Sweet surprises

[Mary Margaret melendez]

Yesterday ( Monday) as we arrived at out Albergue Turistica Salceda in Salceda , Galicia, Spain , I had to veer off the Camino 200 meters and I was doubtful of where I was headed. I book a place to stay everyday when I arrive at my quarters for that night . Sometimes they are cots in dormitories and every now and then it's a real surprise ..... sometimes amazing and others ..... well ... not so much . Yesterday was a real wonderful surprise . The accommodations were quaint and the hosts , Santiago and Lucilla , greeted us like family. I had no idea what was to come....... after resting and bathing and gathering clothes for the wash we sat out on the porch letting our hair dry in the warm sun. Dinner was at 6:30 . I took a chance , I don't know why, and I ordered a shiskabob , bobby ordered the chicken and the guy next to me ordered the fish in the photo( bacalao). I have only eaten meat 3 times in 4 weeks since I have arrived in Spain because it's awful most places . I was kind of praying.

Oh my goodness... butter ... it was so unbelievably fantastic .... on one end was half an apple and throughout were huge mushrooms and green peppers...... I was so happy ..... and hungry... my appetite woke up for the first time since I landed here! Lol This guy is a genius with food.
When the people next to us got the Bacalao I asked if I could photograph it . He took photos also.

When he came out to check on us we discovered he had received 2 Michelin stars .... what???? Out in the middle of the country in ,what is more than likely, a very hip joint in the summer from the looks of the pool and waterfall, we had the best time.

These people are lovely . If you ever find yourself in Spain ..... Albergue Turistica Salceda is where you must stay!!!!!

 

[NualaOC]

I agree Mary, we had a lovely stay there last year. The dinner was a wonderful surprise and the breakfast the next morning was also fantastic. Great hosts and great attention to detail. The guy told us he had been a chef all his life - we got the impression that he had taken over the place fairly recently (we were there in October 2016).

 

[PEI_Heather]

My little Camino brother and I walked from Palais de Rei as the almost last leg of our mutual Camino walk. (Pun intended, haha!)

I hadn't slept for three nights due to snorers (who were masters beyond the pale in that 'activity') in the last three albergues; earplugs don't work for me and there was nowhere to go to escape the snorers. Except, that is, on the third night, at the municipal albergue in Palais de Rei. Somewhere around 1:00 or 2:00 am I collected all my stuff and made my way to the mercifully silent lounge, with its hard wooden chairs and benches. Where what had started in the dorm as a headache morphed into a really really bad migraine all the rest of the night. No sleep again and a sick migraine to boot.
Yahoo.

Suffice it to say in the morning I was not in the best of ways, and told Sebastian that I was packing it in--damn the torpedos--I was taking a bus to Santiago. I was fed up, exhausted and still had that migraine, albeit a half of what it was. He convinced me to just walk a bit, just walk a little bit, for a little while... I agreed, OK, but to only 20 km, then I was finished, kapootski, no more. Complete. Done.

Well, we walked and walked, and walked and walked, and walked and walked some more. My migraine disappeared, my spirits lifted and I even felt like eating. Yay for walking!

I was carrying Brierley's book (an edition from the year before) and Sebastian was carrying the yellow guide book from Germany (which had better info, I thought). His said there was an albergue in Salceda and it would be the only place to stop. The next albergue would be 10-15 km past it, if we walked 50 km (that day).

He said it was 'only 30 km...or so...(to Salceda from Palais de Rei)'(I think it was more like 42? Sebastian! Liar, liar, pants on fire! Haha!)

I don't know--10? hours after starting the day--we got to Salceda in late dusk. 7pm-ish. Fortunately Sebastian had better bat vision than I did and saw a sign that said the albergue was 200 m off the trail, heading that way, to the left...

Off we went and got to what looked like a fancy schmancy resort??? Someone was outside just about to light a cigar, so we asked if THIS was the albergue?
'Si, si,' he said, but that it was full.

Oh.

No.

We were so quiet you could hear a pin drop, crickets chirping and the buzz of the northern lights.... Our future seemed to hold 10-15 km more walking, in the dark, to something (but what?). Yay.

But, senor said, 'But I have an overflow room.... This way....'

We walked with him past the door of the albergue, alongside the length of the albergue, all the way to the very end of the albergue, to a door.

The door was opened, the lights turned on, and the man let us have a look: a clean as a whistle room with TWO beds, made with FRESH sheets, FRESH pillowcases, extra CLEAN blankets, and *swoon* lots of big fluffy CLEAN towels.... AND a beautiful CLEAN bathroom with a shower shared with NO ONE!!! Oh, and as icing on the cake, there was a TV, a closet, a blow dryer...
For €7, and that also included breakfast.

Sebastian and I looked at each other, shrugged and said to the (we assumed) owner, thank you, yes, we'll take it...

And as soon as he left....we looked at each other, then broke out BIG high fives and dancing and (as silent as possible) laughing and singing! (The albergue on the other side of the wall was full of pilgrims: one couple and a family with a number of kids. We--or at least I--didn't want to disturb or scare anyone with our ecstatic noise, haha!)

Best sleep. Ever. Period.

Sebastian went off to the dining room where he had a fantastic meal, he said.
The next morning I went for breakfast and met, introduced myself to...Santiago, the man with whom we had spoken to last night. He told me he had just opened up several months before after spending X number of years restoring and renovating what turned out to be his grandmother's farm. I believe he said it had been in his family for about 200 years.

The next day after a marvelous and restful sleep and a delicious breakfast, Sebastian and I walked into the town our most wonderful Camino angel was named for, Santiago.

That was 2012; I am so happy to hear that Santiago is no longer a solo angel, but that he has someone in his life to help keep him happy. And that he--they--continue to give pilgrims a large welcome and rest!