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You underestimate my lack of communication skills in Spanish! It took me a week to memorize the word for "100."just ask a Spanish patron or the barman/woman
That will be good for the morning, but I suppose that I will have to do it again in the afternoon to keep my energy up...go to the bar and order your 100 cafes con leche.
------------------------------------------------falcon, This youtube was surely taken in the Venta Celta. I remember the fireplace so well, we were freezing.
I have also spent a very warm night here, and I highly recommend it. Since falcon mentions the cheese (quiexo o cebreiro) served with local honey (talk about simple delights!), I'm wondering whether the meal set-up is still the same. We sat down at one of those long tables with other peregrinos and were served a bottomless pot of Caldo Gallego; fresh and crisp ensalada con tomate; and tortilla espanola (rivaling, in my mind, the tortilla espanola in the truck stop in VIllafranca de Montes de Oca).
When I was last there, so many years ago, the basque owner was looking for buyers. She was having a rough time. Any update on the owner and the business, I'm assuming they are still in full swing.
Ceci,
Check out the tourist accommodation, not pilgrim albergues, listed at the bottom of this Mundicamino page.
Also look at this list from HotelSearch.com. Some are at O Cebreiro others at Pedrafita do Cebreiro 4 k to the east
MM
----------------------
MM - Thank you so much once again. Your experience on the Camino is a great help. Quite a few of the places are all booked up already. I'm still wondering about Venta Celta. It would be a shame if it closed, since many seem to have fond memories of it, but I can't seem to reach them at all. Perhaps I can find something in the area, if not right in town.
This part is not for you at all, MM:
I don't feel that I should have to explain why I want to go to O Cebreiro, but I will, for the benefit of those who look at what others do and assume they know what the other's life experiences and motivation are because they know their own. I want to start in O Cebreiro (or someplace close to it) because it is the entrance to Galicia on the Camino Frances. My deceased husband was a Gallego from near La Coruna. We walked our first Camino together - The Portuguese from Valenca do Minho. Not tough enough for you? How about my husband having done it just one year after having gone through chemotherapy, radiation and a major life-and-death cancer operation removing most of his stomach and much of his esophagus. Later that night, he lost almost all the blood in his body. It was only the skill and speed of the surgeon (and perhaps my fervent prayers to Santiago) that saved his life a second time in one 24-hour period. Yet my husband lead the way all the way to Santiago. The look on his face when he got his Compostela and when he saw the botafumeiro flying through the Cathedral, knowing that he had earned the right to be there at the Pilgrim mass - something someone from his humble beginnings normally could never have dreamed of being able to do, not to mention doing it with the death sentence he was looking at - was amazing. I was so happy we were able to give that to him. He was one tough Gallego, fighting so hard to live, but it wasn't to be. Now that he is gone, I am walking the Caminos within Galicia - from the South, the North and now from the East. I love my husband's homeland, and I'd like to see all of it close up, by walking it. I'm not just looking for a Spanish-Gallego-Celtic theme park! I just don't want to miss any part of Galicia.
What beautiful words Ceci. I feel humble.
This is the true essence of what a Pilgrimage should be. What a difference from some postings I could mention asking "you guys or folks" how to organize their "trek" across Spain.
Ceci your posting puts everything back into perspective. Thank you. Anne[/QUOuuuu
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---------------What beautiful words Ceci. I feel humble.
This is the true essence of what a Pilgrimage should be. What a difference from some postings I could mention asking "you guys or folks" how to organize their "trek" across Spain.
Ceci your posting puts everything back into perspective. Thank you. Anne
---------------
Thank you for your kindness. It is the Camino that is both humbling and inspiring. My husband's courage and faith were also both humbling and inspiring to me and to many on the Camino to whom he told his story. We did the Camino in thanksgiving for my husband having survived the surgery and its aftermath.
To me the Camino is a spiritual journey. To others, it may be a cheap vacation or a challenging trek. We should not judge them, however, just as we would not want to be judged. It may be that they end up getting much more out of the Camino than they anticipated, which would be great. I believe many think they are going for one reason at the beginning and realize at the end that the Camino has become something else altogether for them. In the end, as in life, what you get out of the Camino may depend on what you put into it.
I am really looking forward to walking the Camino Frances inside Galicia with my family. I hope that we will find peace and togetherness [as well as a place to stay on the night before we start : ) ]
Any information about casas rurales type accomodation around O Cebreiro would be much appreciated.
Buen Camino to all!
Ceci
----------------------------http://casapolin.es/
How about this one? Less than 2 miles away and still close enough to O'Cebreiro.
Success! I called the cell phone number falcon noted and the señora answered. She said the 982 number is no longer in service. From the US call
011 34 667 553 006
Buen camino, Ceci. Laurie
Ceci,http://casapolin.es/
How about this one? Less than 2 miles away and still close enough to O'Cebreiro.
