´Live´ from the Norte (Baamonde to Santiago)

[peregrina nicole]

Hello Everyone! I have ´live´in quotation marks because while I intended to post from the Camino, I´m now in Santiago, so this is ´post live´.

We didn´t have much time to do a Camino this year and so decided to do a short Camino (102km). We had no desire to join the hoards at Sarria, we already did the Ingles and have no interest in doing it again, I redid Lugo to Santiago in 2012 after having done the Primitivo in 2011, so the last 100km of the Norte seemed a good idea. I did the walk again with Camino Bob. He is a a member of the Confraternity of Saint James (UK branch). They run Rabanal on the French route and Miraz on the Northern route, so we were curious about Miraz. This also influenced our decision to do this route. I can say that I would HIGHLY recommend this to anyone seeking a short camino. The route from Lugo is also lovely.

We had some time in Portugal (near Porto) before coming back to Galicia to do a Camino. We knew that we could get a bus from Porto to Santiago (check the ALSA website for times (http://www.alsa.es/compra-y-horarios/internacionales/?searchType=international)). We were told that we could get to Baamonde from Lugo and so were expecting to have to change at Santiago to get a Lugo bus. With a bit more exploration of the ALSA site, I was delighted to discover that there is one bus a day (12:45) which heads to Santiago, but hooks up with a smaller bus at Valenca for connections with Ourense, Sarria and Lugo!!! Only three of us were on this bus. One chap got off at Ourense. We were the only other passengers so we went directly to Lugo and arrived an hour ahead of time (7pm).

We arrived on Saturday, June 21. We stayed at the Pension San Roque (Plaza Comondante Manso, 11, 982 22 27 00, 38 euros for a double ensuite). This is just around the corner from the bus station. There is a supermarket nearby (around the corner of the plaza opposite the hotel). The hotel is near the Primitivo route just as it enters the old part of the city. In sum: The location is amazing. You can book via booking.com. It doesn´t have wifi, but the cafe on the opposite side of the square does and aslo provides breakfast if you show a ticket from the pension.

We planned to take a bus to Baamonde on the Sunday. There are two on a Sunday 11:40 and 17:40 (with Arriva). We considered these too late to make a start on walking and so took a taxi from the bus station to Baamonde on Sunday morning at 9:30 (I would have preferred an earlier start). This cost 37 euros, which isn´t too bad divided between two people.

We used the El Pais guide to the Norte and Primitivo Routes. This was published in 2010 and so was a bit out of date with regards to facilities, but the route seems to be the same. (Update: I´ve just checked the guide books in the San Paulo book shop in Santiago and they still have this 2010 version on sale!!).

Day 1 (Sunday June 22): Baamonde to Miraz (15.2 km)
At Baamonde, there is a modern looking albergue which has 92 places. It also takes groups as we discovered later from pilgrims who stayed there on Saturday night and complained about a school group. There is also a hotel (La Ruta Esmeralda, 982 39 81 38, 636 44 12 92)) which the guide mentioned and appeared to be open. Restaurant Galicia came highly recommended and we even saw it (later) on a documentary about places to eat in Galicia. As we arrived in the morning, we were only interested in water and coffee. There are two bars near the albergue which were both open. We had coffee and got a sello at each. The first few km are on the highway and after that you get dirverted to a path before the capela de San Alberte. After San Alberte, with 6km to go before Miraz, there is a cafe bar that wasn´t mentioned in our guide. This is Witericus. The have a sello, sandwiches, beer, coffee and water and are a welcome stop. This is the first place we saw the ´no to changes on the Norte´(non cambio do camino) signs. I´ll say more about this later. When you get to Xeixon there are two bars. The first one you reach is the Meson O Cruceiro. This wasn´t mentioned in our guide. Reche, which is just after O Cruceiro was mentioned. We didn´t stop by Reche but saw backpacks outside. Between Witericus and Xeixon there is a stone carver. He has wonderful carving on the stone wall outside of his house. We didn´t stop to say hello, but others did and were rewarded with a sello that was an actual seal! (i.e. with sealing wax). We only saw these at Miraz when we compared sellos with other peregrinos.

