HELLOOOOO!!

Despite what my lack of blogging may suggest, I am still alive and well! I haven´t been in a place that´s had internet since Astorga, which was the last time I wrote. Not too long after that day I entered the province of Galicia, and the municipal albergues here are rather bare-minimum, utilitarian type places. Aside from the lack of internet, one example of this is in the kitchens. In every place I stayed before Galicia the albergues had kitchens with pots and pans, dishes, etc. free for use (so long as you cleaned up after yourself, naturally), along with things like salt, pepper, olive oil, and then any food left over by other pilgrims. Mostly pastas. They also tended to have refrigerators for pilgrim use. The ones in Galicia have nothing. They have a stove, but nothing to cook with. No fridge. Many of the ones I´ve been in recently have been old converted schoolhouses.
Regardless of the amenities, I´ve been super happy to have a place to sleep the past few nights. In order to become an "official" pilgrim, you have to walk at least the last 100km. Sarria was the closest "big" city (around 4,000 people) to that marker, at 117km out. I was there 2 days ago and MANY people started hiking there. It´s been hard to not be judgemental. Not only are huge crowds of people clogging the camino with their tiny little cinch bags, acting like this is a fun outing for a day, but there are what I call the bus pilgrims, who take a bus, get off and hike through a town, get back on the bus to the next town, walk through that one, get back on the bus, etc. Some of them even take up albergue room! There have been so many people displaced the past few nights, and I´ve been very excited to have a bed. There have been camps set up in backyards with big tents, crowding 10-12 people in each, people sleeping in restaurants, sleeping in parks, etc. Today I thought I´d have to sleep in a park in Melide, which is the town I´m in, because the town I planned on staying in didn´t have the albergue listed in the books and maps. I ended up having to walk an extra 6km to Melide, and had asked at a Pensión if the lady knew where they were putting extra pilgrims because we had heard along the way that the albergue here was completely full. She let me and the lady I´ve been walking with the past 2 days know that there was another albergue just down the road that had room. I got goosebumps I was so hopefull for a spot. Sure enough! It´s basically a big sports arena, and there are about 120 people on mats on the floor who were part of at least one big group. The walking pilgrims got beds, though! Woohoo!!
I have to confess that I´m very much looking forward to the end of the trek. I have 3 days left of walking, and I am excited for the party in Santiago. Plus, I´m ready to not have to walk all day. :)
The next two nights I have a guaranteed spot with some people I´ve met along the way in a hostal, so maybe there will be internet at those places. They´re an expensive 20-25€ each! :)

I´ll try to talk soon. Miss all of you!!