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Way Montamarta – Tabara
No, I haven't become suddenly crazy or converted from pilgrim tortoise into a super-speedy pilgrim! I simply cut off the triangle Montamarta – Granja de Moruela – Tabara on the road. As my ankle was still wobbly from my fall it was for me, that day, under that circumstances, simply better to walk on even, firm ground and not on rocky-stony natural surfaces. Who is now tempted to do the same thing should look closely at a map and consider their own decision very carefully!
Way leaving Montamarta – The depression just before the Ermita Virgen del Castillo is completely inundated at the moment! This allowed me to capture this nice picture:
but I had also to cross this 'impromptu lake' on the national road instead on the camino! After that, there is only one way walkable at the moment. The one, closer to the lake, that is described in some guides, seems to have been washed away. So, you don't go straight up to the ermita, instead you pass it on its right and follow the wider track uphill and then the yellow arrows until Tabara.
Albergue(s) Tabara
As I was still coughing heavily and didn't want to disturb anybody, I checked into the Hotel El Roble http://www.turismoruralelroble.es/es/ in the center of the village. Special offer for pilgrims: For 20 Euro you get a very simple but clean room to yourself in the attic (Attention with the head!), in which not only the TV, but also the shower and toilet are located in exactly the same room as your bed ;-) Well heated, plus there are blankets. Included in the offer is dinner, regular, nothing special and wifi.
Albergue de Peregrinos – Since 2014, Jose Almeida, a Spanish Camino Author, has settled here as a hospitalero permanente and takes care of pilgrims. Therefore no need anymore to chase the albergue keys in the local bars. The albergue works exclusively with donations and these include bed, washing machine, dinner and breakfast. Curious as I am I walked up to it and had a look around, all looks very clean and friendly. Two pilgrim friends stayed there and where happy with their decision. The way to the albergue, a slight detour, is clearly way marked through the village.
Eating – The Bar-Cafeteria El Palacio beside the church serves tasty, homemade tapas.
PS I am now in Requejo, shortly passed Puebla de Sanabria, but I thought I post these updates now as I had them written and formatted. Hopefully more to come soon ;-)
... at the bar that holds the key... The owners are rather ungracious, but there is no alternative, I think. They wouldn't give a fellow pilgrim ice for his tendonitis, claiming there wasn't any. In a bar!!!!
Hello Hikoi,Just arrived into Granja de Morereula from Zamora. A bit long, but no good options. Albergue is fine - no kitchen - you can get an average menu at the bar that holds the key... The owners are rather ungracious, but there is no alternative, I think. They wouldn't give a fellow pilgrim ice for his tendonitis, claiming there wasn't any. In a bar!!!!
... I will walk Ourense to Santiago in June and this year time is short so I have reserved some accommodation. So I was interested in the Botos accommodation mentioned and phone number ...this place has appeared in a few blogs.
I was thinking of getting the CSJ guide for this walk. Did you have a guide or just follow arrows or BOTH.
I have also read there are 2 ways out of Ourense one to the left one to the right.
Regards Jill
That is just sad! Gronze.com shows an alternative accommodation http://www.gronze.com/castilla-y-leon/zamora/granja-moreruela/casa-rural-casa-del-tio-quico Perhaps that is something 'somebody' could check out? Buen Camino and an especially Buen Camino and speedy recovery for your pilgrim friend with tendinitis! SY
Guide book recommendation update: @geraldkelly 's updated guide book to the Via de la Plata is now out. He was kind enough to send me a PDF and it is excellent! Certainly the best and most update guide book to the Via de la Plata that is available right now. The Kindle version is already available on Amazon here https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01FKMGH8G/?tag=casaivar02-20 and the print version is available here http://www.amazon.com/dp/1533170541/?tag=casaivar02-20 Buen Camino, SY
Hi Sybil, i am reading your account of the Via De La Plata with not so fond memories of one section that you describe. I stayed in Cacares and intended to walk to an Albergue by a lake (can't remember the name) and having got there after negotiating the disruption caused by the new train line construction , i found it closed. It was a very hot day and i had to carry on to Canaveral and i didn't take the road option..ouch!Way Valdesalor – Caceres
Attention! Depending which guide (and how up to date it is) you are using there might be now a change of way. You leave the albergue and turn left and right around the borders of the park. When you come to the road you go straight over it and cross the N-630 to the other side. From that point until the center of Caceres the way is well marked. Just after you reach the roundabout with the ruin of a Roman bridge in the center of Caceres the arrows become less frequent and more confusing. Have a look in your guide to find the center or ask people for the Plaza Mayor where the tourist office is located which will be happy to help you further. Attention! Despite the fact that traffic into the old town has been restricted severely recently, it still can come to uncomfortable close encounters of pilgrims and cars/trucks in the narrow streets of the old town!