We arrived at Miraz at 2:30 and met the CSJ volunteers Christine (Northern Ireland), John (Aberdeen) and Len (Australia). Miraz has 26 places and they stick to this ridigly as they are only licensed for 26 peregrinos. I asked what happens if they have 3 beds left and 4 people arrive. They said that we tell them that we only have 3 beds. I also asked what happens if 3 arrive, there are 4 beds, but one is 5km behind limping in. Again, they will only give a bed to those who are there and you can´t make a reservation, even for someone who is on the Camino. They were full by 5pm and put up a sign saying ´completo full´. If you arrive at Miraz and it is full, they have a list of nearby hotels that will come and pick you up and drop you off. Miraz used to be donative, but now they charge 8 euros. This seems very reasonable considering that the place is very clean, all the work is done by volunteers and you get REAL sheets and pillow cases. Blankets are also provided. At Miraz, you have to do your own cooking. However, there is a bar next door that does sandwiches and who also will sell pasta and other camino basics. Lights are out at 10pm and breakfast is at 6:30. This was coffee, bread, butter and jam.

We met some very interesting peregrinos at Baamonde, including a group with a guy from Brunei who was travelling with a English friend from Uni and two Spanish girls, two German ladies, one of whom had a hurt knee, 4 girls from Valencia (one with a bad knee) and a French couple. It was good to see that they all arrived in Santiago and those with injuries seemed much better. A special hello to Christine, John and Lem who all worked very hard dealing with peregrino issues, running the albergue and keeping the place very clean. We both remember one of Len´s words of wisdom to the guy from Bhutan: ´Always think for yourself, because if you don´t someone will do it for you´. Camino Bob is thinking of putting this on a T-Shirt.

 

[peregrina nicole]

Baamonde to Santiago Day 2 (Miraz to Sobrado dos Monxes, 25.5km)

One of the reasons why the Albergue at Miraz is such a good idea is that before Miraz, there was no where to stay between Baamonde and Sobrado, making this a 41.4km stretch. We met one person who did this and she was a very fit looking German (Diana). The rest of us normal peregrinos split this up by staying at Miraz. Here, our old guide was pretty up to date. The first place you encounter coffee is at Roxia which is about 10km from Miraz. There is a small place at Marcela which is sometimes open, sometimes not. The next coffee or beer stop is a Meson, which has two bar Mesons, Suso and Cepo. Both are very peregrino friendly. The route to Meson is very nice and goes over the highest point of the Northern route. It is also well signposted. After Meson, you have to keep you eyes open for turn offs. Just after Meson Susa, the route turns to the right. You need to keep your eyes open for a faint arrow that points to a left fork on a path. You follow this path, which is very pretty, until just before Sobrado. However, there are places where a few extra signs or waymarkers would have been helpful. There is one tricky area where you cross a farm yard. There is another when the path comes out on the highway. Here you turn right onto the highway and will soon see a stone marker. Having it a bit closer to the junction would have been helpful. As you come to a lake, you know you are getting close. Here, there are some markers that try to divert you from the Camino. This might well be a nice diversion, but I knew from my guide if I just stayed on the highway, I would end up in Sobrado. In Sobrado, the albergue is in the monastery. We had heard that this is where the school kids ended up, so we avoided it. When we later caught up with the Brunei group, they said that they had a great time in in monastery and that there is a nice courtyard. There is a private albergue which looked very nice and it is well sign posted on the way in. We stayed at the hotel San Marcos (55 euros for a double ensuite) as Camino Bob (who doesn´t like earplugs) didn´t sleep very well at Miraz. We were happy that we were booked into a hotel because that night around 5pm there was a torrential downpour and hailstorm the likes of which I have never seen. This lasted well over an hour. We had a good view point from our enclosed balcony. The street in front of the hotel turned into a river, the large garbage bin washed down the street and there were hail stones the size of chick peas and occasionally the size of golf balls. Diana (see above) got caught up in this and arrived at the hotel looking very wet indeed. She too decided that she couldn´t face an albergue. The bar next to the hotel San Marcos was open at 7pm for breakfast and had pretty much cornered the early morning peregrino trade.

