The weather is finally warm (no need for a thick comforter anymore). Classes for me as a language assistant are over (although school doesn't get out til the end of June). I've suddenly got a lot of free time. Finally feels like summer!
To celebrate the first summery weekend of the year, we headed to Lugo's northern coast A Mariña to go camping for a night. In A Mariña the climate is milder yet unpredictable, so I was worried it would end up raining or being really cold in the tent at night. But honestly, we couldn't have asked for better weather. It was sunny early in the day, and then in the evening although it was cloudy it was still warm. We camped at Rinlo Costa Camping, a cute little place a short walk from the village of Rinlo. I think the campground is worth mentioning because they were pleasant. Plus they didn't charge us for renting bikes because it was the off season. The tiny village of Rinlo used to be a whaling port. Now, rather than whale it is famous for its creamy rice with lobster. This was my third time having the famed
arroz caldoso, compared to
somebody who had never had it before. Out-galicianing the Galician!
With our bellies full, it was naptime. For me, at least. So we borrowed bikes (for free!) and took a 20 minute ride towards a deserted cove. I had been gung-ho about biking because it's something I rarely do, plus A Mariña is generally flat with hardly any traffic on the country roads. It should have been easy. It was easy. However, the last time I rode a bike was three years ago on a trip to Amsterdam and other Dutch cities. So let's just say I'm not used to the tiny bike seat. Fortunately, I was able to rest up in between short rides to and from the secluded beach. You have to climb down a ladder to get to the inlet, protected by cliffs on both sides. They say the water on this coast is warmer than the southwest Rías Baixas, but before June I only dared dip my feet in.
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Little Illa Pancha & its lighthouses
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Sunday morning after a short fishing expedition in which I did not participate, we drove a few miles east, just short of the town of Ribadeo. We parked at the Illa Pancha Lighthouse. It's a tiny island that seems like a peninsula, depending on the angle. A very short pedestrian bridge connects the island to the mainland. It has two lighthouses: one built in the 19th century was converted into a mini hotel. So now, you can only access the Illa Pancha if you're staying at the hotel. From the park area near the island, there is a coastline walkway into the town of Ribadeo. So off we went, passing a fortress and loading dock on our way into town. The fortress of San Damián is from the 17th century, meant to protect Ribadeo's estuary (
Ría de Ribadeo) from attacks. You can glimpse inside, but this historical place is also off-limits. The old loading dock is from the early 1900s. Now there is a gangway and part of the stone building where they stored iron mined in A Pontenova (in the middle of Lugo province).
Once in Ribadeo, we mostly ambled around enjoying the nice weather. Ribadeo and its surroundings have tons of indianos. There is even a route of Indiano houses. We stopped to see a few. I was also shocked to see all the stores open on a Sunday, but I guess that is normalized in a touristy town. All the terrazas were packed (especially due to COVID-19 limitations). So we got some sub sandwiches to go, walked back to the car, and enjoyed our lunch gazing at the crashing waves. We had thought about making a stop on the way home, but we were just too pooped. Besides, we enjoyed ourselves so much we've already convinced some friends into going back with us. There are more indianos and coastline to be seen!
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| Indiano action in Ribadeo |
