Some garden stuff I wanted to share

Hello,  everyone.  It's been well into the 90's F since we got back. (30+ C) There is supposed to be a strong cool front rolling through this afternoon, possible day's highs in the 70's this weekend. I think fall (autumn) may finally fall into place.

Our friend the barrel cactus is still hanging in there, after moving house multiple times and finally being set into the St. Joseph garden. Over 46 years and counting.

This crinum lily was the last bulb package in the big box store bin a couple of years ago. She looks happy.

Right after getting back from our pilgrimage,  we got to work on the cool season garden. The radishes and amara (a kind of mustard green) are up and running already

The dragonfruit plants are blooming like crazy. In the morning before the flowers close, the bees are going insane trying to figure them out. 

It was good to be on pilgrimage  and it's good to be home.

Our last dinner in Madrid

Hello, everyone.  We love the Spanish foods, and when we're over there we try to enjoy them whenever the times work out right for a good meal.

Absolutely delicious olive salad for the tapa with the wine. This was a short appetizer stop before we settled on a place for dinner.

Assorted tapas plate, they had two of each so we didn't have to fight over anything.  😉

Assortment of cheeses, with a fruit conserve and some membrillo to accent the flavors. I cut each piece in half and put the fruits on them.

It was a beautiful meal for our last evening in the big city.

Santiago at last

Hello, everyone.  Yesterday we walked into Santiago. The published stages had it as a shorter day, around 16km but Strava tells me we did a bit over 18km. But what's an extra 2 km between friends, right?

First sight of the Cathedral!

This is the first time we have entered the city from the north. There's quite a bit of city to go through from this direction. 

The St. James statue and bas-relief art on the (?) Diocesan office across Obradoiro Square from the Cathedral. As y'all can see, the centuries-old art has been cleaned.

We didn't stop, but it's always nice to spot the free wifi place.

Lunch today was shared tapas: pulpo a feria, follwed by bacalao con conservas de tomate y de berenjena. Yummy.

The tapas were quite good--now I want to learn how to make that cod! 

House wine was a Mencia (a red Galician grape) which we hadn't tried before.

Tarta de queso with "blueberries" glaze

The cheese tart was really great. I'm not sure that it has blueberry glaze, it could have been lingonberry as the color is a bit red, but the combo was excellent. 

We have eaten at this tapas bar in prior years and then it was okay. This year the food was very good.

After a few days with not much wi-fi, a post!

Hello, everyone.  I will do a quick recap. We left Monday early and walked to Pontedeum. As y'all can see from the name, there is a bridge to cross. 

After Pontedeum we walked to Betanzos. There, we stayed in a Xunta albergue. These albergues are sponsored by the province of Galucia. They are basic, but they get the job done. They usually don't have working kitchens, because the Xunta's reason for sponsoring the network of albergues is to support the local economy. They also have the standard 10pm albergue curfew and they don't accept reservations. 

A fountain and a bench along the way. You should always look carefully to check whether the fountain is "potable" or "apto para consumir humano" before filling your water bottles from it. 

The more modern version. Note that they're trying to discourage people from drinking directly from the tap.

This is a celebration mural about the lady who has a little, very busy, bar along the way. 

After Betanzos we walked to the area of Bruma. We actually stopped a little short, as we had located a room just before the town. We also very much enjoyed our snack at Casa Avelina, a bar in the area. Lovely wine, delicious pinchos, wonderful hospitality. And as we walked over to our room, it suddenly poured down rain! 

If there weren't any rain, we wouldn't be in Galicia.

Mists under the sunrise light this morning. 

After that, we walked to Sigüeiro. Yesterday's walk being a little short, today's began with catching up on the missed kilometers. We ended up having walked about 28 of them. Weather was cool but very nice.

Caminos 2026, a couple of days

Hello, everyone.  We're having a rest day today because the last two days were pretty near 30km each. Our feet were feeling it. We decided to take a no-travel day in Xubia/Naron.

We left Cedeira at 0800, walking the Coastal Route as far as state road 102, having forgotten to start the Strava, and used that route to transition from the Coastal to the Inland way. At the bar in Porto do Cabo, where the 102 meets the inland way, I remembered to start Strava. After 2 hours of walking! 🤣 We walked along the route, mostly except when confused, into the Xubia area. (Thank heavens for Mapy.com, which helped us get back on track more than once!) 

Contrary to route information in our Cicerone book--the older one--and app--the new book--that tiny bar/tabac  in Porto do Cabo was the very last of the day's walk. But the weather was nice. 

We found a place in Xubia and have discovered the new futuristic hotel. Maybe. We rang the intercom bell at the door, after asking about a place "today" they opened the door and we did the whole registration and payment by remote video. They even activated the room keycard by remote!

We then extended the stay by another night, also by remote.

The Chapel of Hunger which we passed by enroute. It was closed up.