Albergue – I slept for 15 Euro in the albergue Las Veletas, in the last available room. Regular, but apart of the garden not much in terms of common rooms, no kitchen, but wifi. Washing machine and dryer cost together a whooping 10 Euro!!! Preferably do it like I did and wash before and after Caceres if you stay in this albergue.
Eating – Lots of selection, but I liked the tapas in La Estancia best, it is just off the Plaza Mayor on the way to the old town and the tourist office.
Way Caceres – Casar de Caceres
Well marked once you reached the bull fighting arena, no problems in finding it after that.
Albergue – No matter what is written in some guides, this albergue is not completely free/gratis but instead relies on the donations left by us pilgrims. The donation box is NOT in the albergue, but in any of the places you get the key (Bar Majuca, Bar Siglo, Ayuntamiento (town hall) and local police). Very nice albergue with washing machine AND tumble dryer, small, sparsely equipped kitchen, wifi, blankets and radiators.
As I just wrote about a donation albergue, here something to think about: If you pay happily x Euro in a (private) albergue with a similar equipment to a donation albergue … You know what I am aiming at ;-)
Way Casar de Caceres – Canaveral
The monster stage of 34km! As much as I hoped that I was wrong, all the accommodation options at the Embalse (reservoir) de Tajo are closed at the moment and it is unsure when they will open again. Fortunately the way is well marked, but because of construction work going on the way is frequently re-routed. Here some strategic points I encountered: At ~14,5km the way leads straight to a construction fence which you have to follow left, then under a bridge and then right again to retake the original way interrupted by the construction works. Not many arrows, but anyway pretty straightforward. Here the camino joins what I call a 'mountain goat path' (narrow, rocky, up and down) that runs alongside, but higher than, the N-630. Attention! The Via de la Plata crosses here numerous local walking paths, which are in parts also marked as leading to Canaveral. If they take a detour = more kilometrs, or not, no idea. If you are on a bike this path is nearly impossible for you and you better stay on the N-630. At ~17km the arrows point down to the N-630, but the 'mountain goat path' runs further alongside the height of the hill. I decided to follow the yellow arrows along the N-630, but the path also seems to run roughly parallel. ~22km here the way leads away from the N-630 and up into the hills. As I wasn't sure if and how I would manage 12km more I stayed on the road. Plan B was, which I didn't need in the end, that I could hitchhike if my feet gave up. Important! As I finally, after 34km (+~2km detour 'thanks' to the construction site) arrived at the albergue in Canaveral I discovered that I had taken exactly the right decision. The three other pilgrims that were with me on the road that day, and that have walked the Via de la Plata in previous years, had done exactly the same. Also the hospitalero confirmed that the way over the hills is in a very bad state.
Albergue – New, private, albergue (15 Euro, breakfast 3 Euro, menu 8 Euro) in the middle of the village directly on the way. ~16 beds in 4 different dormitories with heating and air con, bed linen, blankets, super clean, very good showers, wifi. Martin, the hospitalero, has done the pilgrimage the first time in 1991. Breakfast: The best I had so far on the Via de la Plata, even ham and cheese was on offer! Also the menu in the evening was very yummy! Bonus: The, at the moment, 4 months old Leon, a Spanish Mastiff, that really looks forward to meet pilgrims and likes ear scratchies ;-)
Eating – As I said, the food in the albergue is excellent and the ingredients are in part sourced locally/from their own ecological garden and chicken.
