I enjoyed our night in Portomarín as the town had a nice location along the Miño River – and we enjoyed sitting at a bar the night before with a nice wine enjoying the awesome weather.  So I was rested and ready for Day 3.

We left the hotel (and our luggage, which was picked up by a service that dropped it off at our next hotel)around 9 AM and went towards the river where we had just a little confusion as to which way to go.  We crossed the river and returned to the path that would take us to Palas del Rei.

As usual, we stopped for lunch at a place past Hospital but before Ligonde.  It has a very nice outdoor seating area with plenty of shade.  The menu was typical of the pilgrim’s menu.

Menu board with the offerings for the day

In this case, for example, 9 euros would get you a nice burger or lomo (pork) with real French fries accompanied with fried eggs!

Delicious!!!

I also have to highlight one of my favorite dishes:  ensalada mixta which has tomatoes, lettuce, tuna, onions, olives and just goodness!

Not only colorful and diverse but mighty tasty!

Palas del Rei is a small town of over 3,000 people.  We arrived around 4:30 PM after a beautiful, but long walk, with some good climbs.

Wildlife along the way!

Dirt path going between farms

Sometimes the Camino overlaps with a modern road

Continuing to walk in rural parts of the Camino

We walked into it and past a church where a funeral service was being held.  We approached it from the back and then saw the steps leading down from the church to the street below – a steep walk down.

San Tirso Church

Our hotel, Hotel Casa Benilde was not far from that point (maybe 50 meters?).

We arrived at the hotel and the manager and his assistant were at the front desk, likely expecting us.  They were the nicest folks, so ready to make us feel at home, walking us through every detail – including how they could accommodate our celiac and vegetarians in the group.  The hotel lobby was small and, we found out, that was the reason they “scored” low on the star rating system in Spain.  We were shocked at the low star rating as this place had excellent customer service, incredible breakfast catering to the dietary needs (all items were labeled gluten-free or not, etc.), the rooms were clean (if small), and the wifi was great in the rooms.

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More about the Camino before Day 3:

–  Day 1

–  Day 2

And after Day 3:

–  Day 4