 

[ParistoCapeCod]

Thank you so much for this! I'm currently in Castro Urdiales.


Heading westward on the norte

 

[peregrina nicole]

Buen Camino to ParistoCapeCod. That sounds like a bit of an adventure!

Before moving on to day 3, I´d like to add a bit to my two previous posts. I´m not quite sure the right way of saying this, so I will lay out what I was told and let you decide. The hopsitaleros in Miraz said that on the previous day they had met some very disapointed peregrinos who had stayed at Rabanal and were keen to stay at Miraz (these are both run by the Cofraternity of St James, UK). However, the hopitalera in Baamonde had told them that there would be no space in Miraz as a group of school children were on their way there. She did, however, have the number of a hotel that would be happy to pick them up from Miraz. Of course, when they arrived at Miraz, they were told that there were places and that Miraz never takes groups. I was told that this wasn´t the first time that peregrinos had been given incorrect information by the staff at the albergue in Baamonde. So, please be aware of this. The phone for Miraz is 982 19 49 33. You can´t reserve a place but they will tell you if they are full or not.

I also forgot to mention that we had our evening meal in Sobrado at the Bar Real. We had the menu for 10 euros and this included wine. This is just out of the centre of town (follow the arrows or the sign for Folgosa), but is on the Camino, so you can eat and do a bit of a recce at the same time! You also get a great view of the monastery when you go back to town.

I should also add that while the Norte reaches its highest point at 710m here, it isn´t a difficult uphill slog. Baamonde is already at just over 400m. You go up to 500m before dropping about 100 to Miraz. From Miraz you have three high points Roxia (just over 600m), Marcela (just over 700), and Meson (just over 650m) before you drop to Sobrado at just over 500m. All of the altitudes are very approximate.

Day 3 Sobrado dos Monxes to Aruza (22.7km)
Here our guide book was incorrect. It had the distance between Sobrado and Arzua at 27.7 km but the distance breakdown didn´t add up to this. It ´felt´more like 22km. This section of the route wasn´t as pretty as the previous section. However, you are still relatively ´crowd free´ at this point, so enjoy the solitude while you have it, because the nature of the Camino changes after Aruza. Make sure that you have a nice breakfast in Sobrado because the first coffee stop is a bar in Corredoiras (Bar Carreira), which is 8.9km from Sobrado. This is right on the Camino at a cross roads. The bar is peregrino friendly and has a sello. From Corredoiras to Boimorto it is 3.1km. There is one bar you pass before you enter Boimorto. Boimorto is a lot larger than I was expecting and strung out along a long street. It has a number of bars, restaurants, grocery shops, pharmacies, etc. It also has a private albergue. The sign posting for this starts before you even arrive at Corredoiras. Watch out for the turnoff for the albergue as you enter Boimorto if you are intending to stay here. Boimorto is about 12km from Sobrado, so it could either be part of a short day from Sobrado or a very long day from Miraz.