Way Canaveral – Grimaldo
Well marked, but there are a few critical spots: At the roundabout, shortly after the village, is a granite cuboid on your left. No need to jump now over the crash barrier! The both ways reunite a few hundred meters later. Shortly after, the way passes directly before a chapel (nice picnic spot here) and then follows the middle way of three, the only one that has no local way marking. Shortly after, the way climbs steeply for a few hundred meters on a rocky path, not really recommended for cyclists. A few kilometers later you cross over the parking of a 'club' (that neither serves early morning cafe con leches nor rents rooms out for more then a few hours …) and shortly after, there are two ways marked, it doesn't matter which one you choose, as they both run more or less parallel and reunite later. The bifurcation Riolobos/Grimaldo comes much later and is well marked.
Albergue – A nice pilgrims house with microwave-kitchen, crockery and cutlery, radiators, blankets and washing machine. Attention! The hot water heater is a bit 'temperamental'. The hot water runs only for 3-4 minutes, then stops, you have to wait 1-2 minutes, then you have again hot water for 3-4 minutes … Perhaps it is better, especially if you have long hair, to wash body and hair separately ;-) Also here, donations are welcome and the key can be collected in the bar on the left of the albergue. In the morning you put it into the mail box. You can also catch the wifi from the local social center (password in bar), the best place to do so is behind the albergue.
Eating – The same bar that has the key for the albergue serves also tasty menus and ok plated meals. Opposite in the restaurant Asador de Grimaldo where more elaborate dishes are served for higher prices (closed on Mondays).
Posada de Grimaldo – If the albergue is too simple for your taste, 100m up the road is a pension were you can stay for 20 Euro/person.
Way Grimaldo – Galisteo
Important! The way through both fincas is open again! Depending on the guide you are using, there is a change in the way described, shortly after the reservoir of Riolobos which is well marked: You follow now the wider track right hand side, the left and narrower track has been washed away and the valley floor there is a real swamp (at least now in Spring). Shortly after you reach the country road where there are a confusing amount of arrows and indications. Some of the arrows want to send you back to Riolobos, but as the old way is open again, please ignore them completely! You follow the country road left and after ~1km you go left through the Finca Valparaiso and over the hill. After the canal you follow here now the, on both sides fenced, way through the finca.
Albergue – The albergue in Galisteo (15 Euro) is cared for by the same hospitalero (Nacho) that also takes care of the camping in Riolobos. If the albergue in Galisteo (only 8 beds) is full, he will bring pilgrims for free to Riolobos and next morning back again. The albergue is very clean and well equipped: heating/air-con, bed linen, blankets, towels, good bathrooms, wifi, microwave, but very little dishes, lockers, patio and a simple breakfast is also included in the price. Every pilgrim gets their own key. Attention! Nacho has told me that the village youth likes to play pranks and, for example, enters the albergue and hides pilgrim boots and similar. Therefore he advices to take all valuables with you and to close the albergue by key whenever you leave it.
Way Galisteo – Carcaboso
The way is sparsely marked, but easy to find. Leaving Galisteo there are two alternatives:
Go over the bridge, just before it is btw a nice picnic spot, and straight ahead up the slope and on the country road. Attention! Ignore absolutely the sign 'camino' at the first roundabout, this refers to a rural way and has nothing to do with the Via de la Plata! Instead follow over this and the next roundabout the signs towards Aldehuela del Jerte.
- From the albergue you go back to the road where the Bar-Hostal Los Emigrantes is, turn right and follow this road more or less alongside the town wall. When this road leads away from the town wall you see already the old bridge you have to cross.
