CALDAS DE REIS, Spain — Less than 30 miles to go!
My son, daughter-in-law and I put in a 13 mile effort Saturday going from Pontevedra to Caldas de Reis. This means we should reach Santiago de Compostela by Monday afternoon.
So far, we’ve walked 162 miles.
Saturday’s walk was a relatively flat walk, even though we gained 1,000 feet in elevation, a welcome change from the very steep walks of the previous few days.
It’s funny how many of the same people we keep running into like a German man who lives in Portugal, named Max. He is doing the Camino with his mother, a tricky endeavor considering her diabetes. They travel with a cooler for her insulin.
They, too, started the journey in Porto, Portugal and it’s funny how many times we crossed paths.
“We are nearly there now,” he encouraged me Friday after we wound up at the same restaurant for dinner. “We’ve got this.”
A Polish couple we met on the road Friday told us they loved us and gave us a rosary. We met them several times Friday and again Saturday.
“God bless the American people,” they shouted when they spotted us.
Most of the pilgrims greet each other with a “buen camino” or “good walk/journey.” But my son and I both agreed we get a real charge when the Spanish locals say it as they pass us on the road or yell out to us from their cars or open windows.
As we travel through the Galicia region of Spain, we’ve noticed a lot of graffiti calling for the region’s independence from Spain. This movement to separate from Spain is not new, having started in the 1920s but it has gained momentum since 1986.
My ankles are still giving me fits but not enough to keep me from walking. I’m sure I’ll need to see a doctor when I get back, but I’ll worry about that then.
Two more days of walking … fingers crossed.
Contact Torres at jtorres@floridatoday.com. You can follow him on X @johnalbertorres
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This article originally appeared on Florida Today: FLORIDA TODAY’s John A. Torres nears end of Camino de Santiago walk
Reporting by John A. Torres, Florida Today / Florida Today
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