You need to take care to watch the arrows on the way out of Boimorto. We got lost. At the end of town, we followed some arrows that turned right off the main road. Then we saw a lamp with a yellow splotch. Camino Bob thought that this was the right way, but it didn´t look likely to me as turning off to the left was a road sign pointing to Sendelle and Arzua. We went this way and very shortly ran into the Camino again as it hit the road coming up from the left). From here to Arzua you are on a narrow road which goes through Sendelle (chapel, bench, a peregrino stall that was closed, and no other facilities) and eventually Arzua. So, make sure you are fed and watered in Boimorto as there is nothing in the way of services between there and Arzua. As you approach Arzua, the sign posting starts to get a bit confusing. There is a yellow arrow that tries to direct you to a restaurant to the right. Ignore this and just keep on going straight ahead. You pass a sports complex (polideportivo), keep on straight. In fact, you keep on going straight until you hit the French route, which is at the tourist info kiosk. I would have expected a sign or something saying ´congratulations, you have finished the Norte´. There is nothing. Just the kiosk and a LOT more peregrinos than you have been used to seeing on the Norte.

At the kiosk, arrows point you to the lower of two forks. This leads to the albergue. Just opposite the albergue is Cafe Mandala. Mariano and Josefina, the owners, run Os Albergue in Boente (osalbergues@gmail.com) and are very peregrino friendly. Cafe Mandala has an amazing sello in the form of a Buddah. In Arzua, we again decided to stay in a pension. We were in the Pension Begona (which you can see from the tourist kiosk as is on the upper of the two forks. The number for this is 981500517. They are also at pensionbegonia@gmail.com or www.pensionbegonia.com. We had an ensuite double for 45 euros. They also have a restaurant which does a very hearty and well cooked menu for 10 euros. I would like to say a special hello to the Dutch guy who runs a shop for peregrinos near the entry to Arzua if you come in on the French route. He was very helpful and speaks a number of languages. I especially appreciated his advice as the tourist kiosk was closed. Our guide book ended at Arzua. We have done the Arzua to Santiago bit several times before, but I wanted info on distances and new places to stay. I wish I had thought to ask his name. He has a sign that says that he has everything a peregrino needs. I said that I needed info. He brought out a guide book and gave me paper so I could write down a few details.

There was a bar at the end or our street, just before a plaza which advertised that it would be open at 6am. It wasn´t. However, we (and the other early risers) did find an open cafe bar on the square (Cafeteria Os Casqueiros). This is just above the Camino, so you drop down a block and find youself back on the Camino.

 

[peregrina nicole]

Day 4: Arzua to Pedrouzo (about 20km)
Once on the French route, you very much notice the hoards. The character of the Camino changes completely. You have large groups of school children, you have younger people who feel the need to carry radios so you can hear their music, you have people worrying about getting a place at the next albergue and you also have what Camino Bob calls autogrinos. The issue of autogrinos has sparked a debate between myself and Camino Bob. When we did the French route in 2008, we noticed a few signs indicating that there was a rucksack carrying service. This was used by people who were injured and wanted a lighter weight so they could heal while still keeping up with their friends. Now, there are companies who do the Camino as an organised tour. They prebook you into albergues, give you maps and instructions, and take your bags for you from one algergue to the next. Camino Bob says that these are not ´real´peregrinos and should not get a compostella. I´m less harsh about this. I´m not happy seeing the Camino taken over by package tours. However, I do recognise that some people would not be able to do the Camino any other way. Of course, what might be at issue is what kind of Camino experience they have. Certainly, when I did the French route I ended up posting things home as I realised that things I thought were necessary were not. So, autoperegrinos don´t have this sort of experience.If anything, I feel ambivilent about horse peregrinos because it is the horse that does all the walking and they don´t get a compostella. We also noted people with electric bikes on the French route. Camino Bob, who is also a biciperigrino has a big issue with electric bikes as at least the autoperegrinos are moving under their own steam. Anyway, one of the things that I learned two years ago when I volunteered in the Oficina de Peregrino is that everyone has their own Camino. Standing in the queue in Santiago to pick up my Compostella, I chatted to two Canadians (retired) who were autogrinos. They said that they had a great time and quite like the fact that they didn´t have to worry about food and accomodation and that they could walk further than they would normally be able to do because they had light packs. They also noted that some of the people in their group suffered from a number of ailments, like arthritis.

