We hadn’t quite decided whether to go into Ribadeo or just stay put on the farm, so were waiting to see what the weather would do. It seemed to be threatening more rain, so we thought a trip to the town would be the best bet!
We’d learnt the previous day that it was market day, so our first stop was the farmers’ market where we tried to find the stall from the farm where we are staying. Everyone had masks on so it was quite difficult to recognise anybody but Dave noticed the label on the honeypots, so we knew we were in the right place. We bought some tomatoes, red pepper and dried haricot beans and then got some steak in the old market building. It was interesting to see squash being sold by the slice. Dave also managed to get a new shirt and some boxers, a massive spree!!!!
We went on to the Plaza de España, where there were lots of interesting buildings. These included the Torre de los Moreno, an example of “Indiano” architecture. Indianos were locals who returned to Spain wealthy after decades of migration to America or the Philippines. The second building, next to it, was The Pazo de Ibáñez, an eighteenth-century neoclassical building which was the residence of the Marquis of Sargadelos. It is currently the Town Hall of Ribadeo. On its stairs there is a statue representing him!!
From there we drove to the highly recommended beach of As Catedrais, so called because the rock formations are cathedral- like in stature. They were coach loads of tourists and it was quite a shock to the system going from the tranquil environment of the farm, where we are the only van, to a massive overcrowded tourist attraction. Dave really hated it and wanted to get back as quickly as possible. So, we had a quick look, the beach was spectacular, we took some photos and then drove back to the farm for coffee and cake and a phone catch up with Marco.
I got the washing and drying going to set us up for the next week and then we headed off on a local walk. Dave was particularly happy at this point because his gadgets were fully recharged as we’ve got electric hook up. This gave him a deep sense of calm, ha ha!! 🤣
We decided to go for a walk locally and set off through the farm fields behind the van. We were a bit confused about the route so stopped to ask a neighbour and she told us that a very nice English couple live in the yellow house on the way up the hill. As we walked past the yellow house, the lady of the house, Ann, was washing out a massive beer barrel in the front garden, so we got chatting. It turned out that they had emigrated here a few years ago after living in various places, including Oz, along the way. The guy, Dave, was a keen craft brewer and vintage car enthusiast. We ended up ordering some of his beers which he delivered to the campsite later in his orange Mercedes!! The sun was shining by this point and we had a lovely walk up the hill along part of the Camino de Santiago, which was marked by the typical shell shaped signs for the route of Saint James. There were two proper pilgrims with their big back packs just in front of us!
Once we got back to the farm we had a relaxing evening and cooked up the produce we’d bought earlier in Ribadeo and had a couple of Dave´s delicious beers. Having only had local beers for a while , of which Estrella Galicia (and the 1906 version) is the best, it was great to get some very tasty beers! I can recommend the Las Vegas!
Chilling on the farm was a good idea, but interesting things happened non the less.
To have some good weather was so nice for you.
You never know who you might meet.
Hope Marco is doing ok. J.x 🔍📕📗
Quite a busy day in three end..,., unlike today 😀😴