Day Seven

After yesterday's adventure, today would have to be easier.

We started with predictions of rain all day, and a steep climb out of town. It was misting, but with minutes we had stripped off our rain gear to cool off during the climb. From there to La Mesa, 4km, we put on and took off clothes as needed, and then breakfasted on OJ, chocolate croissants, and a couple of cafes con leche for Estelle.

Then it was a steep climb for a couple of miles that had us stripping off raingear again and trying to cool off. Of course once we got on top of the ridge we cooled off and layered on again for the 6 mile descent down to a large reservoir--a real knee buster. This is the day that convinced me I neede to bring a hiking pole, and it was a godsend

Once finally down the the dam we had 6 more km of climbing to get done for the day. A lot of up and down. But the weather held, we had only a tiny drizzle at first, and cloud cover for the climbs. We're tired, sore, and hungry, but we've now hiked about 145km, and tomorrow we'll pass the halfway point.

A nice lunch at A Reigada, paid for by our friend Irene from Valencia, and a siesta prepared us for a visit to the Ethnographic Museum.

What a delight! Great exhibits of what life was like here 75-100 years ago, with wonderful docents explaining things and telling local stories. Complete with a dentist office, working water mill, old houses full of the stuff of daily life--from kitchen to bath, bedroom to study-- paneras, all the local trades like farming, carpentry, winemaking, weaving, a guy using a hand powered lathe to create beautiful bowls, and more. We spent more than an hour there and should have stayed longer.

And then back to the same restaurant (A Reigada) this time for more great combination salad, grilled octopus, dessert, wine and bread for $35. Goodness, but we could eat there again.

We like this town. We like our hostel, the Puerto de Grandas. We're sad that their fiestas start tomorrow...and we'll be on the Camino before 8.