Cool tree fungus at edge of Cedeira

The church in Xuvia. I believe the sculpure above the door is the Holy Trinity. The Father appears to be wearing something like a triple crown. Jesus is on the Father's right hand--our left side--and the Holy Spirit is the dove at the top. The parish has Sunday Mass at 1230 according to their posted schedule.

Catching up after a couple of days, Caminos 2026

Hello, everyone.  I don't think I've posted for a couple of days. This is a quick catch-up. 

We had taken a train ride for part of the planned day a couple of days back. We slept in Covas that night. I posted about that day. 

The next morning, we tried to fill our water bottles at the sink in our bathroom.  Whoops. The bottles were too tall, and we had no cups to pour water with. We figured that we could get water fairly soon when we found an open bar. We found no open bars, pretty much until we arrived in our destination village. That was a full morning eith only about a half bottle of water to share. Lesson learned: buy water bottles the night before when you see them. You won't be sorry.

The following morning I had a bit of the tummy, so we found a bus stop. As the bus wasn't due until 10:40, when 0900 hit we found a nearby bar and got--well, I got manzanilla (chamomile tea) and my sweetie got cafe con leche. We rode to Ortegueira, visited the climic for a script and bought the meds, then found a place and did some serious resting. 

Then, today, we started walking again, with goal of reaching Cariño. This was just shy of 20km. The day began a bit fresh, as we say in South Texas, and got only a bit warmer. I was walking in my long sleeved merino ter, so that was great. We met a very sweet soul, a gentleman who had walked the coast for 5000 km, and he told us some things about our next day's walk. It was great to meet someone who had walked such a long way.

We got into Cariño in time to have the Menu del Dia at the restaurant Cantabrica: caldo gallego, a protein course with maybe the best fries we've ever had, and dessert. (We didn't have the same protein choice, but both came with the lovely fries.) We visited the grocery store and picked up some yogurt and pudding and wine for a light, but hydrating, supper and called it a day.

View of the area from yhe balcony of our room in the Pension Hotel Cantabrica. Lovely room, pretty area, very comfortable little town.

4th Walking Day, Caminos 2026

Hello, everyone.  This was a short walking day, as the previous two days had taxed us and we needed to rest. 

Some sights along the (paved) path:

The waves were rolling over the rocks.

More pretty waves

Giant stone turtle?

The northern coast of Spain has so many cool rock formations. 

After walking 10 km to San Cibrao, we considered options. One of the thing we considered was that, despite what I had concluded from studying Google maps, the town that had been planned for a stop point seemed to have few lodgings for travelers. At least, if the travelers weren't using a car. We decided to skip ahead a day by bus or train.

We noticed that the town we were having coffee in appears to no longer have a bus station. We went to the train station, which doesn't sell tickets, and found the posted train schedule. (If the station doesn't sell tickets you either pay the conductor at boarding or, if there isn't one, pay at the departure gate on arrival.) Then we settled to wait. There was another pilgrim waiting for the train, too, and we enjoyed talking with her. We rode the train to Covas, found a place, and walked around figuring out our departure route for the next morning.

3rd Walking Day, Caminos 2026

Hello, everyone. 

On this day we encountered some hills. The route(s) has some confusing signage. (The day before's walk to Basilica San Martiño was marked with arrows and also with the brown Cantabrico painted signs. We used Google maps and what signs we found to get from there into Foz.)

Sunrise on the Cantabrico path.

Cool eroded rock. Can you see the tiny tunnel where the water goes all the way through?

Dinner that evening: paella!

We almost managed to finish the pan. It was delicious and full of sea protein foods.

2nd Walking Day, 2026 Camino do Mar & Ingles

Hello, everyone.  Today's walk began at 0700--before sunrise in this region--and ended at about 1530. Per Strava, we did a little over 25 km. Our first break, about 10 am, was a coffee and pastry bite at Cafe Moderna in San Cosmo. The owner was very friendly and he told us about his bike caminos. The coffee and pound cake were also very tasty. That little  bit kept us going until evening.

The Basilica of St. Martin sits in a secluded valley near Foz.

By working hard and pushing a little--thanks, mapy.com!--we got to the old former cathedral of St. Martin. This 1,000 years-plus old church had been the bishop's seat until the sea raids made it too dangerous to keep the seat exposed to the robbers. The bishop's seat moved down to Mondonedo and this church was declared a basilica. 

We got there at just before 2 pm--that time is the universal siesta closing time in Spain. We only had about 10 minutes to visit.

The Blessed Sacrament is conserved at an altar at the side. The church has 3 altars, this one is the left one. 

The waves in Foz harbor.

We stopped for the day at about 3:30 pm and found a place at Hotel Rego.

First walking day, 2026 Camino del Mar & Ingles

Hello, everyone. Today we started late, because we needed to visit the tourism office in Ribadeo before leaving, and they don't open before 10. 

The lady was very helpful and gave us route information. 

We walked out of town to the seaside, where we spent most of our 4.5 hours walk.

