5/19 A 6th Century Monastery in Samos

Polly and I walked down to the bar for dinner but we wanted something a little lighter than the Pilgrim meal.  Polly ordered a mixed salad (which is iceberg lettuce, sliced tomatoes, a few green olives and tuna) and a Russian salad (which is like potato salad with carrots and peas and yes...tuna).  She told the waitress she also wanted pan...bread.  I ordered a bocdilla...a sandwich...ham, cheese, and tomato, with a Russian salad.  The waitress looked confused.  She called her boss over and they spoke in Spanish and both of them looked confused.  Polly got her mixed salad, but we both got a sandwich...that was spread with the Russian salad, and mine had ham, cheese, and tomato.  We laughed and laughed.  Clearly we need Spanish lessons.  

This morning I took a variant route to Samos to visit a Benedictine monastery that was founded in the 6th century.  Yeah...wrap your head around that.  I was particularly interested in the cloister...I love them, and the cloister in Samos is the largest in Spain and is a Feijoo cloister.  Alas...we got there at 9 and the tour was at 10.  We didn't want to wait.  I never mind having something to come back to see in a region, and I hope I can come back to Spain.

The route getting back to the main Camino was lovely.  Wodded with mossy rock, often with a stream nearby and bowers of mock orange hanging along the path, deliciously fragrant.  At one point, there was a steep climb and two women at the top were offering flagging pilgrims coffee.  I declined, but without skipping a beat I smiled and said, "Eres muy amable."  Smiles.  Wonderful.

I had to stop at the Pilgrim's office in Sarria to get an additional credential because mine is almost full of stamps.  Credentials are what the albergues use to verify that a pilgrim has walked the Camino and not taken a taxi.  Every time you get a cup of coffee, every time you go into a church, every time you stay at an albergue...you get a stamp.

Sarria was where Jeremy, Jeff, Jackson, Jordan and I started to walk the Camino 7 years ago.  Some times seem familiar, but I do not remember the 3 kilometer hill leaving town!  We are staying at a very nice albergue in Barbadelo and heading to Gonzar tomorrow.  We are starting to firm up plans for Finisterre.  I think I have just 8 days of walking left.