- Go from the albergue up to the town wall and through the gate into the old town, pass left of the church and follow the streets, more or less straight ahead, through the old town towards the other gate. When you have passed that gate, you can see already the bridge in the valley.
Aldehuela del Jerte
The only bar opens rarely, as the neighbors have told me, before 12:00, not very convenient for a second breakfast if you come from Galisteo. At the village exit is a small shop which is open and shortly after it you find some benches to have your picnic ;-)
The way goes now, always on the same country road, directly to Carcaboso. At the town entrance you turn left towards the albergue of Senora Elena and the hostal.
Albergue Carcaboso
The municipal albergue is, at the moment?, closed. Since 1991 welcomes Senora Elena pilgrims in her albergue (11 Euro) which I can recommend. It is in the first floor of a house and is a real pilgrims apartment with well equipped kitchen (but no washing machine), ~12 beds in 5 rooms, bathroom with bath tub, nice terrace with view and wifi. Senora Elena gave shelter to her first pilgrims back in 1983 and since 1991 runs, now with family help as she is already over 80, an official pilgrims albergue. Those of you that speak Spanish, please take the time to chat with her, she can tell you a lot about the Via de la Plata and its pilgrims!
Eating – From 9 Euro upwards you can eat an extremely nice menu in the Hostal-Restaurant La Ciudad de Caparra. This can be found just 50m up the street from the albergue. Very recommendable!
So, that is all for today!
Buen Camino, SY
PS. I am now in the Hostal Asturias, ~10km before Aldeanueva del Campo – pretty much in the middle of nowhere with enough time and wifi to write these updates …
PPS As long as the wifi holds, I will now go through this thread any answer any questions I have an answer for ;-)
Hi Sybil, i am reading your account of the Via De La Plata with not so fond memories of one section that you describe. I stayed in Cacares and intended to walk to an Albergue by a lake (can't remember the name) and having got there after negotiating the disruption caused by the new train line construction , i found it closed. It was a very hot day and i had to carry on to Canaveral and i didn't take the road option..ouch!
It was about the end of April '16. I counted on getting water at the Abergue , which was shut as was a Restaurant/Cafe? adjacent to it and i walked the last 16k to Carnaveral with nothing to drink. I literally staggered into the private Albergue in Carnaveral which was new and very nice.
I didn't know about the road option and followed the yellow arrows to the hills instead of looking at my map !
I'll be wiser the next time. Well i presumed it was a newish Albergue as it was fresh and clean and the Hosts couldn't have been nicer. Best wishes and happy walking for'17.
Rosser
I think some of the above experiences are a timely reminder that one should never count on a bar/cafe or albergue to be open. I always carry enough water and some food with me to get me thru the whole day if there is just one possible refueling point on the route.
I have been watching these threads on the accommodation in this section for at least 2 years now, and there has been none between Casar de Caceres and Canaveral. See this thread, for example. The albergue in Canaveral is excellent.I have since heard that the workers on the AVE project have taken over the Albergue, if this is true it leaves a big gap in accomodation possibilities between Cacares and Carnaveral!
Okay, thanks. That is the info I needed. Cold is perfect (I live in Finland), wet less so. I know from experience on the CP last year that only walking sandals are a working solution for me, but probably not in mud. Ultreya!G'day Jakke,
My wife and I walked the VDLP last year, starting out from Seville just after Easter. We didn't have much in the way of guides or maps but had read SYates notes which are great and gave us some idea of what to expect.
We had planned to beat the heat by walking out of Seville in April but ended up walking through the coldest and wettest spring of some 70 years (not sure if this is true but were told so by many when we got to SdC). We had done a bit of training prior to leaving Australia but on the Camino we only had a couple of days that felt hard. We got the feeling that a lot of people walking the VDLP had previously walked the Frances and were expecting similar distances and facilities. I think some people struggled because of the difference and quite a few dropped out in the first two weeks (our impression).
We had previously walked the Portuguese and so didn't have any real expectations other than what we had read.
