Today’s 12-mile walk started in the hilltop town of Portomarin, and ended at our hotel in rural Lestedo. Our route is hilly, winding through small towns, past farms with chickens and cows, gardens growing Brussels sprouts and melons, hydrangea bushes with huge blossoms, and tall eucalyptus trees. As we walked, we saw more evidence of the Camino community that was mentioned in yesterday’s blog. We chatted with people who we had seen yesterday on the Camino, and met new people also.

One of today’s highlights involved the sellos, or stamps, that pilgrims collect in their Camino passports. Many of us stopped at a very old church that had once served as a hospital for pilgrims. In the church, a man who was blind was offering to stamp sellos. We were touched by the way in which he greeted each of us personally as he stamped our Camino passports with our assistance.

About halfway through our walk, we passed by a castro, which is a bronze-age stone settlement built by the Celts. The ruins of the castro were over 2000 years old. We were able to climb above the castro as well as wander through it. Since the castro is on the top of a hill, we were rewarded for our hard work walking up the hill by beautiful views of the surrounding countryside.

Our theme today was God’s protection. We ended the day being tired from our second day of walking, but also grateful for the serendipitous moments we all had on today’s walk.