This morning, we left the province of Castilla y Leon and entered the province of Galicia. Me by foot and Chisoon by car. Her feet are significantly better after two days' rest. It was a short day consisting mainly of a steady climb of approximately 2,000 ft. Since it is equivalent to hiking to Nevada Falls, for someone who has been up to Half Dome, she could have easily done it, but it is the cumulative pounding that has produced her current foot trouble and she can use a longer break.
Amazingly the streak of rain-free days continued. In fact, partly sunny skies proved ideal for walking. The open vista in the latter part of the climb, the fresh morning air, and the camaraderie among walkers perhaps to the degree I have not seen yet, all contributed to a very pleasant three-hour hike.
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| Between La Faba and Laguna de Castilla |
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| Galicia border with official and unofficial declarations |
I arrived before noon, and felt like declaring a la Abebe Bikila after winning the marathon at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, "I could have walked another 10 km!" (Actually many do, come to think of it.)
The church is the dominant structure as you enter O'Cebreiro, which is surprisingly small and in fact if you don't pay attention, you might walk right by this town. As I entered the church grounds to explore, our hotel and the rest of the town came into view on the other side.
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| O'Cebreiro Iglesia, one of the earliest surviving structures on the Camino. The building on the right is now a hotel, where Queen Isabella I is said to have stayed during her own pilgrim to Santiago. |
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| Don Elias Valina Sampedro, the creator of the yellow arrow among other achievements, without whom modern pilgrimage would not be the same, is buried at the church. |
I remember Emilio Estevez in the bonus track on the "The Way" DVD speaking of O'Cebreiro as probably his favorite place on the Camino. I am not sure if that is totally true for me but once you walk up and down this tiny hamlet a few times it certainly grows on you.
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| O'Cebreiro |
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| No, not a habitacion for a hobbit (wrong country!) but a Galician palloza (not short for Lollapalooza!), which I am just learning about. |
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| O'Cebreiro sunset |
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