Hotel Chef Rivera

Once again our friends at Follow The Camino had placed us at a warm and accommodating lodging called Hotel Chef Rivera in Pádron, Galicia. Madame Pirriette from France and her husband, the renowned cook, José Antonio Rivera, aka Chef Rivera, run the place and as I gifted them a pair of books, they returned the favor with his cook book. Their sons, Alejandro, also a cook, and Richard with Galicia Tourism, round out the family. Richard at one time was a consultant for Martin Sheen on a scouting trip to Santiago for the movie The Way.

Leaving Caldas de Reis we soon entered a Celtic Fairyland of leafy green forests of moss and lichen, babbling brooks and the chirping of hidden birds.

The Women of Galicia

It is hard not to notice the women of Galicia. We came into contact with four different women of various ages toiling on their small but fertile plots of earth–one digging out potatoes, another cutting wood, still another on a mini-tractor and a fourth feeding a horse. They are strong women who are the backbone of this land.

We chatted with Señora Rosa, an elderly woman, who was being playfully led about by her St. Bernard dog, Perla. A recent widow, she talked about raising her children and four cows, about losing her husband and her daughter’s cancer.

“I fell into a depression. I don’t cry anymore but it hurts.”

Yet she continues to eke out a meager existence. These women left behind a profound impression and, truth be told, we thought about them often during this mostly gentle 12-mile stage.

Oh yes, somewhere along this bucolic stage, we observed a strange sight, that of a wild boar outfitted with a pair of sharp tusks moving about a resident’s enclosure. However, this particular boar appeared to be domesticated!

We are now within one day of reaching our goal—Santiago de Compostela, Spain. 🙏