The morning sun and a delicious breakfast prepare us for the day ahead from Palas de Rei To Melide. After saying goodbye to Palas de Rei, we begin our journey over rolling hills. We pass through the tiny hamlet of San Xulian, one of the prettiest pictures you can find on the Camino, with a cruceiro, an hórreo and the small 12th century Romanesque church of San Xulián.
San Xulián, or Saint Julian, is another favorite on the Camino; after all, he is the patron saint of hospitallers and hoteliers! His story goes as follows: Julian, a soldier and not yet a saint, mistakenly kills his parents, thinking that the two bodies he finds sleeping in his bed are his wife with a lover. However, his parents, who had been searching for him across Europe, had previously stumbled upon his home and wife by chance. His wife was overjoyed and put his weary parents to bed before running out to find Julian. When she returned home, he learnt that they were his parents. Full of remorse and repentance, he traveled to Rome with his wife to seek forgiveness. There, the Pope told him that to absolve his sin, he had to set up a pilgrim’s hospice to care for pilgrims on their way to Santiago. And this he did, eventually becoming Saint Julian.
Another highlight on today’s walk is the small village of Leboreiro. This village has kept its rustic old charm and is graced by the small Romanesque church of Santa María de las Nieves.
Finally we arrive in Melide, our stop for the night. Here, we enjoy the famous and delicious Galician pulpo (octopus) and rest our heads for the days to come. Santiago de Compostela is getting closer!