This route from Arza to Pedrouzo is already very well described and VERY well signposted, so I´ll just focus on the places where you can stay and eat. The first bar cafe outside of Aruza is at Calzada (Casa Calzada) (6km away). This is an isolated bar, cafe, restaurant, tourist shop. It has a sello and is well used to peregrinos. It only has one toilet, so queue up early. I´ve stopped here every time I have been on this stretch of the Camino. After Calzada, you come into the hamlet of Calle (7.7 km from Arzua). This is a pretty village and the bar (Casa Tia Dolores) does sandwiches and very much caters to the peregrino trade. At 11.2km after Arzua, you come to Salceda. To the left there is an albergue, hotel restaurant complext 500m off the Camino. I stayed here when I did Lugo to Santiago and it is lovely. There aren´t many places in the albergue, so book or arrive early. After the turnoff for the complex, the Camino hits the main road where you come to another bar (A Casa Verde). This is VERY distinct! It has signed T-Shirts hanging from the ceiling and grafitti over every inch of paint. The staff are efficient and friendly. They do snacks, beer and coffee. A few km out of Salceda, you see a sign pointing to Brea. This takes you to a pension bar which is on the main road. I´ve never stayed here, but have met people who have. They say it is ók´. I´ve stopped there for a beer on previous Caminos. At 15.5km from Arzua, you arrive at Alto do Santa Irene, which is also called Empalme. There there are a few bars opposite each other. They do meals. The Camino then goes to Santa Irene where there is a Xunta albergue and an private one. I´ve never stayed here. 2.2km after this (at 18km from Arzua) you arrive at A Rua which has some Casa Rurales. After A Rua, you come back to the main road. Here the Camino sign indicates that you cross the road and follow a track to the woods. This by passes the town of Pedrouzo and doesn´t really make the route any shorter. I would recommend turning left and just entering Pedrouzo. Here there are lots of shops, bars, restaurants, hotels and albergues. We stayed at the Bule Bic, which is as pension bar cafeteria restaurant. We had a double ensuite for 40 euros. The wifi is excellent and works in the room. Their numbers are 981 51 12 2 or 687 58 63 79. They are at www.bulebic.com. We had our evening meal at Cafe Bar O Pedrouzo (981 51 10 83) which is just off the main street on Rua do Concello. This is EXCELLENT. We had the menu for 12 euros. There isn´t much of a choice, but what you get is great. You have a choice of salad or caldo. Then you have veal cooked on a stone. This is the only choice for a main. It is served with really good chips (french fries). Then you have a number of desserts, including tarta de Santiago. Wine was included. This wasn´t the best wine I have every had, but at that price you really can´t complain.

The first cafe which opened in Pedrouzo was the confiteria (Che) next to our hotel. This does the normal toastadas. A bunch of us were at the door waiting for it to open. On the way out of Pedrouzo, keep an eye out for the turn off to the right. This is by a stone monument. This takes you into the forest and away from the main road. If you miss this and stay on the main road, you will see peregrinos off to the right. This happened to us the year we did the Primitivo and we had to take a side lane to get back onto the Camino.

By the way, I asked why the place is called Arca in some books and Pedrouzo in others. The town is called Pedrouzo. The distict is Arca.

 

[Pelegrin]

Peregrina Nicole posted:

"By the way, I asked why the place is called Arca in some books and Pedrouzo in others. The town is called Pedrouzo. The distict is Arca.
Tomorrow: Pedrouzo to Santiago."

Pedrouzo is the name of the village, Arca is the name of Pedrouzo's parish and O Pino is the council.
In Galicia every village is always associated to two names: parish and council: Pedrouzo/Arca/O Pino.

In your first post you mentioned the café bar Witericus, 6kms before Miraz. It must be located inside the Guitiriz council, because the name Guitiriz comes from the germanic name Witeric/Witericus from the times of the Suebian kindom.

