Because of the way we combined stages yesterday (a result of lodging and food challenges), we had a nice, short 6 km day today. We were able to get some extra rest this morning, enjoy breakfast at our hostel, and then make our way down the mountain and into the town of Santa Cruz de Campezo to pick up a couple of things at the supermarket and pharmacy. From there, we left town and found ourselves on a dirt road that wound us back through the woods and, in a short time, to Genevilla. The way had some rolling hills, but was not difficult, and certainly our worst problem was swatting away the flies that seem to find us particularly attractive during our hikes.
At our hostel, we were delighted with what we found...a lovely little bedroom with a balcony and flowers, very comfortable amenities, a terrace, and a living room/library for guests to enjoy. We settled right in, did the typical laundry and shower routine (we were particularly excited about the soap we picked up at the store since our access to this luxury had been pretty limited for the past couple of days), and wandered around the little town of Genevilla for a bit.
After a bit of rest, it was time for dinner on the terrace. Our hostel hosts, a very nice couple (Maribel from Spain and Guy from Belgium), prepared a delicious meal for us including salad with eel on top (teeny tiny eels that were warm and mounded on top of the salad - apparently these eels are a specialty in this region), chicken in a butter cream sauce, and little berries and peaches with whipped cream for dessert. Guy also insisted we enjoy some wine, so we did, and before long he too was enjoying a glass with us. Guy explained to us that the big thing to do in this area on Friday night is to go to Santa Cruz (where we had hiked from that morning) and enjoy Pincho Pote where you pay 1 euro for a beer or wine and a pincho (1.5 euro for the really good wine). So after dinner, we hopped in the car with Guy and went back to Santa Cruz where we enjoyed Pincho Pote at four different bars. From there we went back to Genevilla and Guy asked a group of his friends in the street "who has the keys to the bar?"...it turns out that one of those friends is the owner of the one bar in Genevilla. After one more half glass of wine there, we called it a night and headed to bed. Before we could doze off, Maribel and Guy were able to stamp our credential, and Guy insisted we sign his book of "very special guests" - he showed us the photo of the Irish Jesuit who did this camino earlier this year and promised that our picture would go in there too. While the evening was lots of fun and definitely an experience worth having, that was a lot of wine in a short amount of time!
Should you ever find yourself in Genevilla, Spain, you must stay at this hostel (Casa Usetegieta) it is incredibly comfortable, the food is delicious, and Maribel and Guy are beyond gracious!
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