PortomarinotoPalasdelRes

This day's walk was over 24.8. Km which I reckoned to be too much for me. I need to explain how the tour system works. We have a small rather posh bus. This takes us from our hotel which is not necessarily on the Camino to the start of the day's walk. We have two or three way points on the Camino. Where the bus is waiting for us. It has supplies of fruit and snacks on board plus water, lots of it. This means that I was able to skip the first 8 km which were up a very steep hill and join the rest of the hardy band at that point. So I walked 16.5 km. Lovely countryside, isolated hamlets, and very up and down. So I may have skipped the first steep hills but there was plenty of up in the bit I did.

Tonight we are in a hotel a long way from the Camino. Created from an old fortified house, it is very comfortable. We are going to have dinner here in a few minutes and it is said that the restaurant is very noted. Since we eat fruit and nuts through the day, we are all hungry.

Typical scenery on this day's walk. Hilly! It was very sunny again today and despite the factor 30, I am radiating back at the world. I am okay as far as joints are considered but my socks were very dirty when I reached here.

We visited a church which is very ancient. As far as I could understand there has been a church in this place since the seventh century. I think the one here now is 11th century complete with Crusader's tomb.

I am writing this in bed and had better get up. We move to another hotel tonight and stay three for two nights. I must get some washing done.

 

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Sarria to Portomarino

Our first day's walk.

Us with all our gear. The yellow arrow is the sign for the Camino path. Galicia is very green and the plants in the hedgerows are those of England. The trees are oak, chestnut, elm, birch. It is a rolling countryside and bits of it are every bit as steep as the worst of the Malvern Hills. The bus met up with us three times, provided water and suitable snacks. The guide disapproves of sweet things and fresh fruit,nuts and fruit biscuits are provided. I was ticked up for taking a chocolate digestive. Why are they provided then?

We walked 18.7 km and at various points, I thought I had reached my limit but no I did reach the end.

The upper photo is a object found all over the place. Despite it's elegant appearance, it is for storing grain. And the lower photo is of a typical farm building in a small village.

I am happy to have successfully completed the first day but am wondering about tomorrow when we walk 24.3 km.

 

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Madrid to Sarria

We were bussed from Madrid to Sarria which is 500 km. Time to get to know the rest of the party. There are eleven of us, two Mexicans, four Americans, three Canadians and Ruth and myself. We stopped a couple of times on the way, the second time to eat Spanish Cocida Maragate which consists of boiling up all the meat you have got plus chickpeas, cabbage and potatoes. You eat the meat first, then the veg, then the soup! Our meat was pork, ham, beef and chicken with some very nice sausages which were the best bit.

 

Dessert was a custard served with lots of cinnamon and Marie biscuits! Nice.

We travelled over mountains a lot. And I was alarmed when we entered Galicia in the middle of the mountains. Can I walk over this lot? At the to of the pass we stopped at a tiny village to see an ancient house

Thatched with rye straw and the animals live downstairs and the family upstairs. It is so cold and wet that rye is all that will grow.

We are staying in an ancient house with stone walls two foot thick. It is not warm inside! Although it is very pleasant outside. Off to have breakfast and definitely terrified. What have I done this time?

 

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Madrid Monday

As promised we went to the Prado which was very large and a bit startling. Yes they have Goyas, Velaquezs, El Grecos. What no one mentions is that the Prado has several rooms devoted to each of these. Not to mention the Durer's and the Fra Angelico. So this all took several hours. Goya is different from the rest is that he did different styles at different times in his life. Still life's of dead chickens, very fine portraits and religious works. I still think May 5th is best - but I would not want to live with it. I am confirmed in my opinion of Velasquez. Court painter or not. One really funny painting is a life sized one of the Infante on a rearing horse. Only thing is, if you look carefully, the rearing horse is actually a rather tubby pony. Looking just like a Thelwell cartoon.

After a sojourn in the cafe, we walked over to the park which was lovely.

Very strangely pruned cypresses.

