Stage 33 - Tábara to Santa Marta de Tera (22.76km): 01/10/2014 07:50

Someone cares about the passing perigrinos

Hospitalero José explained how we could get back on the Camino without going back through the town centre. That probably saved us a kilometre. About 5km into the day we encountered a steep climb and would have to deal with two more later but it wasn't one of our more difficult walks despite the length.

The plan was to find a bar in Bercianos for a rest and lunch. We didn't find a proper bar and we didn't get lunch but we had a rest and a cup of coffee. It would seem that we left the Camino and took a short cut into the town. The first person we met was an elderly lady and we asked her about the whereabouts of a cafe. Looking back on it now I think she saw two exhausted Peregrinos asking for a coffee - we should probably have asked about a bar. We were close to some sort of community centre at this time and the woman took us to it and tried the door which was locked. She left us sitting on a bench outside and went back up the town, giving us the impression that we were indeed outside a cafe which was due to open in five minutes. Sure enough another woman soon came along with keys and had a conversation with Pauline in French. She said she could provide coffee but had no food. We were taken upstairs to a well-appointed bar, in what looked like a private members club. I had coffee and Pauline had a beer - total cost €2. I presume she closed up again when we left.

We came across a few other Peregrinos on the road early in the day but most were settled in by the time we arrived at the albergue in Santa Marta de Tera. Some we expected to see here may have stopped at a private albergue a kilometre back, in a town on the other side of the river. We are in a fine purpose-built municipal albergue, built on land donated by a local man who had completed the Camino. It is right beside a 12th century church which housed the oldest known statue of Sant Iago the Peregrino. We had to settle for a couple of replicas as the original is in the museum in Astorga.

We didn't have a hospitalero to wash or cook for us tonight so it was off to the local bar for a €7 plato combinado of gammon, eggs and chips.

624km completed according to Google's "My Tracks", 322km to go (as per the Confraternity of St James (UK) guide.

I have somehow managed to lose the many photographs taken today. Most featured the 12th century church and the artefacts in its museum. The statues below appear in the grounds of the church. I recovered the photo at the top from my Facebook Page.

Next: Stage 34 - Santa Marta de Tera to Rionegro del Puente