Villafranca del Bierzo
Hills of red grapes welcomed me to the village. I was tempted to taste the grapes, and I did! They were sweet, sweet, and sweet. The wine growers were working in the fields. It was like Tuscany in Spain.
The beautiful mountains of Galicia served as a natural drapery in the distance. The houses’ style was more Mediterranean than from the north of Spain. It gave me a flash back to Italy.
Marcos and me had a great time running down the hills. We are fast walker, therefore, we always arrive early to the albergue.
There are merchants that visit the small villages with products. They horn loud that people can know about their arrival. They are frequently selling bread or produce. Today we were surprise to see a man selling all kind of fresh fish and calamari. I had to take a picture of it. It was a beautiful presentation to the costumers.
Villafranca was a medieval village with a beach. The locals have created a beautiful beach at the river. Hundred of people and walkers met there in the afternoon to enjoy the refreshing waters after a long walk.
The real test for all walkers was after Villafranca. After ascending between mountains on the road, we were challenged to reach the highest point of El Camino in Spain. Marcos, Oscar, and me started walking at 6:15 am. Marcos and me at one point started running that Oscar was left behind. The ascension to O Cebreiro was brutal. We had breakfast in the village Ambasmestas before the ascension. It was a real test of endurance. Marcos was 100 meters in front of me at all time. I arrived around noon, and Oscar follow. He got the first blisters today on his second day.
The albergue opened at 1pm. Marcos went out for lunch, and I stayed at the door of the albergue getting some rest.
Javier and Fernando from Madrid, Oscar and me went for lunch at an amazing restaurant . The food was delicious.
In the afternoon I went to mass, and enjoyed the evening with a group of Italians that know how to have fun playing guitar and singing.