In honor of Santiago Day (July 25), I’ve a visitor blogger this week, Daniel Searl, who’s simply come to go to me after finishing 115 kilometers of the Camino de Santiago, from Sarria to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia (northwestern Spain).
 |
| Daniel on the Camino. |
 |
| Vieras, sea scallops. |
Yellow arrows mark the trail, however the primary image of the Camino de Santiago is the scallop shell, or viera. You will note the enduring scallop shell throughout Spain, as everybody’s Camino de Santiago begins at a distinct place and follows a distinct route. Our group headed north from Madrid with a fast cease in Segovia. Coincidently, group chief, Kamille Harless, ordered these lovely (and attractive) scallops for lunch, not realizing the viera is the image of the Camino. These scallops had been baked and served of their shell.
 |
| First day on the Camino for this group of Westminster college students and trainer. |
 |
| Snacks en route. |
As we continued on the street to Sarria, a few the scholars found some nice Spain snacks. At a roadside cease, Matthew Adams loved these tapas of jamón serrano and a pincho de carne plopped on prime of bread. Típico! The bread throughout Spain is so good, and it goes with something (properly… the whole lot).
Sarria – Km 115
Our 115 kilometer trek began in Sarria, and what higher approach to gas up for the lengthy stroll than chow down on a giant burger! The regionally sourced meat was tasty and filling, even when our group of People did must ask for the ketchup and mustard to go along with it.
Mercadoiro, Km 97.2
The primary day on the Camino was exhilarating and exhausting for the group. We realized shortly to tempo ourselves, keep hydrated, speak to lots of people and make loads of stops. Oh – and seize a chunk to eat each probability you get. This hen and avocado sandwich was an ideal pick-me-up to gas the ultimate 5km into Portomarin.
 |
| Merluza (contemporary hake) and fries. |
Portomarín Km 92 Our workforce meal in Portomarín passed off on the patio of our little lodge, and it introduced probably the greatest meals we had on the Camino: merluza (contemporary hake)! The fish was seasoned to perfection (doesn’t take a lot) and ‘en su punto’ – breaking into chunk measurement items with out falling aside. So good!
Melide, Km 52. 2 The longest day of our pilgrimage took us from the east facet of Palas del Rei throughout 30 km of views, woods, creeks, trails, folks, hills and 48.268 steps, in line with the well being tracker on Kamille’s watch. Fortunately, about ⅔ of the way in which by way of, we walked into Melide and bought ushered right into a restaurant for pulpo y pimientos. The boiled octopus accompanied by grilled and salted pimientos de Padrón hit the spot and lifted our spirits to proceed placing one foot in entrance of the opposite. Tasty and motivating. Gracias Melide. Gracias pulpo y pimientos.
 |
| Carrilleras with patatas fritas. |
O Pedrouzo, Km 18
What’s for dinner tonight? A bit of meat with fries. Cool, say the children. The chunk of meat was carrillera de ternera, a bit of beef from the cow’s cheek. Tender, juicy, tasty. Served with its personal gravy, the carrillera melted in your mouth and combined properly with the patatas fritas, the ever current fries that aren’t French however Spanish. And
Santiago is just a few kilometers down the street.
 |
| Galicia’s well-known mussels. |
These mussels had been one other deal with from the ocean that saved us entertained and properly fed. The perfect deal at any restaurant in Spain is the mussels. They’re comparatively low-cost, you get a big serving, the style is unbelievable, and you may spend the remainder of the afternoon dipping bread within the leftover sauce. Extremely advocate!
 |
| Squiggle of squid. |
Seafood and mariscos are ever-present alongside the Camino de Santiago and our group discovered one other spherical of squid at our remaining vacation spot. The little calamares on the final day had been straightforward to eat, tasted nice and stuffed us up.
 |
| Symbolic scallops. |
Santiago de Compostela, Km. 0.
The tip is only the start. We wrapped up our Camino meals expertise simply the place we began – with scallops on the half shell. These zamburiñas, quite a lot of small scallops, had been uncooked with lemon and slightly salt, served of their iconic shell. An ideal approach to wrap up the stroll.
Recipes for meals from Galicia:
