Monday, August 5: El Acebo to Ponferrada

I walked 17.4 km today

There was a beautiful sunrise this morning in the mountains. 

The hike downhill today was like walking on a river of stone. 

Late morning I entered the town of Molinaseca, one of the most charming towns I have come across. The residents dam the river in the summer to make a natural swimming pool. 

At the entrance to the town there was a giant blackberry tree. (Moras in Spanish) The berries were huge and delicious. 

Just after the bridge a restaurant had a breakfast special that didn't include toast! Eggs, bacon and baked beans for €3.60. 

The municipal albergue in Ponferrada is huge but today it was not big enough. They filled all 180 including people sleeping on mats outside under the covered entrance. It is a nice albergue that is donation only. They separated men and women in to different rooms and even had different restrooms and showers for each. 

The fountain doubles as a foot soaking pool. 

I walked into town to see the main sight of the area the Templar Castle which unfortunately is closed on Mondays. 

Again with the tourist photography lessons. Me in front of the castle... or some random stone wall. 

I stopped by the pilgrim tourist office for a dinner recommendation. They recommended Mesón Berciano right in front of the Templar Castle. If you are ever in Ponferrada do NOT eat here. 

For my first course I chose Cuban rice which is tomato sauce over rice served with fried eggs. It was good but the rice tasted a bit off. At first I thought it was just the spices they were using. 

My second course was delicious. The steak was topped with a garlic herb butter that was just delicious. For dessert I chose the pineapple which I was disappointed to find out came out of a can. When I tasted it I was even more disappointed to find out that it had gone bad. They brought me slices from a fresh can.  Maybe that's why the rice tasted a little funny to. They obviously are keeping food too long and not checking to see if its bad. So don't eat here. 

Well at least I didn't get sick from anything I ate.