The VDLP in spring was a fantastic journey with beautiful flowers, wonderful people, good facilities and a great walk (it wasn't the foot race we have heard of on the Frances).
Walking around the embalse was one of the harder days. We carried plenty of water as we had read that the "albergue" there was closed (we have read lots of different stories about it but actually never read of it being open). We had booked accommodation for that night and walked at an easy pace.
We don't think you need to take a tent, hammock or sleeping bag. We only took a sleeping bag liner and the Albergues had blankets. We wore boots and my wife also had walking sandals which she loved and used a lot.
We are walking Le Puy route and Camino del Norte starting in May this year, so we are very excited for our next adventure.
Buen Camino
Sy, great report. Thanks! I just read your German language site and notice you plan to take a small tent with you when you go from Prague. I will be leaving Seville after Easter and wonder about the somewhat long stages. I know that a tent would be totally unnecessary on the Portugues Central, but how about the VdlP? Maybe a hammock or bivvy? With all the wading and muddy paths, should I take boots with me or flip-flops?
Hi , we leave Cadiz on the same day, but on bikes, so at some point we should catch you up! buen camino!Thanks SYates. I'm leaving Sevilla on April 6th, so this information is excellent!
Hi Amazing Woman!
I'm leaving in a few days and I have two questions which I can not find an answer to, in your great update.
How warm is it from Sevillia and up, like two weeks walk from Sevillia? I'm not very good with too much heat, so I fear I'll be melting...I'm fairly sure I'll be okay after 2 weeks getting further up, but the Sevillia bit I'm fearing due to heat.
Also, I've read several places that the strip out of Sevillia to Guillena can be dangerous to women, due to confirmed attaks on women - not from the dogs that you describe but violent attempt towards women, have you any knowledge about that?
Thanks for amazing updates
Anne L.
Climate is what you can expect, weather is what you get - and that can vary greatly from year to year! As I walked last spring (February/March) it was colder than it should have been, at least that was what the locals told me. I also had a fair bit of rain and even the occasional snowflake.
Tent-I met a few pilgrims that had a bivvy with them, some used it some not, I personally wouldn't take one for all the same reasons that I wouldn't take one on the CF (legality etc). I would certainly take again boots but might take crocs instead of walking sandals for those river/stream crossings.
Hope that helps, Buen Camino, SY
PS I already walked from Prague to Santiago in 2014, I took a tent with me but gave it away once I had reached Le Puy ...
Yes it is possible. Look for my posts from April 2017 in the "Live" section and you will see how I split my days, at least until Galisteo, where I stopped due to injury. A taxi to shorten the day was required to the Berrocal park, and then I also would have needed one for another 10km just after Galisteo, as well as for the day of the embalse, due to the albergue still being closed at the moment.I'm loving your posts SYates and everyone else - I am keen to one day do the VDLP but am not keen on walking more than 30km per day. Is it possible to do it without the hugely long days now?
... Is there any possibility to obtain it in a WORD DOCUMENT from the Tidy Document that the Kiwi family made from it....
No right or wrong way to do Camino right ? It is your Camino and if the taxi “is calling”, then taxi it is. Thanks for your diary. It helps me plan mine.Castilblanco de los Arroyos – Almaden de la Plata
Taxi to the entrance of the Park El Berrocal
Yes, I confess it, I cheated! As I was ill most of January and couldn't train I was sure that I couldn't manage a 30km stage that day. Me and another pilgrim shared a taxi (total price 25 Euro) to the entrance of the park. The first 16km of this stage are exclusively on the road, not even on a path beside it. Every bar in the village has the name and number of that taxi driver ;-)
The way through the park is well marked and easy to find.
Almadén de la Plata
Albergue – New private albergue 'Albergue del Peregrino', C/Olmo s/n, Tel. 654 862 553, directly on the way. 10 Euro, 15 beds in 4 rooms, wood stove for heating, Wifi, washing machine on request (included in price), reasonably equipped kitchen and all very clean. This albergue belongs to the same couple that owns also the albergue 'Alojiamento del Peregrino' in Real de la Jara.
