Outside the Castle

Monday, July 4, 2016
Acebo to Ponferrada
Day  34

The highlight of the day was having lunch at a cafe across the street from the Ponferrada castle, which is the best preserved castle of the Knights Templar in Europe.  It was truly an amazing view.

At breakfast in Acebo, I stood up and wished all the Americans present a Happy 4th of July. There were quite a few Americans there, so a small cheer went up. I told James that I would like to celebrate the day somehow, maybe by a special dinner. Several of the Americans decided to celebrate by staying an extra day at the comfortable hotel complex, sunning by the pool and having Spanish “barbeque.” Not for us, but it sounded nice.

I booked a taxi to take us to Ponferrada at 11 am. In the meantime, I planned to walk back a short way down the road to the small village and look around, but instead I settled down and took advantage of the good WiFi to catch up on the blog.

Once in Ponferrada and checked in, we walked around the corner and had lunch across the street from the Knights Templar castle. I had planned to do laundry in the afternoon, but instead napped and read.  In the evening, we had a very small 4th of July celebration–we ordered a la carte instead of the Pilgrims’ Menu.  It made a nice change.

Steps: 3,201

For a couple of additional photos from outside the castle, see our page for July 4th: July 4, 2016: Acebo to Ponferrada

Author: Camino for Boomers

I am the owner and editor of Bayou City Press in Houston, Texas. As a Foreign Service Officer, I lived and traveled all over the world for 33 years. My new book is "Savoring the Camino de Santiago: It's the Pilgrimage, Not the Hike." View all posts by Camino for Boomers