Camino Ingles - Ferrol, Spain to Neda, Spain

My alarm went off at 6:30 am and I took care of my usual morning business and got ready for a day of walking. These days I wear a brace on my left ankle which I injured years ago on the Appalachian Trail. Of course, the brace that I wear is in the lost bag that hasn't caught up with me yet, so last night I went out and picked up a little compression sleeve and some elastic bandage from the local Farmacia. After slipping my sock on, I pulled the compression sleeve up over my ankle and then strapped it tight with the elastic bandage so that it would limit my ankle movement as much as possible. When I hike, I also wear toe socks to limit the friction between my toes and prevent blisters. But guess where my toe socks are! That's right! In my lost bag. So, before I put my socks on, I taped up my toes with some fabric tape that I also bought at the Farmacia. Once that was done, I grabbed a quick breakfast of three cafe' Americanos and some toast.

After bidding the clerk adios, I followed the Camino through the foggy morning streets heading out of town. It was a foggy and drippy morning as it often is in coastal towns, but the temperature was nice. The first couple of hours were spent making my way through the industrial areas in the suburbs of Ferrol. I walked a combination of trails and sidewalks to make my way out of town. The route follows the shoreline of Ria de Ferrol. My destination for today is Neda which lies on the other side of the water. The tide was out this morning, so I had great views of the mudflats but that is life along the ocean.

I took it slow and easy so I wouldn't aggravate my ankle. I usually walk slowly anyway because I spend a lot of time looking and taking photos. I was slower than normal today. How slow was I you ask? Well, I heard honking behind me on the trail so I moved over to let a snail pass. Not really but close. I passed a couple of small churches along the way but they were not open so I couldn't go inside. I met a lovely couple, Aeran and John from Pittsburg and we walked to Neda together. John grew up in Ireland but has been in the States most of his life. We had a great time chatting away the kilometers together. I forgot to mention the other pilgrims that I have met so far. In Santiago, I met a group of women who ranged in age from mid-20s to my age who were all originally from the state of Massachusetts. They live all over the US now but get together every so often for an adventure together. I also had breakfast with a couple from Mexico. The guy had retired from Halliburton and had lived in the US for part of his life. I worked in Mexico in the early 80's and we discovered that we had been in the same areas about the same time. It is a small world.

The time and kilometers passed quickly and Aeran, John, and I found the town of Neda and also the hotel that we are booked into. They are staying in the same place as I am. It is a beautiful place. I took photos of the grounds and even my room. The first buildings here were built on the grounds date back to the end of the 16th century. Only one of the original buildings remains. In 1700 a merchant opened a tanning factory here and a small baroque-style chapel was built in honor of the Virgin of Mercy. In the 1870's the buildings became a Franciscan convent. In 1978 the buildings were renovated, and it became the first rural tourism house in the province. Now it even has charging for electric vehicles. My room looks out on the water and the grounds are beautiful.

Well, I have to wrap this up because the little cafe that is part of the hotel opens in 10 minutes and I am supposed to meet Aeran and John for dinner. All in all, it has been a good day except my lost bag has still not appeared yet. Iberia Airlines promised that they would deliver it here today so there is still hope. The young lady did say that they called yesterday to verify that I would be here today.

Here is the link to take you to today's photos on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/u-tSTscf7ZU?si=7yMhYGRV71oeDmly

Until tomorrow I wish everyone a good night and Buen Camino!