Eating - Casa El Chorla Good pilgrim's menu for 8 Euro, all desserts are homemade and the Mousse au Chocolate is to die for!
Almaden de la Plata – El Real de la Jara
The way is well marked and easy to find.
Albergue – El Alojamiento del Peregrino, second albergue in the village, directly on the way. Clean, 12 beds in 3 rooms, washing machine, but no dryer, reasonably equiped kitchen, heating/air-con. Unfortunately poorly sound proofed. You can hear the child of the hospitaleros cry/play and also their television. Has a beautiful terrasse. 10 Euro, including washing machine.
Eating – El Meson Cochera, near the church, yummy pilgrim's menu for 8 Euro.
What else is to report?
Weather so far – Cool in the mornings, warm, but not hot, during the day. Unfortunately from El Real de la Jara on onwards frequent rain showers and a bit cooler.
Pilgrim Numbers – At that moment we were ~10 pilgrims on the way, but only three of us plan to walk until Santiago, the other seven will stop earlier. Nationalities so far: Spain (1), France (1), USA (1), Germany (2), Czech Republic (3) and Poland (2).
Unfortunately again some rain showers and therefor a bit uncomfortable to take rest stops. The way, again, well marked and easy to find. In Monasterio I met briefly another pilgrim, from Latvia?/Lithuania?, but she seems to sleep mostly in pensions, so I saw her only briefly.
El Real de la Jara - Monasterio
Albergue – Albergue Parroquial (10 Euro), directly on the way, in the center of town in house number 218. Very friendly reception (Miguel Angel, the priest-Hospitalero, has walked the way the first time in 1992 and many times after that.) That you notice in the many little details of the albergue. Very clean, 12 beds in 3 rooms, very well equiped kitchen-living room with basic food stuff (teas, coffee, juice, milk, cookies, pasta, rice, oil, spices and so on). Wifi, spin-dryer, beautiful terrasse. Two bathrooms with spacious showers, plenty of blankets, but unfortunately no heating. The most beautiful, most lovingly decorated and friendly albergue so far, highly recommended!
Next morning I had a short chat with Miguel Angel and he told me more about the albergue and his plans for it. This albergue opened 5 years ago. To be able to renovate the derelict house, even the roof was caved in, they had to take out a bank credit. That is the reason that they normally (poor and extremely low budget pilgrims excluded) ask for a fixed price of 10 Euro despite it being a Christian albergue. As soon as said credit is paid back, they will happily switch to donativo only Miguel Angel reassured me.
So if anybody of you has a direct line to Bill Gates or somebody else that can afford to donate a few ten-thousand Euro … ;-)
Camino/Way - Important Information!!!
Circa 9km after Monasterio you reach a way bifurcation, just after a cattle gate, where yellow arrows point right and granite cuboids (see below) to the left. Here it is important to follow the yellow arrows that lead you left of the cattle fence. The left way markings lead you, as some hospitaleros told me and some Spanish pilgrims reported on the internet, many kilometers in the wrong direction. If you are stranded on that way you have to turn onto the road some kilometers ahead and follow this road, and walking on it, for 10-15 kilometers (reports differ here) until you reach Fuente de Cantos. No fun! “Always follow the, recently painted, yellow arrows and ignore the granite cuboids if they don't coincide with the arrows.” was the advice given to me by a hospitalero.
Apart of this problematic point is the way very well marked, as the local Amigos have been just passed through with paint and brush in hand to refresh said arrows.