The crystal palace which is being used for an exhibition titled The Grand Hotel. So inside it had a very large Turkish carpet and lots of lovely rocking chairs with a book to read at each chair and the viewers loved it.

The book consists of a number of modern novels, each in a different language, and bound together into a fat novel which had then been distressed.

And there a lake with boaters surrounded by cafés. Five minutes after this we were drinking Summer Wine which is a light red wine with ice and soda water and slices of lemon. As Madrid closes down from 2 to 5 , we retired and went out again at five, to see the old town and have supper. We need to pack now as we are off north tomorrow at 0830.

 

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Madrid Sunday

Sunday was spent travelling. Up at 5, drive to Stansted (no one on the M25 at that time), queue to get rid of luggage, queue to get on plane, two and a half hour flight, then wait for luggage, wait for taxi. So at 1400 hours we arrive at hotel only to find that, though I had paid, the hotel knew nothing about us. Fortunately my iPad held all the emails. Five minutes to find sandals and Tshirt, then out into a hot Madrid afternoon.

We visited the Thyssen museum to see the impressionists and 20th century works. A very odd collection. There are masses of impressionist painting but not by people whose names I recognise and, more important not all that good. The Thyssen collection is just a small part of the museum's holdings and the main museum has a wonderful collection of 20th century art. There are two Sonya Delaunays but also two Robert Delaunays who I have never seen before. Very similar in style to his wife.

Robert Delaunay

Kandinsky

Then we visited the Royal Arboretum next door. Laid out in squares each edged with box and thoroughly labelled. A nice section on fruit with citrus trees carrying fruit and flowers, masses of irises blooming as an edging by the paths

In the evening we ate at a pavement cafe- tapas, what else. Back to hotel and I was fast asleep by ten! Today we are visiting the Prado and a nearby park and the shopping centre.

 

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The Last of the African Trees

The last two African trees have been finished and that's that. All six of them have all been based on photos of real trees but they do not always look likely. The one on the left I can live with but not the one on the right - but it did really have that branch structure.

Today I went into Worcester and took a long walk along the Worcester and Birmingham canal. Walking is more important than anything else at the moment. A minimum of 2 hours a day. Tomorrow I will walk over to the other side of town.

The top photo is a white trillium which has managed to have two flowers. This is a first for me. My trilliums have never before made it through the first three months with me never mind actually flower!!

The lower one is a species tree peony which I grew from seed. It just gets better every year. The flowers are about four inches across.

Off now to work on the Kennet Valley Guild project. I need to do some more towards assembly - and I need to make a cotton shirt before Saturday. So I will be up late tonight.

The End of the Exhibition

The exhibition at Nature in Art is over and mostly stripped down. I have to return today sometime to collect items to be stored for other people. We had lots of visitors  who were happy to talk and occasionally I would find myself listening to memories of textiles from someone's childhood. I would say that the people who came were mostly practicioners who were interested in the techniques used. I did find doing six days as Artist in Residence hard work. It was not helped by my own stupidity in  deciding about  looms. The first two days were spent weaving two more African trees. Then I decided to take in a loom which I was warping up for huck lace. That did not take well to being interrupted and I brought it back unfinished. I am sure it is full of errors. It is not going to get checked any time soon as I am off to Spain next Sunday to walk the Camino de Compostela and I must walk at least two hours every day from today on.

On Saturday morning I drove my usual route to Nature in Art and south of Tewkesbury at a round about came across two enormous cranes, two earth movers and a very large number of men in yellow hard hats. My attention was fixed on negotiating this lot but it did seem that they were putting something actually on the roundabout. The next morning I stopped down the road and took photos.

From the cars, you can see these two statues are very large. They commemorate the Battle of Tewkesbury which was one of the deciding battles in the Civil War. I have got one photo with no cars but used this photos a) to show the scale and b) to record the red and black car behind the knight - which is a very ancient Rolls. Not often seen on the road.

The auriculas are massed outside the front door and still very cheering. Now off to sort out the money taken at the exhibition.