From Arzua to Pedrouza (19.4 km)
Chris and I leave the Albergue at about 8:30 and we head straight for a restaurant/bar that is open and serving wine and beer to the party goers from the night before. We settle for coffee and a croissant and then hit the road. We are both very tired and Chris is coming down with a cold. So we walk slowly and take lots of breaks. I see the three American women again and we all have coffee together. I see pictures of grandchildren from the proud grandmother. There aren’t too many familiar faces on the road today and it is very busy.
We’re not even walking 20 km today and it seems to drag on forever. The weather has changed again and the days are much warmer now. By 1:00 it is very hot on the Camino but most people have stopped walking by now so we enjoy the solitude. It’s official, this was the most uneventful day on the Camino. I think I am just really tired now, and I just want to get to Santiago. As I watch the Camino markers which appear every half a kilometre now, I am shocked to see such low numbers, yet it will still take another half day of walking to reach Santiago.
When we arrive in Pedrouza we decide to stay in a private room in a Pension for 30 Euros which is just 10 more than dorm beds. Our room faces the busy main street and it is very noisy but at least we have a very comfortable, large bed to share and we even have a TV with one English channel. We haven’t watched TV all month and in fact I have no idea what is going on in the world beyond the Camino.
We decide to eat our dinner early, around 5:00 and then we go back to our room and have a nap. Our bodies are all mixed up when we awake around 8:30 and we find ourselves going out for a snack close to midnight. It’s not a problem, everything is still open. We finally go to sleep around 1:00 in the morning.
