CP7 Santiago de Compostela 21.08 @ 9.44AM CP8 San Andrés de Teixido 21.8 @ 6.08PM 6 hours of stopping time later, I don't have to ride too long before finding coffee at a gas station. I first fill my pockets with cookies & nuts with salt & honey (nicest find this year in Spain), then I go into the bar. A big group is finishing the night here, they all are quite drunk and appostrophing the waitress from across the room. I ask for an americano & a croissant then head to the bathroom. When I come back, a guy is trying to buy cigarettes and to pay a round for his mates. He talks to me for 5 min while I have my croissant & coffee, before I am able to tell him that no hablo espanol. His drunk eyes are watering then, he is so sorry he is about to cry. He'll pay for my order before the waitress kicks him out, back to his table (pic 4). I go up North, via the CP at Santiago de Compostela. The road is fine to ride, but it must be horrible for the pelegrins who walks next to it (pic 1). Jacob is there to welcome me in Santiago, it is still early, the place not too busy yet. I want to leave before it got crazy though. Once again, Julien is arriving right after me. I have a few happy moments whenever I leave the big roads for smaller paths between the trees (pic 2 & 3). The contrast with the wide dry spaces from a few days earlier is stunning. I have a blast riding through what I think are eucalyptus ? and crossing a river. The next CP is a 18k parcours quite terrible on the coast. It goes up into the clouds, the wind blows hard. I can't see much further than 10 meters. The few cars are driving carefully. It is cold but I am sweating in my rain jacket because I push hard to stand up against the wind. When I am at the end of the parcours, I had planned to ride the way back and down from there. No way I am going back in the fog. I keep going on the road, down to the coast and find my route from there, in the sun. People are wearing shorts & walking barefoot. Do they know about the mystical weather right above ? Back on a big road, until night falls, I am hungry. Bars are open for drinks only, I find boccadillo on the beach. It is pretty rock'n'roll and I am totally out of place Later, a restaurant with an outside area offers me protection for the night. I stop at 2am, I will wake up with the sun.