Out of the dark grey and into the technicolour world of Hospital de Orbigo (Sa 29 Sep)

Rain forecast today.  They were right.  And windy.  Grey skies, heavy rain at times.  We were planning a short day, since Jan's shin is giving her some trouble, and we were happy to get out of the rain.  We walked for 15 km, almost all of it lined by cornfields.  Not sure where the corn ends up, not on our dinner plate so far:

Water tower for the town:

Lots of cats along the way, almost all thin, stray and scared of humans.  This little one was happy to get a pet:

Then we reach the town.  Hadn't read much about the town, but it has a spectacular bridge dating from the 13th century.  Beside it were curious wooden structures (lower left in pic) that we learned later are used for an medieval jousting festival:

Hundreds participate, wearing medieval costumes, knights and horses in shining armour, jousts etc.  The theme appears throughout the town:

Swallows sharing a double line, under the eaves and out of the rain:

Then the town proper just over the bridge.  Nice colors brightened up a grey day:

And our albergue, San Miguel, was fantastically colourful -- full to the brim with artwork:

The proprietor encourages people to paint, offering canvases and free paint.  The best are hung on the wall.  The others painted over with white paint, ready for the next artist:

These paintings were all done by pilgrims:

A couple artful entries in the guest book:

Bunk room, one of two.  We were there early enough to get our own room, behind the blue door, for only a 10 Euro premium:

And the night finished with a nice meal.  My trout soup was one of the best dishes I've had in Spain:

And we shared the meal with Dick from Boston and Melanie from Ottawa.  Melanie's parents are joining her in Sarria to walk the last 100 km with her: