Day #20 Palas de Reí to Melide 15 km

We decided to stop in Melide today because it has a pulpería, Exequiel's, which is famous for its pulpo (octopus) and because it would have been another 6 km or to the next Albergues.  It was another pleasant, easy walk -- some blue skies with big clouds as usual, but no rain until we were approaching Melide, but, of course, by the time we put on rain gear, it had stopped.  Lots of peregrinos walking, but often we found ourselves alone on a stretch of the way.   The Michigan couple passed us and said they had looked for us last night in Palas de Rei because it turned out the place they reserved ahead was a whole apartment and they would have invited us to join them and make dinner together.  Too bad -- would have been nice.  The Albergue we stayed in was very new and had good facilities -- but still.

Today on the way here somehow we decided on the name of a place that offered habitaciones privadas, El Molino, and found it with the help of directions from a local.  It was a bar/cafe, but the señor in charge led us around the corner and down kind of a sketchy street to a different building where he showed us to our room with a bath which is great -- except for the Donald Duck bedspread on one of the beds -- for only €25.  So we're only paying €2.50 more each than we would in a dormitorio.  I don't know that there are any other peregrinos here - it's not a communal kind of place -  but it's nice to have our own space every few days.

We've had time and energy to explore the city a bit.  It's a nice little city - wonderful old Romanesque church and a museum with lots of relics, and a more upscale area where some of the newer Albergues are.  The pulpo was great though Marty is not a fan.  Tomorrow we plan an ambitious day of 21 km, and that will leave us 2 days of 16.5 km each to get to Santiago.