Ceci,
Looks good! Have you seen their info here? Casa Polin is located in the village of Las Herrerias. How will you get there? By taxi?
MM
Success! I called the cell phone number falcon noted and the señora answered. She said the 982 number is no longer in service. From the US call
011 34 667 553 006
Buen camino, Ceci. Laurie
Can you believe it? I still get no answer. I called 3 times already today. Perhaps they don't answer calls from the US (too expensive, perhaps)?
Success! I called the cell phone number falcon noted and the señora answered. She said the 982 number is no longer in service. From the US call
011 34 667 553 006
Buen camino, Ceci. Laurie
Ceci,
Looks good! Have you seen their info here? Casa Polin is located in the village of Las Herrerias. How will you get there? By taxi?
MM
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Thanks! It looks interesting. I'll check it out to see if it can work for us. Very kind of you.
Buen Camino!
Ceci
http://casapolin.es/
How about this one? Less than 2 miles away and still close enough to O'Cebreiro.
Venta Celta has a huge local clientele, so I suspect it has been in operation for generations. Watching a woman who seemed to be in charge, perhaps the owner, peel potatoes for the caldo gallego gave me the impression that she had done it before, perhaps her entire life, and did not delegate the boring chores. Pilgrims are pretty much ignored as the staff caters to the loyal, local customers first. The food and atmosphere are first rate, however.
So I am certain they are still around, and probably will be for several more generations. They may not pay much attention to the internet (there are machines to peel potatoes, so if they are doing it by hand, they may not be "into" technology), but it is curious they do not answer the phone. The phone numbers I find for them are:
Parish : O Cebreiro (Santa María)
Place : O Cebreiro
27671 Pedrafita do Cebreiro - Lugo
You may want to keep calling. Good luck, and buen camino.
- +34 982367137
- +34 667553006
- +34 982224005fax
The Spanish business model is "have it my way." Customers are welcome as long as they understand that the business is run the way the owner wants, not the way the customer wants. You will be served when the time is right, and not a minute earlier. Push to the front of a line, and you will be rebuffed. Bartenders are very good at knowing who is next. Local customers sometimes are automatically next. They come back, you do not! It is much better to have a sense of humor about it than to fight it!I love your posts, Falcon. You seem to have a great sense of humor!
Can you believe it? I still get no answer. I called 3 times already today. Perhaps they don't answer calls from the US (too expensive, perhaps)?
----------------------
MM - Thank you so much once again. Your experience on the Camino is a great help. Quite a few of the places are all booked up already. I'm still wondering about Venta Celta. It would be a shame if it closed, since many seem to have fond memories of it, but I can't seem to reach them at all. Perhaps I can find something in the area, if not right in town.
This part is not for you at all, MM:
I don't feel that I should have to explain why I want to go to O Cebreiro, but I will, for the benefit of those who look at what others do and assume they know what the other's life experiences and motivation are because they know their own. I want to start in O Cebreiro (or someplace close to it) because it is the entrance to Galicia on the Camino Frances. My deceased husband was a Gallego from near La Coruna. We walked our first Camino together - The Portuguese from Valenca do Minho. Not tough enough for you? How about my husband having done it just one year after having gone through chemotherapy, radiation and a major life-and-death cancer operation removing most of his stomach and much of his esophagus. Later that night, he lost almost all the blood in his body. It was only the skill and speed of the surgeon (and perhaps my fervent prayers to Santiago) that saved his life a second time in one 24-hour period. Yet my husband lead the way all the way to Santiago. The look on his face when he got his Compostela and when he saw the botafumeiro flying through the Cathedral, knowing that he had earned the right to be there at the Pilgrim mass - something someone from his humble beginnings normally could never have dreamed of being able to do, not to mention doing it with the death sentence he was looking at - was amazing. I was so happy we were able to give that to him. He was one tough Gallego, fighting so hard to live, but it wasn't to be. Now that he is gone, I am walking the Caminos within Galicia - from the South, the North and now from the East. I love my husband's homeland, and I'd like to see all of it close up, by walking it. I'm not just looking for a Spanish-Gallego-Celtic theme park! I just don't want to miss any part of Galicia.
By the way, I should say that I have the utmost respect for your post and the obvious love therein. I can feel your pain from here.
I must say though that I feel it unfair to inflict such a tirade on a poster who could not possibly know your situation. Even if he/she did he would be entitled to that opinion because it does not relate to you or what has happened in your life. I understand that you felt the need but to me that was cruel
Buen Camino! I hope you find peace.
Back to accommodation in O Cebreiro...
i agree with you that the menu described soounds perfect. i ll let you know, but not until october. i ll be sure to try the local cheese in any case. thanks to all. buen camino.Amen to that. And Ceci, I hope you will give lots of details about the menu at the Venta Celta. I will be very sad if its changed. If nothing else, make sure they serve you queixo do cebreiro with local honey. It is out of this world!
Buen camino, Laurie
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