Mal C

Love the comment/s on Don Davis...

F*** a duck, just looked at discogs, one on there at a grand like yours, I think you need to find out whether it’s the first release of this song on the label, go from there, sorry mate not much help

There are a few different presses of this one, with different coloured labels and design. Suffice to say it’s always been the cheapest of his 45s on this label, well pretty much, ‘Love is a Trap’ being worth a kings random. That said it is a brilliant track. Today’s market, off the top of my head, £70 / £80 on that? Malc

Sharon Clarke, knew Dauphine Williams very well, as did Gus Thornton, they all played together. What folks may not know is that Dauphine was s real card, a very funny guy, but nobody from the Yodi family I spoke to in 2005/6 had heard from him in a very long time, I wonder if he even knows his 45 is sought after…

"I've danced with a man, who's danced with a girl, who's danced with the Prince of Wales" Christ, you haven’t opened up this can of worms again! Lol

Some Photos from our journey home, started in Santiago and stayed overnight in a small pueblo outside Santander, Quijad, nr puente San Migel and nr Torrelavega, so we went for the local hotel option, which turned out to be a ‘hoot’! Mira mira (look,look) said grandma marly, when I got back liza had baracaded the door, I kid ye not, it was all going on last night, kids fighting in the next room, a crying child, no idea why but Abuela Marley went in the room with a ladder!!! I went into the local town, it’s a farming town, and you know you walk into a bar, and they all look at you as ‘who’s the stranger’ I intimidating as hell… in fact I’ve had this in France loads on rural areas. anyhow they didn’t have what I needed so I returned to find liza with a chair under the door…. Abuela marly’ la asesina de tijeras!!! Lol the scissor killer! fff, I was only gone 30 mins…I actually liked her, but she ran her hotel with an iron fist…bit of charm though, and request to straighten my spanish she was cool as chips… we also got chance to hit the beach last night, check out the pics. place called La Isla, great beaches with serious mountains in the beyond. We have really been surprised, as I’ve walked through many northern cities and towns, but never traveled the coast, it is stunning! We dropped the car, and guess what Easy Jet have informed us our flight is delayed! Not that I care, I’ll just have another beer in the airport

Wow, thanks all for your kind words, we really appreciate the sentiment:-) I will still keep posting pics as our journey is not quite over, but before I do. if anything above from our pilgrimage has brought out the wanting to go yourselves, I can’t say much more than these trips can be life changing for some folks. It’s a physical challenge for sure, but as I discussed with Macca, e-bikes have opened this up allot more. And you can rent them here, all along the way; we are considering taking our kids next year all the way from the Pyrenees to Santiago. in terms of development, I recently left a new job I had to work for myself, and I have had a big chance to think and decide on whats next, that’s positive. so to sign off, for now, Buen Camino a todos (everyone) and check out the pics from our last day back… Malc & Liza

More pics from Santiago and folks we met coming in:/)

Día douce / day 12 Santiago de Compostela - Our second day in our hotel, we have been bumming it about the town taking in the sights, New pilgrims stream in every day, and we have bumped into some folks we met on our pilgrimage. This morning Liza and I attended the Pilgrims mass at the cathedral, then after a cafe solo y menta te, went to the pilgrims museum, which is literally across from the main cathedral entrada, If you ever visit the city, deffo go, it’s free and really well done. Tomorrow we will hop in a hire car and make our way across to Bilbao airport, but not before stopping over night at Playa Isla, which looks to have a great beach. So other stuff today, my legs are returning, Liza had a nasty infection on her little toe, which will need to be looked at on our return. We just went cloths shopping, looks like we will be eating small pieces of cheese for the next few months! And we have our pilgrim passports stamped and ready, just need to enjoy tonight before we leave Santiago tomorrow. As we walked I noticed loads of boots and shoes that had been discarded on the way, as a tribute here is the: “La Galería de Zapatos Fantásticos” featuring pilgrims who may or may not have got to Santiago !

We will check it out, was going to ask, we will drive back to Bilbao from Santiago, if we take the coastal roads, any suggestions en route? malc

