Mondonedo-Barbeitas-Maariz-San Vicenzo-Lousada-Gontan-Abadin   Walk Day 29

17.6 miles, 2,589′ elevation

Walked out of Hospederia del Seminario de Santa Catalina at 7:50 am destined for Abadin, knowing full well a taxi would meet me at the “Town Hall” and bring me back to Mondonedo and the massive, impressive, eerily quiet Santa Catalina Monastery. “Groundhog Day” all over again!

Although the day’s walk was long, it meanders along rural routes and through forested paths and farming villages. Near San Vicente I hooked up with Jerriie and Rene, two Guys from Holland. (Brother-in-laws). Jerriie, a civil engineer and Rene, recently retired pharmacist. Great guys! They had hoofed it from Holland.

We wandered along until a local woman near Lousada(tiny farming town) insisted we come in and have coffee. Losain, I believe her name was, walked the Camino del Norte, decided to relocate from Madrid, so she bought the farm…so to speak. She grew numerous things: oranges, corn, onions, apples and painted. She bought this original 150 year old farm house and planned to fix it up a bit. It was way cool!

We continued through the mountains and I walked with Jerriie, talking about world affairs, the right to die, terrorism, his bid and project( a 17 km chunal-sp?) under water in Holland. All sorts of things. Interesting guy. His brother-in-law kept falling behind and getting lost. Rene was memorizing a French poem and would wander off down the wrong pathway after he fell behind beyond the point where he could see us.

We had a few beers in Abadin, where we connected with 10 or so other peregrinos. They all stayed at an Albergue in Abadin, and I merely walked across the street to the “Town Hall” and met the taxi to take me back where I had just been. I yelled out the window to the peregrino clan: “Viva la Groundhog Day”. The absolute one and only, first standing ovation I have ever received. I explained earlier the weirdness of my itinerary and the taxi back tracking.