstiles were used as Baby Drop-Offs. Say what? Parents would anonymously place their unwanted infant or toddler in this Lazy-Susan type of device, and would turn it. The Monks would then raise the infant or child as their own. It must’ve worked as this was done every so often. When you think about it, to a point this still happens today. There are Baby Drop-Offs at Fire Stations and Hospitals, saving lives. Hard to believe, but true.

As I walked along the shore, I saw many locals walking their four-legged companions. Zoey would’ve loved this kind of walking minus the rain. There was tons of murals and various art along the way. So colorful and quite tastefully done.

I made my way to the end of the point, and saw a stone statue. It appeared to be Half Pilgrim, Half Fisherman of the Sea. He was sitting, waiting and watching Pilgrims pass by. What a masterpiece he is.

The trail shot onto the road, and upward towards the highway. It was the first real climb I’ve had in a few days. There was another gal walking the Camino and I passed her, feeling a bit guilty. Without my backpack, I could head up the steep hill without gasping. We talked briefly and I continued onward.

Once I hit the highway, the rain came back. I had about an hour of reprieve so I was happy with that. It wasn’t the crazy downpour of yesterday, just a constant drip that made me wet down to my underwear. So I guess it’s more than a drip!

The Camino meandered back to a trail and took me through some farmlands and cattle fields. These were the first cows I had seen for over a week or two. But these were longhorns, real cattle, meant for eating. They were as wet as me but the difference is they didn’t care. I, on the other hand was looking for a place to get out of the weather.

I made my way through some very small villages, Area Grande and Portocelos, which had no services to speak of. I landed in the village of Oia and found a tiny Cafe. Perfect! I went in, soaked and dripping, but no one seemed to care. I ordered a double shot espresso and proceeded to linger for a bit. This is one of the best parts of walking the Camino. It never ceases to amaze me the Cafe’s that I can find along the way.

As I was finishing up my Espresso, a Swiss Pilgrim named Richard walks in. He’s as wet as I am. We strike up a conversation and I find out that he started in Lisbon, the same day George and I did. This was the first time I’ve met him. He’s not feeling 100% and was looking for a Hotel for the night. George had just sent me a picture of the Bathtub in our room. Richard was thrilled and was hoping for a room with a bathtub too. He called and sure enough, scored a room with a tub and we were on our way.

The rain was still coming down pretty good. Lucky for us, we had less than three miles to go. Richard wears leather boots while I wear trail runners. As we were walking the last miles together, I was submerging my feet in the puddles as my feet were already soaked. He tried, without much luck, to sidestep the puddles. At least with my shoes, they’ll dry out relatively quickly where Richards boots will be wet for days. He says he gets old newspapers, crumbles them up and shoves it inside his boots. It works for soaking up some of the moisture, but I’ll stick to drying my shoes out with a blow dryer. That works pretty good too.

We passed many more cows, horses and farmlands that lined the coastline. It would’ve been nice to see this on a sunny day but that wasn’t gonna happen. The walk went fast having someone to chat with. Richard and his wife walked the Camino a couple of years ago. They did the Norte Route which follows the northern shoreline of Spain. I believe it is one of the first routes of the Camino behind the Primitivo Route. He said it was quite difficult but had stunning views, yet much more primitive than the Portuguese Way.

Before I knew it, we had arrived at our Hotel for the evening. Hotel Glasgow is a nice place, smack dap in the middle of nowhere. There truly is not much out here. George was drinking coffee and had already lined up a dryer for me. They do not have a laundromat but they were willing to dry my clothes in their commercial dryer that they use for the linens. How nice is that.

I headed to the room, stripped off my soaking wet clothes and took a hot jacuzzi bath. Yep, that’s right. There is actually a jetted tub in our room. Some have wondered how I’ve found such nice accommodations? Even George has asked me how I was going to beat this?

There is an app called WisePilgrims. For a small fee of $4.99, you can download maps and all sorts of endless information regarding the circuit of trails. It has nearly all the routes of the Camino. Bookings.com must be in cahoots with WisePilgrims because each town, with accommodations, gives you the option to book a room. That’s when bookings.com opens up the wide array of rooms from Albergues, Hostels, Bed & Breakfasts and Hotels. Then you choose what accommodations you prefer.

I can say that all, but one, was as described on the site. Some are better than others but that is based mostly on price and location. I always read the reviews before selecting our home for the night. It’s been pretty simple, booking along the way. And I only book one night ahead. This gives George and I the ability to determine how far, or not as far, that we are willing to walk the following day. Easy Peasy!

Our Hotel tonight has a restaurant. Now that we are in Spain, our clock moved forward by an hour. Not such a big deal except for the fact that I really have no intention on walking in the dark. When I woke up this morning at 7am, it was pitch black outside. So no walking until 8:30 or later. The other thing is Spaniards eat dinner later than Portuguese. Restaurants don’t even open for supper until 8am. So starting later is the way that the Baraga’s will roll. Honestly it won’t be a big issue being we seldom were on the trail much earlier than 9am anyhow.

One last thing. I did a little bit of surgery on George’s foot this evening. He had a large blister that needed to be drained so I cut off his foot. It’s okay now being he has another foot. No, I didn’t do that but I poked it with a needle and clear fluid came out of it. No wonder he was hobbling around. He’s as good as new and should be flying down the trail tomorrow.

We plan to continue north on the Coastal Route and brave this rain. It doesn’t seem to want to let up anytime soon. I guess that’s part of this adventure and our Camino. As long as the Lord doesn’t have us building an Ark, we will be fine. Until tomorrow, may your days be filled with love and laughter, and a little bit of sunshine! Adios, from Spain.