 

[peregrina nicole]

Peregrina Nicole posted:

"By the way, I asked why the place is called Arca in some books and Pedrouzo in others. The town is called Pedrouzo. The distict is Arca.
Tomorrow: Pedrouzo to Santiago."

Pedrouzo is the name of the village, Arca is the name of Pedrouzo's parish and O Pino is the council.
In Galicia every village is always associated to two names: parish and council: Pedrouzo/Arca/O Pino.

In your first post you mentioned the café bar Witericus, 6kms before Miraz. It must be located inside the Guitiriz council, because the name Guitiriz comes from the germanic name Witeric/Witericus from the times of the Suebian kindom.

Yes. You are correct! When I checked the sello it says: Sta Leocadia de Parga, Witericus, Lugo-Guitriz. It´s a lovely place. I forgot to mention that they also have a computer for internet.

 

[peregrina nicole]

Day 5: Pedrouzo to Sanitago (about 20km)

When we arrived in Pedrouzo, Camino Bob and I had a discussion about continuing on for a few more kilometers to make our final day shorter. There were limited places to stay and I didn´t have contact information, so we just stayed in Pedrouzo. About 2.3km after Pedrouzo (280m above sea level) you come to Amenal (254m). I would have considered staying here, but I didn´t have the contact details and I didn´t want to just show up in case it was full. At Amenal there is a bar cafe hotel (981 51 04 31). They have a sello (which is where I got the phone number). I would have liked to have stayed here, but we have an excellent meal in Pedrouzo. After Amenal, the route gradually climbs. At about 6.3km after Pedrouzo, we arrived at San Paio, which has a bar that does sandwichs. There is also a tourist stall next by in case you have lost your shell and want one for your grand enterance into Santiago or (at a more pragmatic level) want a clean T-Shirt. At 10 km from Pedrouzo, you arrive at the village of Lavacolla. Here there are bars, a three star hotel (on the highway, but accessible from the Camino) and a couple of hostals. I stayed in Lavacolla in 2013 when I did Lugo to Santiago. Had I known better, I would have booked into the Casa Amaneto in Vilamaior which is 1km beyond (the climb up gets a bit steep here). Casa Amaneto has a bar and also does sandwiches. I´ve heard very positive things from people who have stayed here. It´s a hotel, so you don´t get alberge prices here. After Vilamaior you reach the high point at 391m which is the Radio Galicia antena. At 14.5 km from Pedrouzo you arrive at San Marcos. Here there is a bar and also a very large campsite. At 15.5 km you arrive at the very famous Monte Gozo albergue. At the entrance, there is the chapel of San Marcos which has a sello. There is also a bar coffee kiosk. I´ve stayed in Monte Gozo on two occasions. It is very definately a ´Camino´ experience. It is a huge complex. It has laundry facilities, places where you can cook, and restaurant bar (food not much to write home about). We met some of the Miraz crowd who stayed here so they could have an easy final day.

We pushed on to Santiago. After Monte Gozo, the route drops down. You cross over the motorway and railway and start to enter the ´new´part of Santiago. The sign posting is very straight forward, but at this point you can just follow the rucksacks ahead of you. After few kms, the Camino passes by a small stone church. This is St Lazaro. At this corner, if you turn left and go down 200m past the police station, you will spot a small yellow arrow on a ramp. This leads to the Albergue del Fin Del Camino. I was a volunteer here last year. It has over 100 beds. You can book in. It has laundry facilities and free internet (no printer). It is a nice place to stay and only costs 8 euros, but a lot of people are put off by the fact that you still have to walk 30 min to get to the centre of Santiago. Still, its very cheap. They only have microwaves, but there are bars and restaurants near by and a few blocks away is the Area Central shopping centre which has a supermarket and internet place (with printers). We popped in to say hello to the hospitalero and to get a sello (which is very nice and has the Cathedral on it). A big hello to Pio the hospitalero! There are more details on this place in my ´live from the albergue´thread from last year.

