To get an official compostella you need to have walked the last 100km of the Camino. You can do it in 6 days start today, June 8, and reach the cathedral in time for the pilgrims mass on Friday.

The 100 km mark comes between Sarria and Portomarin and many people start here.

It was a bit alarming for us to all of a sudden see all these new pilgrims. The trail was now a bit more crowded but did not deter from the sites.

Yes, that is a dog on a roof. We also started to see a lot of these.

They are stone storage bins to keep the harvest free from rats and rain.
I have not been to Ireland but I was told that our surroundings were very similar.

I also came around the corner and found Elizabeth and Mary trying to skip out on the last 5 miles!

Of course they would have missed another village we went through

before we reached our destination

Portomarin is on a man made lake. In the 1960s the Miño River was dammed to create the Belesar reservoir, putting the old village of Portomarín under water. The most historic buildings of the town were moved brick by brick and reconstructed in the new town, including its castle-style main church: Church of San Juan of Portomarín.

In the seasons when the dam is at low level, the remains of ancient buildings, the waterfront and the old bridge are still visible.

This the view from our Albergue ( which had a series of compartments with bunk beds divided by curtains – no doors – interesting to say the least!)