Camino de Santiago – Day 4 From Samos to Ferreiros

This was the most gorgeous day of all. Probably (and I’m just guessing here!) because the sun finally decided to come out. The truth is that along the way, several former pilgrims told us that the stage from Sarria to Portomarín is one of the most beautiful and, indeed, it was as you can judge by the pictures. It was also a hard day (yet another). When we woke up that morning in the Samos Monastery, we knew that once again we had to walk a stage and a half if we wanted to be all together again at the end of the day… and some of the pilgrims that we have been walking along with for the past days actually did it, they manage to arrive to Portomarín. But I didn’t, and neither did Nico.

After days of non-stop walking the body starts to “complain” and you have (or at least you should) pay attention to what it is telling you. That’s why, despite the good weather conditions, me and a couple of two more pilgrims decided to call it a day in a little (very little, only three houses little, to be more precise) village called Ferreiros, half way between Sarria and Portomarín. And it was actually the best decision we took!

In the shelter, a former primary school adapted to receive the pilgrims, we meet some new people, like Alejandro and Albino, two men from Vigo that have been doing the Galician stages of the Santiago Path for years now. This was their 13^th time, which makes them experienced pilgrims and people worthy of taking advise from. They would also deeply “touch” me a couple of days later and contribute to change something inside of me, probably for ever. In this shelter we also became closer from two Irish guys and a girl that we had been seeing on and off since O Cebreiro and with whom from that night on we shared our path, meals, talks, laughs and pains.

It is funny how, even if you start the Camino alone, you always end up finding amazing people. And even if you’re more the silent walker type you always feel the presence of other pilgrims (sometimes even former pilgrims). And no, I’m not talking about spirits but about the sights and messages that former pilgrims leave along the way, to encourage you to carry on and sometimes to even advice you which are the best places to get food. As you can see by the last photo, the messages written on the wooden boards on the bunker bed above mine in the Ferreiros’ shelter, “told” us that the restaurant that was a little bit further, down the hill, was better than the one closer to our shelter. And so we followed their “advice”. The food we had that day for dinner was probably the best during all the Camino (and the company made it all even tastier). Thanks former pilgrims!

And although the sun came out eventually, because the morning was still very cloudy I barely took my camera out of its case, so if you want to see some beautiful pictures from the kms between Samos and Sarria, check Jaime Varela's blog. He is one of my fellow pilgrims and a very talented photographer as you can judge by yourselves in here. 

And also to see more pictures (taken from me, but without the LOMO fish eye), please check here.