We started at 8 o’clock, we stopped for what I’d hoped would be a substantial breakfast a couple of streets away but nope, we were restricted to tostada and café plus marmalade. We turned down the offer of free fried fingers of sugar on the basis that our glucose spikes would beat all previous records and that would not be a good thing.

In contrast, last night’s dinner of salad was excellent, lots of necessary roughage 😊.

We stopped here last time we passed through having met up with Andy of the red beret and his wife. We passed a very pleasant couple of hours chatting and drinking.

It’s currently raining, heavily and so far unremittingly. It’s 9:47, I’m outside at a wet table whilst a Spanish girl’s cigarette smoke is blowing into my face. Dorothy is inside trying to procure an acceptable breakfast.

There are seemingly hundreds of peregrinos leaving last night’s lodgings this morning.

Reminds me of Tennyson’s ‘the charge of the light brigade’ but with ‘pilgrim’ replacing ‘canon’. It’s no fun following and being followed by so many. Late afternoon is by far the most pleasant time on the Camino when pretty much everyone else has arrived at their designated lodgings and Dorothy and I are still on the trail alone and peaceful.

Ah – a table 😊.

Ever onwards. It took the best part of 90 minutes to get served two tiny insignificant croissants and two small cups of coffee. Meanwhile the rain continued to pour down.

We finally left as the rain started to ease off but with no guarantees that it wouldn’t start up again as heavy as ever.

There isn’t much to say about the actual route. It was on roads for much of the way with occasional detours onto hard packed paths through deciduous woods with views across the estuary.

We were never likely to stray off the designated route.

Recall the red Italian? (Camino Frances 2016).

We stopped a little off the official peregrino route for lunch of grilled vegetables, mushrooms and salad with gambas for protein. Unfortunately all were saturated with oil and salt but needs must. Our diet this trip is as bad as ever and we’re both suffering for it. Once a vegan always a vegan I suspect, one’s body simply can’t cope with anything else anymore 😞

The final stretch was the most pleasant. The rain had pretty much eased off and the alternative route ran along the small river that Dorothy and I stopped beside to watch the water boatmen last time we passed this way.

We came across this group of characters – it’s a Spanish thing.

This juxtaposition of trunks creates an interesting image.

Finally, again, it’s a Spanish thing.

We’re holed up in the same hostel we stayed in five years ago but unfortunately unlike then, they’re not serving dinner in the cafeteria downstairs so Dorothy and I will have to forage further afield if we’re to eat tonight.

Buen camino