Fuente de los Cantos
Albergue Privado - Apartamentos Rurales El Zaguán de la Plata [ http://www.elzaguandelaplata.es During the main pilgrimage season they also offer beds in a dormitory for ~10 Euro, but at the moment only their holiday/vacation apartments are open. Which are exceedingly good value! For 15 Euro you get your own room with heating (air con in living room), small balcony, bed linen and blanket plus a simple breakfast. Each apartment has also a fully equipped kitchen, a bathroom (with bath tub!), wifi, TV, access to roof terrace, garden and a small museum of everyday objects of times gone by. Washing machine included (don't use those on the terrace, they are out of order, ask the hospitaleros). At the moment I have the luxury of recuperating from a bit of tendinitis in one of the apartments which I have all to myself ;-) Oh yes, and there is a swimming-pool in the garden for warmer days. Really recommendable place!
The hospitaleros (a father and son team) really care about 'their' pilgrims, the father even offered to drive me to the restaurant for lunch as he saw me limbing up the street. Thankfully I am not such a bad in shape.
The Albergue Municipal Convento Vía de la Plata de Fuente de Cantos http://www.alberguedefuentedecantos.com is also open (again). A fellow pilgrim has slept there for 10 Euro geschlafen and she reported that it is nice and clean, but that there is no kitchen (at the moment?), but that the albergue has its own restaurant.
Eating – When you go out of the private albergue El Zaguán and walk right hand side up the street you come to a little square (Plaza de Zubarán) with the friendly Bar-Cafeteria K-rnero's. There is no set menu here, but you can order here very reasonable priced a la carte dishes. The media (middle sized) portions where more than enough for me and cost around 5-6 Euro.
A bit further up the same road is Restaurante El Gato (just before the main road, bearing left) where there are menus for 8-10 Euro (including a bottle of wine) available. I ate there lunch today and it was extremely tasty.
General Observations
Nature – Nature is here in Andalucia and Extremadura far more advanced than in the north/center of Europe. All is green and flowering and the birds sing loudily. Perhaps best compared to April/May in more temperate regions of Europe, but unfortunately a bit rainy and coolish at the moment. Temperatures during the day now between 10-15C, warmer if the sun makes an appearance.
Way-Marking – Like always, the yellow arrows point towards Santiago, but on the Via de la Plata you also see yellow Saint Andrew Crosses ([/COLOR]X) that mark paths/ways you really shouldn't take/indicate a wrong way. Also little plastic signs with yellow shell and arrow on blue ground are common plus beautiful ceramic tiles embedded in (house) walls picturing the same.
Granite Cuboids – In Extremadura there are also granite or tin cuboids that mark the way. Generally they work like this:
On top is a stylized Roman gate through which a yellow line is drawn. This yellow line indicates the direction of the way. On the sides are colored tiles, yellow stands for passable way/Via de la Plata, blue-greenish tile for Roman Road and both colors combined for passable way/Via de la Plata and Roman Road being the same. As mentioned above, these cuboids shouldn't be followed blindly, remember “In case of doubt, follow the yellow arrows and ignore the cuboids!”
Pilgrim's Menu – Different to the Camino Frances, a pilgrim's menu here includes the usual three courses but only one glass/drink. (The exception I found today, see above) As each additional glass of wine, for example, costs only 1 Euro and the typical price for the menu is 6-8 Euro that means the cost is at the end pretty much the same. Unless you don't drink, than it is cheaper ;-)
Tapas – Seem to be more substantial here than on the CF and normally you always get something free served with your drink in the local bars. Sometimes 'only' homemade pickled olives, sometimes meat balls / croquettes or Carrilada (pork stew) with bread. All I had so far was really good.
So, that was it for the moment. My right ankle is definitely better now after two days of rest and tomorrow I will hobble on!
Buen Camino, SY
In Spain not, at least I never came across it, in France sometimes. Buen Camino, SY
Hi @Anniesantiago I arrived beginning of April in Santiago. If you look for warmer weather, I would start far further south! BC SY
But it’s cold!Not necessarily warm, but what about starting somewhere on the Arles route to make it in time to Pamplona? Pau perhaps? And spring in southern France is beautiful! BC SY
But it’s cold!Or at least it was this year early April....
I walked from Sevilla to Salamanca one year in February and it wasn't cold at all, wet at times but nothing unusual.
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