Triacastela to San Mamede do Camino

Vern, Me, and Lisa on the Camino

Written on June 20, 2009.....13.6 miles.

There was a choice to make this morning. Go left and walk by the river or go right and walk along a highway. The river route is about three to four miles longer....no brainer...river route. As we were walking into the village of Samos there was a string across our path. We hesitated, turned to the pilgrim behind us and asked if he spoke English. He said a little, I´m from Hungary. I asked him if he had seen a yellow arrow...he motioned to continue under the string and off we went. Before the first turn about thirty feet I saw a herd of several large steer running toward us without any room on either side of the path. I turned and ran and told Vern and our companion to do the same. As I safely got on the other side of the string, (the cattle made a turn to the right and not straight where the string was), I noticed that Vern was not running quickly and had a steer horn about three feet from his butt...I yelled to get moving and he did. It´s not easy to run with a full pack on your back, but we made it!!! We were so relieved that we couldn´t stop laughing about the horns near Vern´s butt and the gate made out of string that held back about 33 tons of steer. We were not sure when to proceed so we waited awhile longer and two more steer went around the curve to the right. We kept waiting for the farmer and didn´t see one. Several yards down the trail was a small elderly lady with a stick guiding a stray up the trail.

The three of us walked into Samos. As we got closer we saw Monasterio de Samos. An enormous Monastery in a small village. One of the reasons we took this route was because of the Monastery. We stopped and had coffee.....a few minutes later Lisa and her new friend Ron, from Australia came toward us and we invited them to join us. After I finished my coffee I felt a strong urge to move toward the Monastery...I left everyone and walked the short distance to the entrance. Once in the monastery office to receive a stamp on my pilgrim passport I overheard a pilgrim offer the Priest 50 euros so that he could go inside the main Monastery sanctuary. The Priest said that if he waits ten minutes he can buy a ticket for 3 euros. Oh my gosh...I thought, I want to go inside...I bought two tickets...right then Vern, Lisa and Ron came in I told them to get ready if they want to go inside. I was so entranced by the artwork and construction of the Monastery that I lost track of time, but I believe we were in there for an hour. The tour guide spoke in very fast Spanish, but just seeing everything was more than worth the time to just be there.

A short way out of Samos there was another decision to be made. Go straight next to a highway for awhile or into the countryside. We chose the countryside. As we were taking a break near a chapel with a graveyeard Lisa came up...we walked with her for a few hours until we reached San Mamede do Camino. It is described in Lisa´s book as a wonderful albergue in the middle of nowhere with good food and great rooms. We arrived around 4:30 p.m..checked in. Vern, Lisa, and I played cards for awile then we had a great communal vegetarian meal. After our meal I saw the family that I had seen in Hornillos del Camino eight days ago. At that time I thought they were on bicycles, with the father pulling their toddler in a trailer. What I discovered in San Mamede is that the father is pushing a cart designed for the child. The child is healthy and happy and well taken care of. I visited with them for a while and found out that it is not easy for them to find accomodations everyday so sometimes they set up the tent that they brought. Their son has his own Pilgrim Passport. They make every effort for their son to be comfortable and happy during their journey on the Camino.