An Easy Walk – Camino de Santiago Day 9

Day 9 of my Camino journey would be short and an easy walk. No point leaving in the dark and getting lost. I had time to have fruit, yoghurt and tea for breakfast. Gabriella and I set out from the hostel at 8:05 and walked through the awakening outskirts of Arcade.

We walked through the quiet streets until we stopped at the small roadside chapel in the photo below. Going inside to leave a small donation, we were warmly greeted by a woman who hugged and kissed Gabriella, shook hands with me and offered a prayer for our safe arrival in Santiago.

We soon got out of the city and into the countryside walking past small farms, vegetable gardens and the ever-present small vineyards. At one point the trail went over a small hill through eucalyptus and chestnut groves. A lovely morning to be walking, beautiful scenery, perfect temperatures and a quiet companion.

We had spent the night at Arcade in the middle of the day’s stage according to the guide book. This meant that we were two or three hours ahead of pilgrims starting out from Redondela, the recommended stopover. We had the trail to ourselves, seeing fewer pilgrims than the previous few days. It made for an easy walk.

An Easy Walk Along The River

Four km before Pontevedra, the guide book showed two routes; The main route along the busy N-550 highway and the scenic route – Senda Fluvial rio dos Gafos. The river route is not well marked, the guide book advised taking the path under the railway and to just keep following the river. Gabrielle was nervous about taking an unmarked path but followed me anyway and we enjoyed the “road less travelled together.”

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An Easy Walk Into Pontevedra

Pontevedra is an interesting city of 83 000 inhabitants. With a history stretching back to Roman times, it reached its Zenith as a major trading centre in the 16th century. Siltation of the river access to the Atlantic reduced its importance. The Spanish civil war further affected it and it only started to regain some of its former status in the latter part of the 20th century.

The city centre is closed to vehicular traffic. Although I did see a few delivery vehicles – small vans and trucks. Card operated bollards that rise from the road allow emergency and service vehicles access. It makes walking around the city safe and enjoyable. However visitors need to pay attention as it is easy to assume a cobblestone lane is closed to traffic only to have to leap out of the way of a speeding car or motorbike.

The guide book suggested a hostel on the edge of the city as we approached from the south. We decided to keep walking as there were a number of alternative hostels in the city centre. We were looking for one suggested in the guide book but walked past it in the confusion of narrow streets and Spanish language signposts.

Hostel Acola

We spotted a sign for the Hostel Acola and decided to check it out. It looked more upmarket than the municipal Alburgues that suited our budget. We were pleasantly surprised that the rate was only 17.50 euros including, tea, coffee and breakfast.

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The hostel was almost empty. Knowing that there would be a big wave of pilgrims arriving later in the afternoon, we decided to play it safe and check-in. The helpful manager showed us to a cubicle that had four double bunks. Taking a lower one each, we found that they had curtains on the outside for privacy and to shade the light from the ubiquitous movement-activated overhead lights that were a feature of many hostels.

A few minutes to do our laundry, get a coffee from the small cafe next door and then set out to explore the old city. We soon found that our lack of a common language and different ideas about places of interest made us less compatible companions for sightseeing than for walking. I was more interested in old buildings than dress shops and fashion boutiques so we decided to explore independently. I set out for an easy walk on my own around the old city.

With hindsight, I wish I had spent a whole day in Pontevedra, there were more interesting buildings than I could get to in one afternoon.

Here is a selection.

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Churches in Pontevedra

Pontevedra has some beautiful churches – and some unusual ones. The most unusual is the Santuario de Peregrina, a Baroque style church with a floor plan built in the shape of a scallop shell. The Basilica de Mary Major on a rise directly opposite the hostel Acola is an impressive building. Many of the churches and civic buildings date from the 13th century.

There are many plazas named after guilds or trades, the firewood plaza, blacksmiths plaza. Most have open air cafes, bars or restaurants and are crowded in the evenings. Many family groups covering three or four generations were happily talking, eating and drinking wine. Children and dogs running free and safely playing in the car less plazas.

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An Unusual Supper Experience

After several hours of walking it was time to find a restaurant with a pilgrim menu. Gabriella had found another German speaking pilgrim and went off to have a more conversational meal than she would have had with me.

I asked the friendly cafe owner next to the hostel for a recommendation and he directed me to Bar San Martin, a small bar on a side street a short walk away. It was dark and reminiscent of a scene from a 1920s movie. Definitely not a tourist magnet.

The handful of local men at the bar and a few more at tables all looked at me as if I was from another planet. No hostility but certainly surprise that I should be there. The sole woman serving behind the bar was no friendlier. I wondered if I should ask if they were armed before fleeeing.

Hunger overcame the desire to look for a more friendly venue so I asked for the menu. There was no pilgrim menu. Not much of a menu at all and no English words on the one dog eared copy that the server dug out of her apron

I managed to order calamari, some huge chunks of bread and a glass of red wine. The meal was far better than the decor and atmosphere suggested. The cost was 8.50 euros, no tip asked for or expected and I even got a smile in response to my Gracias when I left.

Back to the hostel, put away my dry laundry, prepared my pack for the next morning . A last coffee from the self serve system in the hostel reception, a shower in a modern bathroom for a change and a good night’s sleep.

It had been a good day, 14.7km walked on the route in 3 hours 18 minutes. many more around the city. Total costs 36.55 euros. Above budget with the more expensive accommodation and the purchase of a pair of scissors to trim my moustache.

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