Ferreira to Melide
13 miles
5/22/2019

I should have taken a couple of photos of the old Roman bridge and the prayer chapels last afternoon but couldn't manage to walk another meter, especially after relaxing with a beer and some olives. Leaving this morning I felt like I was in the English countryside with the low-lying fog instead. Oh well, lesson learned. I think the photos are still okay.

Almost every house had these structures nearby which served as granaries. Typically they contained corn cobs for the other smaller farm animals from the corn fed to the cows. They were built of either wood or stone (now more stone for its sturdiness against the elements) on a platform so they wouldn't get wet. They usually had round bases that the frame rested on - like the 2nd photo below. These were added so mice could not enter the granary - instead they slid off the sloped circular bases. They also had a religious and a pagan symbol at either end of their peaked roof to keep evil away and gods nearby. (Apparently witchcraft is still going strong in Galicia).

It didn't take long for the sun to burn off the morning fog during the first challenging ascent on the highway. And it didn't take much longer for those 3 crazy Italians to catch up with me. They invited me to join them for pulpo (octopus) at the best restaurant for this dish in Melide (arguably the best town for pulpo). I would have gone with them if I hadn't already reserved dinner at my hotel instead. After all, I was the only one to attempt squid gelato back in Spain in October 2015. (BTW, it was gross)!

Massimo on the move.

Pietro, Massimo and Enzo.

After the second serious ascent, it was swiftly changing to Florida-like weather (minus the humidity), so I unzipped the legs from my convertible pants and finished this stage of the route with more comfortable shorts. 

When I arrived at my hotel within the approximate time based on the distance, my luggage was not there. I realized this might happen because this was the only hotel change to occur since my booking. Apparently Camino Ways forgot to alert the transportation guy that I was relocated so he delivered my luggage to the original hotel.  Once we contacted them, all was resolved and the luggage was delivered within about 20 minutes. 

However, what was more than interesting was the type of room I was assigned to. Mine was the only room on the ground floor - designated as the handicap-accessible room - and tucked into a little hideaway located behind the reception desk. The bathroom was very large and had a fold-down seat in the shower, and the room itself was double the size of a standard room. In my mind I have decided that this was my reward for somehow giving up my original room to help Camino Ways solve a problem they were confronted with. So I will consider this a win-win.

Dinner was very good - lentil soup, spaghetti bolognese, sourdough bread (of course) and a carafe of tinto.  Perfect amounts and great carbs to fuel the fire for tomorrow.