The Spoons That Are My Ears!

We were invited to Galicia for a long weekend, so we decided to go... On the extreme north western edge of the Iberian peninsula, Galicia is quite distinct from the rest of Spain in terms of landscape, culture and language. It is Celtic in appearance and ambience, with a wild and rugged coastline, similar to Wales or Cornwall. The mists made the mountains and forests seem mythologically significant, a pleasing illusion... We stayed in the tiny village of Corzans with the family of Xavier, one of Rosa’s friends. We were near the River Minho, at a point opposite the town of Monçao. Last year I stood in Monçao and looked across at Galicia, so it was a surprise to find myself on the other bank, looking back at Portugal.

On Friday we visited Tui, a beautiful old city, and the following day took a trip to the coast, to clamber over the hilltop site of the ancient Celtic city of La Garda. The view from the summit was superb, high above the mouth of the mighty Minho, with the coves of Galicia stretching away to the north and the beaches of Portugal gleaming away to the south. To be near the sea again was a relief! The round houses of the ancient city are fascinating, crowded together very tightly, and we managed to cross from one side of the city to the other just by walking on the ruined walls and jumping across the extremely narrow ‘streets’. Galicia is a region full of brujas and brujos but we didn’t meet any of those. At least I don’t think so...