Day #18. Mercadoiro to Gonzar a puny 13.4 km or 8.3 miles

Today was a really off day.  We both woke up a bit grouchy and irritated at each other.  We didn't get started walking until after 8:00 am, and it was raining - not hard,  but steady.  The walk was a gradual uphill for a long way, not particularly difficult, but also not very interesting.  The sky was completely overcast in various shades of gray, the wind was very blustery and so the landscape didn't appear as friendly and magical as it did yesterday.  My pack felt heavier, my legs and feet ached and I felt like I was working really hard.  

Our intention had been to get to Ventas de Naron which would have been a 18 km day which seemed very doable the night before.  But outside of Gonzar, we passed a little billboard ad for Casa Garcia - private rooms, washer and dryer, fireplace -  it looked really tempting, but we pressed on past the turn off for Casa Garcia to a cafe where many pilgrims were resting and eating.  We stopped, had coffee and discussed how I was feeling, how much further we had to go to another Albergue ( 5 miles), and the time.  It was 1:00.  Part of me thought we should keep going - another part, my intuition I think, was saying you may really regret going on, you're too tired.  It's hard for me often to give in to what I see as weakness.  When Marty remarked that if we went on it would be 3:00 before we got to the next place and we might have problems finding a bed or room, the decision was made.  

We went back a short way to the turn off to Casa Garcia and found a wonderfully welcoming little casa

and took a cozy room with a shared bath that had a great tub.  We had our laundry done, took baths and naps, and then had one of the best dinners ever:  caldo Gallego, grilled salmon and flan.  We shared our table with a very nice Japonese man who spoke very little English and a young man from Switzerland.  It turned a gray day into a happy one!