Day 12: Caldas de Reis to Padron
On day 12 Caldas de Reis to Padron is a beautiful stage with plenty of bush sections. Heading upward to Santa Marina de Carracedo and then down to Padron.
In Pontecesures you cross paths with the Variante Espiritual arriving by boat from Vilanova de Arousa on the Ulla river.
In Padron visit the Santiago church. Then 1 km further on from Padron on Camino is Iria Flavia, an icònic village where legend says the remains of the apòstol Santiago arrived on a stone ship 2000 years ago. Also, La Real Colegiata is remarkable, the tomb of Camilo Jose Cela, Nobel Prize winner of Literature, and the museum-house of Rosalia de Castro, the main Galician poet all worth a visit today if you have the energy to save time tomorrow for your final destination.
A must-try specialty of the region while in Padron “pimientos de Padron” (little green peppers). Fried and sprinkled with sea salt, now appreciated all over Spain. Other popular foods are octopus, cheeses, bread, chorizos, or empanadas.
