It’s 11:30 pm so I’ll keep this email brief. Thank you to those who have congratulated Mark
and I on reaching Santiago, but we’re not done yet. Tomorrow we start walking south on the
Portuguese Camino, going the wrong direction because we fly home from Porto in Portugal.
Why not keep walking? We figure we can reach Vigo in five days, then take a train or bus to
Porto.
Esther
Esther is from Denmark. She and Anton, also from Denmark, are a couple, but they did not
walk caminos together. Anton had planned his walk as an solo journey, so when Esther
decided she also wanted to walk, she chose her own adventure. Anton walked Camino
Frances and Camino Primitivo; Esther walked Camino Portuguese and Camino Ingles. They
both walked into Santiago on April 15, together at last. After two days of rest and celebration
in Santiago, they walked together, with many new friends, to Finisterre.
Today was a well deserved rest day where we got to welcome the rest of our Primitivo friends
to Santiago. Nathan greeted them with cold beers. After hugs and photos, we all went to
12:00 pm mass. It was my second mass at the cathedral but the first time I got to see them
swing the botafumeiro, the four foot tall incense burner that swings high and wide. Nathan
had heard that one of the benefits of the incense burner was to mask the stink of the pilgrims.
In days gone by, that may well have been true. Tonight we gathered with all the friends
remaining in Santiago, about 12. Juan, who is from a small community 45 minutes north of
Santiago, led us to A Gato Negro (The Black Cat). It is a small unassuming restaurant bar in
the walled city. He ordered a series of seafoods that we shared as tapas. We started with
bacalao (cod) empanadas, and pulpo (octopus). This was the third time we ate pulpo this trip
and this was the best. Next up was mussels and razor clams. Something new to me was
pecepes (pollicipes) or goose neck barnacles. You had to twist the top to open them but they
were tasty. Another dish, alamejas a la marinera, was llke small mussels with a tasty sauce.
Dipping the sourdough bread in the sauce was popular. And finally for dessert, manchego
cheese with quince paste, a fruit preserve that pairs very well with this mild cheese.
That’s it. Tomorrow we start over, making new friends once again.