Tapas and pintxos anyone! How can I go past a market named after Saint Michael? It was wonderful returning to Madrid - and having enough energy to go out for an early dinner. It had been a long day since the Beach Hut morning farewell 😊- in fact it was the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere, and was the longest night in Australia as I left. Leaving Nowra, I had half the globe to cross! The train journey to Sydney airport was scenic and subdued, with only my guitalele for company glancing at me suspiciously from the seat opposite - ‘you’re doing this again, Mike?’ The flight left on time, the service was fine and I watched ‘A Complete Unknown’ a couple more times time before landing in Dubai. Like a Rolling Stone indeed. Dubai looked a little brighter closer up The flight from Dubai to Madrid detoured south over Egypt (for obvious reasons) and after ‘seven flying hours’ landed in Madrid. The plane was on time - and my pack appeared on the baggage carousel. Thank go...
You are kidding! A goat followed me today appearing out of nowhere but seeming well-versed in pilgrim protocol.. After several kilometres, I said ‘okay it’s time to go our separate ways’ and we did! Another surprise overlooked in my last post was the representation of my archangel namesake in yesterday’s procession. The young man playing my patron saint appeared to be a combination of a Roman Centurion and a fairy Princess. Not sure how I feel about that though I do appreciate that San Miguel is seen as a positive and strong saintly and cultural presence in Spain and Portugal. Nearly everyone in the dormitory had cleared out by the time I woke up this morning so I wandered off alone in search of breakfast - I made my way along quiet streets watching people start their day Overhanging decorations are reminders of the way these streets come alive for locals. The beaches were being prepared for visitors - not too many yet but numbers build over the summer. On my first stop at a...
Body and soul - we have made it to the Atlantic. Seven weeks ago I walked off the beach at Valencia with hopes of walking ‘coast to coast’ and practically no Spanish. Today my hopes have been fulfilled - y tengo un poco de español. Thankfully, Spanish people are kind to foreigners like me. That will be a lasting and treasured memory. As a solo peregrino, I needed to communicate and be with the locals. That was challenging and made this journey so fulfilling. Everyone was up early this morning and the classic breakfast of coffee and tortilla went down so well. Pre-drawn darkness and misty rain added to the excitement - around 31kms. Funny - by now it is more about time than distance. How long will it take? Not long after - the road forked - right to Muxia, left to Finisterre. I turned left, and passed a welcoming donativo stall. How generous! The spiritual is always there - somewhere. There are stone walls all around Galicia and other provinces. I wonder who built...
Woo hoo!
ReplyDeleteGo go mike
DeleteBuen camino, amigo.
DeleteDemboots
ReplyDeleteBeun camino, Miguel - Neils
ReplyDeleteWoohoo!
ReplyDelete