VIGO

Before arriving in Spain for the English Language Assistant programme, I didn’t really have any plans to visit the north of the country. I had specifically chosen Castilla La-Mancha in southern/central Spain as my priority region, one of the reasons being that I would hopefully be placed in a school that was approximately halfway between Madrid and the Mediterranean, and also within easy reach of Andalucia. But I really started to become intrigued by the north of Spain due to some of the conversations I was having with students at the language school. In order to try and generate conversation in class, the teachers would sometimes encourage the students to give me travel recommendations for Spain, and I was surprised that almost all of the students told me that I must experience the north.

I had thoroughly enjoyed exploring the south of Spain and would continue to do so, but with these student recommendations in mind I really became attracted to the country’s greener northern territory and soon started considering my options for a trip. In terms of the potential destinations in the north, I decided against the idea of going to the Basque country because it is a little more expensive there, and so I was deciding between pretty much anywhere else in that region: Cantabria, Asturias, or Galicia. All of these places seemed like a great choice, so I decided that good old football would be the decider. A match at Celta de Vigo fitted best with my plans, and so Galicia was the winner! I was pretty content with this as it meant I could use Vigo as a hub whilst visiting some other places in Galica during the same trip.

When planning my travels around Spain, I always tried in the first instance to book the journey using the rail network and then by bus if necessary. However, the city of Vigo in the far north- west was a little further than I had imagined, and so the best way for me to arrive there was a flight from Madrid. It turned out to be a great decision though, as I suffered no delays and after getting to Madrid airport and then taking the short 1-hour flight, I had traversed pretty much the length of the country without much fuss at all. The evening that I arrived in the city was a pretty chilled one. I knew that the local team had a televised Thursday night away game to Real Madrid, so I went for a curry (yes, not very Spanish but I was missing it!) and then went to a bar to sit amongst some locals as they watched game. Celta ended up losing a very entertaining cup game that went to extra time, but it was a really good night to settle into my surroundings before going to explore the next day.

The weather on my first morning was lovely and I took a long stroll from my Airbnb down to the waterfront and along the bay. It became clear that Vigo’s huge port must really dominate the local economy, with it covering a huge area around the bay. After a coffee and a bite to eat, I wandered back to my room so I could get changed for a long run and explore the local beaches on foot, but this time I walked back through the city instead of along the bay. It is a nice but unremarkable looking city-centre. There are some really pretty buildings dotted around, which are noticeably greyer than their southern Spanish counterparts. But I didn’t mind that, it made me conscious of being in Galicia with its greyer, wetter climate, and Celtic history.

Now prepared to go for a run, I set off towards the coastal area of Samil with my phone and some money for refreshments. On my way down to the beaches I was really loving the change in landscape that I was experiencing. Lots of greenery set against ragged old grey stone. When I arrived at the coast I first explored some of the smaller beaches that are next to the much larger Samil. And then I made my way all along Samil beach before stopping for refreshments. I have to say, it really was absolutely stunning. Beautiful sandy beaches with so much greenery on the avenues of the shoreline. One of my favourite places in the world is the south-west coast of Australia, and this part of Spain was giving me the same feeling, just a lot closer to home! After a long time spent admiring the coastal areas, I then ran back inland, past the football stadium and up to a big park in the city, Parque de Castrelos. It’s a big, forested, hilly park, and after running around it I then found my way on to a path along a winding stream. The environment reminded me of back home in England, and I really appreciated the variety of the Galician landscape that I was experiencing.

On the next day I wanted to get out of Vigo and experience some of Galicia’s other places, so I booked a ticket on the first train from Vigo to Santiago. Santiago is iconic due to the pilgrimages that arrive there, and it looked a pretty interesting place general so despite not being a religious person I felt like I should go there first. The train journey was almost 2 hours and when I arrived the sun was now fully out on a glorious winter’s morning. I only had a few hours to spare before I was back on the train to my next stop, so after a quick coffee and Spanish omelette, I spent the whole time walking around the city and taking pictures of the historic buildings in the sunlight. The main attraction is obviously the cathedral, and it was very inspiring just standing in the square admiring it amongst the many other visitors.

My next stop was back in the direction towards Vigo and to the village of Padrón. I’d been recommended Padrón by a student at the language school and it seemed like a great little place to have lunch in and explore, and it would make a nice change from the larger towns and cities that I am always attracted to. After all the walking I had done, I was again starving and had located an octopus restaurant that I wanted to try. I was adamant on trying octopus in this part of the world, and my plate of food did not disappoint. It was absolutely delicious and still makes me hungry when I think about it now! The only disappointment was that the famous peppers from Padrón were out of season, and therefore I wasn’t able to accompany my octopus and chips with them. After lunch I explored pretty much the whole place on foot, taking lots of photos. It has a beautiful river running right through the centre of the village. Spain has an amazing habit of making you feel like you’ve been transported back in time, and being in this pretty little village was having that same effect.

The final stop of my daytrip was to be the large town of Pontevedra, which is the capital of the wider region despite it being considerably smaller than the city of Vigo. In truth I was a little ambitious in trying to fit it in before my final train journey of the day back to Vigo, and I didn’t have long to explore the town before I had to head back to the station, with the sunset also fast approaching. I headed straight to the wide river which runs through the town and leads to the Atlantic Ocean only a few miles away, before trying to select the best things to see on Google Maps as I went back to the station. As usual with Galicia/Spain there were many beautiful, historic looking buildings, and the city had completely come alive in the short time I was there. Some of the main squares and shopping avenues were akin to central London, despite Pontevedra only having a population of approximately 80,000. After a long day it was now time to take my train back to Vigo and it had been a brilliant day getting to know different parts of Galicia. It really is a magical region, and I was especially able to appreciate its beauty on the multiple train journeys that I made throughout the day that often snaked along the coastline.

My final day in the city was the day of the football match, and it was the day where my lucky streak of beautiful sunny days was over and the rain that Vigo is infamous for came down in bucket loads! Fortunately, the weather wasn’t too disruptive to my day, as I was able to shelter in cafes and bars before the lunch time kick off and then I was nicely sheltered by the roof in the stadium, too. The rain did stop in the evening, and so I was able to make one final long walk, this time up to the viewpoint Castro De Vigo which offers beautiful views over the bay. It was a nice way to finish off my time in Galicia, a magical experience which has ensured that the rest of northern Spain is now firmly on the list for future travels!