Stage 39 - Lubián to Vilavella (12.2km): 07/10/2014 08:25

We meet Jose Marie again

We started our Camino in the region of Andalucia and later walked through Extremedura and Castille y Leon. Today we entered Galicia so I suppose you could say we are now on the home straight. If all goes according to plan we should be relaxing in Santiago two weeks from today.

While we only walked a little over 12km it was a very tough day and the rain was the least of our problems. Perhaps we didn't climb as high as yesterday but we probably did more climbing as we had a number of downhill stretches after which we had to go back up again. Also the climbs were often steeper and the terrain much rougher.

On the way up a Spanish peregrino caught up with us and we stopped to chat. Language difficulties did not help but we quickly realised that we were talking to Jose Marie, the Hospitalero who looked after everyone so well back in the convent at Alcuescar, on September 8. Shortly behind Jose Marie was a French Peregrino, Georges. We learned that they too had problems with accommodation in Lubián. They had to sleep on the floor of the town hall.

At one stage during the climb I thought we were near the top but when we emerged from trees the motorway was far above us on the other side of the valley. By the time we did get to the top the motorway was far below us.

Going down the other side was a pleasure after the exertions of the previous three hours. At one stage we heard some shouting down below us and the noise

The inquisitive cow

of what sounded like a tractor. A short time later a large tractor and trailer came round a bend towards us. The tractor was the width of the path and the driver indicated that we should move to the side. That seemed like a good idea as he was being followed by a herd of cattle. We scrambled up an embankment as what were mostly mature cows passed by. Some looked at us curiously, some, including a bull, ignored us and one posed for a photograph.

Our accommodation

There is no albergue here in Vilavella and we were planning to stay in a hostal. We first stopped for a bite to eat in a bar with a name similar to the hostal and could see a large hostal up the road but couldn't see the name. Before we ventured any further we made enquiries in the bar and were delighted to learn that the guidebooks had misspelt the name and that our beds were going to be on the floor above.

I had made a point of finding this hostal as one of our sons had told me that he had calculated we should be in this village around this time and had mailed a birthday card to his Mum. Sure enough the card had arrived ahead of us.

737km completed, 210km to go.