Birdies enjoying their day on a rock

Fat seagulls hanging out at low tide

As Catedrais beach requires appointments to visit from Holy Week through to the end of September. You're supposed to use the QR code on the sign. They want each appointment request to include names, number in party, and a passport number. We decided that was just too much information collection just to be allowed to walk past the scenic rock formations.

The people viewing the rocks at that moment. There was a parking lot full of cars. They do have a concession with restrooms, some snacks, and cold drinks. 

After seeing the general area and resting for a little while, we walked on. We found a room at Hotel Playa de las Catedrales. And that was our day.

Surprises happen

Hello, everyone.  This is the second post for today.

We had train tickets,  bought online, for a trip from Madrid through Oviedo ( train change) through to Ribadeo. We checked that our tickets, prepaid, were okay. We took the train to Oviedo. All was good. Then, in Oviedo, we talked to the lady at the service window of Renfe to ask about the platform for our continuation to Ribadeo was okay. The lady at the Renfe window said, it's a different ticket office, go upstairs and it will be fine. Look for a train labeled "Ferrol."  We went upstairs, this is a change from the Renfe system to the Cercanias system. (Both are run by Renfe.)  There were no trains that looked right. I sought out the Cercanias window, pointing out the trip info on our tickets, and she directed us to Platform 1. She said that the train we wanted would be labeled "Ferrol." We went to Platform 1 and waited. There was only 1 train that matched the departure time on our tickets. It did not match any other information. So we got on and rode it. The line route ended at Avilés. When we got off there, we asked at the window. No, there was no train going through to Ribadeo. We talked to the man at the window, he consulted with amother employee of the train system. He said there was no train from Avilés to Ribadeo. Fortunately he mentioned that there might be a bus going that way. We went 2 doors down to the bus station and got bus tickets through to Ribadeo. We had about 10 minutes to line up at the plaza for that bus (mumber 13) and then we were off! 

So we have no idea how they sold us tickets to Ribadeo when they had no train going there. But we got there anyway. 

So one never knows how things will work out. Thanks to the Alsa bus, we got to Ribadeo in time for our reservation. 

Day 3: transition day

Hello,  everyone.  The first 2 days of this year's Camino were the flight over and a night of rest. Today we are going to Ribadeo on the train. 

View from the train platform

The seats are comfortable, and Renfe has free on board wifi. 😃

Ultreia!

Pilgrimage 2027 is on the road!

Hello, everyone.  We're officially en route for Ruta del Mar and Camino Inglés. 

another angle on the famous McAllen Airport butterflies 

A new stash project started

Hello, everyone. The previous stash project, a 36"^2 future field-trip "blanket", is awaiting quilting.  This one is more in the fidget space, dimensios 18" tall by 20" wide before backing and binding. 

Here are some details: 

A shiny, glittery button with a spinnable octagon behind it. Also some Minky type fabric for pleasant texture.

Behind those triangle flaps, a couple of hens resting on straw. Are they sitting or setting? No one knows!

Some strips of Minky type fabric in the middle of the Courthouse Steps block.

 The applique Christmas tree is big enough to see in the main photo. It has beaded button ornaments and some shiny garland. The garland was sewn down along both sides. I thought about addding a line of backstitched beads down its middle but concluded the extra beads wouldn't add anything really. All of the beads are attached with 6 pound strength braided fishing line, at least 2 strands through each bead. 

This will go in the to-be-finished pile with the other top as right now I don't have time to tackle that.

Low carb Friday dinner

Hello, everyone. We're doing more walks these days and have started wearing a small weighted vest. We can feel the difference! 

A week or so back, I made low carb Friday night dinner. 

The picture (of course!) turned sideways. 

The patty is one of the salmon, jalapeño,  cheddar patties from our local HEB store. I cook them in a little butter in the skillet anf they're so yummy.

The salad is our new summer favorite, cucumber slices with yogurt vinaigrette. I added the last of the snacking peppers when I  was cutting vegetables. (Forgot to half-peel the cucumbers before slicing.) These vegetables, with some nice onion-y herbal sprinkle, taste good and avoid stressing out over whether the leafy salad things at the store are washed well enough before shipping. Actually,  when I buy fresh leafy greens I always wash and spin them at home. The few minutes to do this are worth every second in my opnion.

The yogurt vinaigrette is usually a combination of the very plain bottled vinaigrette at the store (I check to make sure there is no sugar in it.) and a couple tablespoons of plain, whole milk yogurt. S & P to taste.

Dragon Fruit Flowers!

Hello, everyone.  I've been walking 4 or 5 times per week, and after I knock out those steps I'm so relaxed that making a post gets forgotten. But doing a couple of miles early just makes me feel so good.

Today sunrise brought a surprise: thirteen open blossoms on the dragonfruit cactus.

The bees and bumblebees act like they're in shock at the huge amount of nectar and pollen on the buffet.

A bee doing her best to cope.

We have discovered that the birds like to peck out the middle of the fruit before it's fully ripe. Now we need to find a lot of nylon fruit covers quickly.