We managed to avoid both the McDonald's and the Burger King restaurants, although I couldn't pass by the statue to wrestling without having a little fun. Apparently wrestling is a thing here, as there is a statue to the sport located right near to the soccer stadium. Couldn't resist a photo and a selfie!
We slept in a bit this morning, then headed down to the train station to purchase our tickets for tomorrow's travel to Sarria. According to the schedule we had seen, there was a train leaving around 3 a.m. and another just after 5 a.m. Neither of those were our preference, so we presented ourselves at the station and the agent made us a reservation for a little after 2 p.m., arriving that evening about 6:30, following a change of trains and a short layover.
That will put us in Sarria Saturday evening and we reserved a room not far from the train station. Went ahead and pulled out the guide book and reserved a room for Sunday afternoon in Morgade, just over 10 kilometers out of Sarria. This stop is just 99.5 kilometers from Santiago, or about 60 miles to the east. We must walk the last 100 kms on foot (or bicycle the last 200!) to earn the official compostela, or certificate. We hope to do so in 10 days or less, which would have us averaging 10 kilometers or about six miles per day. It's quite hilly and the weather is subject to change as we enter the region of Galicia, near to the Atlantic Ocean. The language spoken in Galicia is quite similar to Portuguese and we are anxious to get there and hear it.
After purchasing our train tickets we walked on in to the center of town and we passed a sports shop along the way. Sharon had been wanting a pair of toe socks and she wound up getting a better hiking hat as well, one that would offer more shade to her ears and neck than the visor she has been wearing. The lady behind the counter also recommended a salve to prevent chafing and blisters so we bought a tube of that as well, even if it seemed like closing the gate after the cows had gotten out! Toe socks are quite fetching, and we hope they will help her blisters finish healing.
Thought we would splurge and enjoy one more delicious Leonese lunch at an outdoor patio restaurant, and we weren't disappointed. Sharon had a simple salad and I had fried calamares, ham croquets and French fries. As it was a simple plato combinado and not a menu del peregrino we only had the one course, but it was more than filling and neither of us could finish ours. The folks here know where to find good coffee, and we finished the meal with a cup.
Following our delicious meal, we made our way back across town towards our bus stop, which we had finally become accustomed to using. We walked through the Plaza Mayor, where they were still cleaning up from the festivities of the night before. Made a nice pic!
One thing we've noticed, especially here in Leon, are the number of dogs! It's made us a little homesick for ours, but they are doing fine and will be glad to see us. We've seen lots of folks walking their dogs (or trying to!), playing with them or just loving on them. But I had to snap a picture of this guy walking his dog while riding a bicycle with a child on back holding a balloon. The cyclist stopped at the fountain, lifted up the little pooch and scooped him up some cool water to drink from the reservoir. Made a nice picture!
Hoofed it on back to the Burger King bus stop and had a short wait for the number 8 bus to take us back to our humble abode on Antibiotic Avenue.
Since it was, after all, a day of rest, we took a nice nap and awoke refreshed and with the beginning of hunger pangs. We had eaten relatively early, around 1 p.m., since the rest of the city slows down from 2-4 p.m. for the lunch "hour". They seem to have a snack late in the afternoon and that holds them until dinner time around 8:30 or 9 p.m. It's a different rhythm of life around here!
We decided to just grab a bocadillo, or little bite, for the evening meal, but there wasn't much in our neighborhood. We walked maybe half a mile down to near the Ford dealer and found a nice enough place. They didn't have bocadillos, but they did have tapas, the Spanish snack that comes in all kinds of shapes and tastes, usually served on a slice of bread.
We stayed away from anything that had sardines or gulas on them but ate about six tapas of tuna in tomato paste on a slice of bread and small ham and cheese sandwiches, which the lady informed us weren't sandwiches but tapas. You can see some pictures of tapas and learn more about them at this link: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tapas
Six tapas and a couple of soft drinks only cost us six euros and filled us up nicely too. We must remember to eat more tapas!
So we made it back to our room by early evening, plotted out our strategy for finishing the Camino and made the final reservation. Haven't worn our packs or carried our walking sticks all day, but they will go back on tomorrow. We were rewarded at the end of the day with this view out our hostel window:
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