In Santiago, we are staying at the Pension Santa Christina at Porta de Pena 3 (981 58 24 04 or 659 73 57 95). This is near the San Martin de Pinario church and is minutes away from the Cathedral. You can get a double here for 30 euros. You can get a double ensuite for 40 euros. The location is excellent. The rooms are VERY basic, but they are clean. Sandra and Maria who run it are very friendly. It has free wifi, but we couldn´t get this to work. We can also recommend the Penion Girasol almost opposite (981 56 62 87 or 981 57 99 74). They do a great buffet breakfast for 4.50 euros. This has coffee, fresh orange juice, toastadas, yogurt, fruit, cakes, ham and cheese and is a help yourself buffet (apart from toastadas which they bring out for you but will bring you more if you finish round 1 of toastadas). This place has excellent wifi.

After checking in, we went to stand in a queue to get our compostellas.

 

[peregrina nicole]

In Santiago: Getting Your Compostella, Distance Certificate and Fanciscan Document of Completion

The Oficina de Peregrino is in Rua do Vilar. The Camino leads you to the main square in front of the Cathedral. From here, if you go to the right hand side of the Cathedral, you will find sign posts to Rua do Vilar. The Oficia has a name above the door, but you can easily recognise it from the long queue of peregrionos. I worked here as a volunteer two years ago. The volunteers are called amigos and have blue T-Shirts with white letters which say ´welcome´in a number of languages. This is supported by a number of international Confraternity of St James organisations, including the UK, Ireland, Canada and the US. Last year, the office was in the same complex, but up a flight of stairs. This year, the office is at the end of the courtyard and to the left. Please note that there are toilets at the far side of the courtyard and a place to park your bike to the right side. The office workers are employed by the Cathedral. This is where you get your final sello and compostella OR certificate of completion. You need to have your ID and credencial. You will be asked where you started, if you walked the whole way and what your motivation was. If your motivation was religous or spiritual you will be given a credencial. This is a newly designed credencial (for those of you used to the old one) and it looks like something out of an illuminated manuscript (i.e. much prettier than the old one). If your motivation was tourstic, you get a certificate of completion. This has an image of Santiago and also looks very nice. Also new this year is the certificate of distance. You need to ask for this when you get your compostella. You pay 3 euros for this and this will state your start and completion date and the distance covered. For 2 euros you can get a tubo that is large enough to protect your compostella (which is free) and your distance certificate. As this year is the 800th anniversary of St Francis of Assis´ pilgrimage to Santiago, the Franciscan monks will also issue you with a certificate. You need to take your credencial to the Franciscan monastery which is behind the Reyes Catolica Parador. The office for the certificate is on the left hand side. There is no charge for the certificate, but you are asked to make a donation. This is run by the monks. You need to check the opening hours as they close for a few hours in the middle of the day.

A Buen Camino to everyone on route and to those who are planning to do a Camino!

 

[peregrina nicole]

Changing the Norte

As I mentioned above, we saw several banners, stickers and posters protesting the proposed changes to the Norte. I asked the lady who runs the bar next to Miraz about this. She said that she had the bar for 30 years. They used to get the occasional pilgrim. Then Miraz was set up and the number of pilgrims increased. She added:´Now things are good and they want to take this away from us´. I asked who are ´they´. She replied: ´gente con interes´, which essentially means people who have connections and some sort of vested interest. I asked people involved with the peregrino office, including Johnnie Walker, about this and they don´t know how this all started. What has been established is that if a route changes, it is the local council that authorises it. I have seem changes before on the Ingles and the ´motivation´for this was that it would realign the Camino with the medieval route. I´ve not seen any such justification for changes to the Norte, so it will be interesting to see what happens. All I can say is that I really enjoyed the route from Baamonde to Azura, special facilities for peregrinos have developed along the site, so I can´t see how peregrinos would benefit from the change or what the rationale is. So, if anyone knows more about this, I´d be keen to find out.

¡Buen Camino!