2/5 Monday Paládin to Cornellana 27km Last night Michael and I were joined by Steffie, from Germany and Amanda, from Brisbane, for the evening meal. Everyone seems to need a break from difficult work circumstances! Last night someone’s snoring was so bad I even resorted to earplugs. They helped a little. In the morning everybody was moving around so I got up too. We were all ready to leave before breakfast time at the Albergue so we headed off towards Gardo...

1/5 Sunday Oviedo to Paládin 19km As yesterday I grabbed a bowl of muesli, ate an apple and headed out into the fine drizzle. My plan to spend the morning sightseeing was somewhat curtailed by the fact that it was Sunday and everything was closed. I did a quick tour of the old town sights again, got my selfie at the cathedral- the official start of the Primitivo and had a stroll round Parque San Francisco- over 900 trees of 51 species according to my guide. In...

30/4 Saturday Vega to Oviedo 27km I grabbed a quick bowl of muesli and nectarine to get a few calories on board but was away into the misty countryside before 9am. My plan was to stop for coffee and sustenance at Pola de Siero which was 9km away and marked a third of today’s long trek. Other than an interesting statue Pola was a disappointing place doubly so as the cafes I checked out only had plastic-wrapped postres. The actual highlight of Pola was a pain...

29/4 Friday Villaviciosa to Vega de Sariego 19km The day started with a frustrating 40 minutes at the Post Office. No parcel but a letter from Spanish customs asking for the same information Jill provided when posting. I tried responding online but couldn't register as there was a problem with the format of my details. So I filled in the form and sent Vito in the post. The very helpful lady behind the counter suggested they could forward the parcel to me once i...

28/4 Thursday La Isla to Villaviciosa 21km + coastal detour 26kmOn Wednesday evening Franco and I were joined by Paulo from Portugal as well as Sandra, Miriam and Anáis - three best friends from Barcelona who all worked in Zara. The hospitalero was clearly not stopping and had already handed out our breakfast bags containing a coffee pod, a plastic cup and a tiny chocolate croissant wrapped in plastic! We agreed to eat together so Sandra, Miriam and I hea...