Short day to Tineo

Yesterday afternoon we had a never-ending lunch in Casa Pachon right across  the street from the albergue. Some of the group wanted to watch the Portugal-Hungary game in the Eurocup and the rest sat in the restaurant speaking with the other patrons, all of whom are delighted with the fact the the Camino Primitivo is getting very busy. It brings a lot of business to these small places. 

Today's 21 km were pretty hard, mainly because of the quantity of mud. It has rained a tremendous amount yesterday afternoon (thankfully after we were all in the albergue and not one of us had a drop of rain fall on our heads). 

And again we were lucky today. A lot of mist when we left but not a drop of rain fell. We stopped to say hi to David in the Bodenaya albergue. 

Then the sun even came out and we enjoyed some great views. 

As we were walking up the hill after La Espina, I was telling Lourdes that I had run into a woman with her cows two separate times near this spot. And then boom. There she was again, bringing her 39 cows down to milk them! She knows each one by name and is living proof that happiness can be found almost anywhere. Hard life, tons of work, but there she was telling us how much she enjoyed running into pilgrims. 

We are in Tineo, in an old palace four star hotel that has opened a luxury albergue in the ground floor level. It's really pretty fancy. And from 5-7 pm its spa time for free for the pilgrims. Not sure a Turkish sauna appeals but we'll see. 

And they even have a special 10€ meal for pilgrims in their fancy restaurant. 

24 km to Salas

So today was a short but very beautiful day. I was walking strong because last night with my Colorado pals (reunited again!) I had probably the best hamburger I've ever eaten in my life. That is not an exaggeration. Home raised beef, at some stage between veal and "old cow" (they call it novilla in Spanish) 

On the way back to the pensión I passed many bars filled with people watching Spain play Croatia. It was a lovely warm summer night and when I went to bed Spain was winning. (See the green tv screen?) 

The walk today was wonderful but with a lot of ups and downs. The heat makes a huge difference and it was hot and sunny. But thankfully there was a lot of camino that went through green tunnels, along rivers, etc. 

I am in a private albergue in Salas, a room with three beds, what luxury. 

We've eaten a huge lunch and will probably just lounge around for the rest of the afternoon. 

 

First day on the Primitivo

Helena, who lives in Oviedo, said she'd walk with me on the first stage to the town of Grado. It's about 24 km, a reasonable stage. 

Well we left around 8 am, stopped four or five times along the way (to talk to the farmer who had made a bench for pilgrims to sit on, to have a cold drink, to enjoy the rushing Nalon River, to rest in the shade, to have another cold drink, and so on). This is a new way of walking for me and very enjoyable, except till the afternoon heat descends! 

The albergue was full by the time we arrived, but never fear, the pensión is close by and has a private room for 15€. 

For Helena, it was a special visit, because this albergue has been open for about a month and she was the inaugural hospitalera (hospitalera/o is the person in charge, keeps the place clean, checks people in, and is the general hospitality m-giver). She got a royal welcome and was very happy to be there. After some good camino chatter, I said my goodbyes and proceeded about another 20 minutes down the road where the Hotel Auto Bar was waiting for me. 

I am so happy to have spent this time with Helena and even happier that she is my good Amiga Del camino. 

So yes the Primitivo is crowded!  So crowded that we saw five other pilgrims while walking today!  In comparison to the camino frances, where you see at least ten to twenty every time you lift your eyes, this is not crowded!  

My fourth grandchild!

So while I was enjoying the lovely pre-Romanesque churches up on Mt. Naranco outside Oviedo yesterday, my grandbaby Jack was born!  He was 8 lbs 2oz and 20 inches and most important of all, healthy and with a big head of very dark hair! That event is far more important, interesting, and wonderful than anything I've been doing the last few days. 

But I have had a great few days. Yesterday, my rest day in Oviedo, started out with a walk with Helena (my camino buddy who lives in Oviedo) up to two World Heritage sites from the 9th century. One a church

And the other a civil palace. 

Both amazing and awesome. 

Then came a two hour meet-up with my walking partner from last year Lee. She bussed in from the Camino Del Norte, had lunch with us, and flew out to Sevilla to walk the Via de la Plata. I had hoped she'd stay to walk the Primitivo, but she was afraid of rain on the forecast and headed south. 

After lunch Helena and I hopped a bus to Gijon, a city on the coast about a half hour north of Oviedo. We took some nice walks on the promenade and through the old parts. 

I was back in Oviedo and in bed by 9 pm or thereabouts. Ready to start the Camino Primitivo on Wednesday. I've heard it's crowded. Oh no that may mean I cannot sleep in the albergues. :-). 

Well someone has to be the one to go for a private room, and I think I can make the sacrifice. 

In Oviedo. Mainly for David.

Sun shining in Oviedo!

I left Mieres around 7:15. 

Statue shows you how asturian cider, called sides, must be poured in order to get the right amount of air (I think). 

With only 20 or so to walk, I knew I could take my time, have a coffee/boot break, and still get in plenty early. 

Lovely walk with great views.

After two fairly serious ascents, you can finally see the city but I knew from my last times through that there is yet one more descent/ascent/descent till you actually get there. 

Oviedo is always beautiful but in the sun it is especially so. I walked the familiar route into town past the cathedral and down the Calle Gascona, the typical cider street. 

That street is always hopping but today even more so because there was an artisanal cheese fair. Omg. Asturian cheese is extraordinary so I got my fill of sample after sample. Some goat, some cow, some sheep, some mixed. Great treat for the hungry walker. 

It turns out that I'm in the same hotel where we stayed as a family in 1994. I was able to verify that it's the same place by asking if the parking garage was accessed by putting your car in an elevator. 

So I am planning to stroll and eat and enjoy today. 

One day outside of Oviedo

Oviedo is one of the most beautiful, liveable, friendly cities in Spain, IMHO. So to have a short day in tomorrow and then to be taking a rest day there (less than a week after my last rest day) means that I've got a lovely couple of days coming up. 

Today was a mostly nice day. I usually wake up between 5 and 5:30 but today I slept till 7!  I had a nice breakfast in the albergue and was on the road by 7:45 I think. Misty and beautiful. A tiny bit of rain fell but nothing bad. 

 

 First stop of the day --Santa Cristina de Lena, a 9th C pre-Romanesque church on a hill. I was there around 9:20 and the sign says open at 11.  But the woman with the key, who lives down the hill, has a soft spot for pilgrims and will come open it at any reasonable time if she's around. Amazing place. 

From there it wasn't so beautiful but the last 5-6 km alongside the river are pleasant if paved. 

I stopped for a Fanta de Limón break--now you know my secret vice on the camino. I was wondering why the town was so unattractive with mainly nondescript modern apartment buildings and then I saw s sign in front of city hall, which kind of cryptically explained that the old town hall had been destroyed during the "acontecimientos bélicos de los años 30."  That's the most sideways way I've ever seen of referring to the Spanish Civil War. 

And then into Mieres, a fairly unattractive city, where I'll spend the night in a pensión. Good deal at 25€ with a private bath but I was surprised to find it had no elevator and I'm on the fifth floor!  Spaniards call it the fourth floor but that's only because they call ground floor the zero level.  Quite a risen entice to pop back down and ask for the wifi password!