Dia douce/ Day 12 We arrived in Santiago yesterday afternoon after a serious walk, the conditions in the morning were perfect, the rain had pushed through from yesterday, there was light cloud, nice temperature and no direct sun, so we really went for it. There are some great pics from this area, no big surprises, no big hills, straight nice pathways with occasional detours through pueblos, they tend to have cobbled streets, which can be painful after two weeks! However, Before you know it we have decided to change the plan and push through to Santiago a day earlier, then the sun comes out and it’s super strong. Liza has taken painkillers and ibrobufen as her little toe is on s bad way after pushing it yesterday to get past the ‘Menu Del Dia Pilgrims’ you know the sort. Liza has taken to calling them the ‘Metro sexuals’ I’m not sure even a Kenny from South Park could agree with that, maybe he could Kenny was a twisted, you know it!! Sparkly white t-Shirts, umbrellas, clean Lycra shorts, it’s just a stroll in the park! I bet they wear buM bags! So we are here, but we have just booked into a hotel to lick our wounds. We are going to get our Pilgrim passports stamped today and attend the pilgrims mass at the cathedral, now that is a great experience, my family are catholic but I never took it up so to speak. if you haven’t, watch the film ‘the way’ with Martin Sheen, his son directs and plays a small but special roll in the film. This should give you a different feel for the pilgrimage. My next instalment coming soon, as I’m off to the launderette…. Luego

day 11 / Quick update, 17:57pm We are now in Santiago de Compestella!! Massive effort today 38k, and we are literally licking our wounds, my legs, calves and feet may never be the same! Liza had done that with a blister from hell, seeped so much on the walk it came through her shoe, she has been on pain killers all day. A word of warning, don’t do this at home kids, walking without due care can really harm you!! Lol Ill post a full update tonight, but a few pics until then. ¡Hasta pronto!

Dia nueve / Día diez hi folks no post yesterday as I just didn’t have time, but where I left off was leaving Sarria at 5am in the morning, we like to make hay while the sun isn’t there to hound us. so Sarria to Portomarin, 22k, done and dusted, we walked like wind that morning! Portomarin is a town I have history with, but only in that last time I walked here with a big group of pilgrims we opted for a ‘completario’ ruta, and ended up walking far further than we had wished! This time Liza and I crossed the Rio Miño, which was at least 10 meters lower than it normally is, and entered the town via a set of stone steps, the whole town is on a kinda plateau, which you walk upto, never seen a town like it. The central ‘iglesia’ is a really good one, I thought it had a touch of the ‘Norman’ in its square design, check out the pics. We kicked our boots around here for a bit then made a decision I knew was coming, as it is, we were always behind schedule, even with squeezing 5k in extra a day, we need to get ahead so we can collect our car at the Santiago train station on the morning of the 23rd, which means we need to get to Santiago on the 22nd. So to make this happen, we took a taxi to Palas de Rei, a town which I was all but happy to walk out of, some towns click with you, some don’t, simple. We walked another 4K to a small pueblo called San Xulion do Camiño. The albergue we found was called ‘Albergue Turístico “O Abrigadoiro” which very loosely translated means pilgrim that wears or is wrapped in a / the coat. Abrigar means to wrap or bundle together, and the ‘adoiro’ part refers to a person… it’s a great Albergue, food was spot on, we also met Anabele, from Manley in Sydney, we have both been Sydneysiders 15 odd years ago, so we had lots to chat about. This girl however was something else in the walking department, she was looking to do Saint John PDLP in the Pyrenees to Santiago in 21 days, that’s 3 weeks to walk 800 plus kilometres, she normally did high thirties to 40 plus km per day. With no rest day, that’s some going, we all fell to sleep about 9pm, and when We awoke at 5am, she was gone. today day ten of our walk had taken us 30k into Arzúa, a really nice town, then another 6 to 7k past, and we found a place called Casa de Heidi, run by Ralf, two cats, a dog and of course Heidi. Nice spot to stop as it’s Lizas birthday today, 27 again, also our wedding anniversary, so we are going to kick back with some Estrellas Especial, and some nice food. I always ask if they serve Alhambra Oro (gold) and of course they always look shocked you have asked, they don’t serve that southern s**t in Galicia! But us having lived in the south, We gotta ask! today has also been a first in the weather front, it has totally pissed down, sorry rained all day. We wondered about packing ponchós, glad I did now. Autumn has arrived in Galicia, the leaves are all turning and the wind over the last few days has carpeted the walkways and gardens with colour, it’s actually lovely to walk through, but it’s been sticky as well with a pack. we met a lovely guy from France a few times, there is always a cat and mouse chase going on, I always make a joke of it, I always found it easier to speak to strangers personally, especially when it’s nout to do with the things I do or am into, northern soul springs to mind! Lol anyhow this guy started his walk over a 1000k ago, he stated walking on 30th June… likes rugby and was thrilled to know we live in Wales, you know the Welsh are always out talking about the weather and the price of butter, and staring at tv on a sat afternoon We also hit the 100k to Santiago marker, check out below, big number that as we were told every Spaniard and his dog will be on the walk after Sarria, they were not joking, we passed massive groups of 20 plus school children, big groups of folks mainly doing day walks, or legs, so you pack a small bag, an umbrella and even your wellies if you wish, send your cloths ahead to a pre booked albergue and take your time, you can imagine the hardened pilgrims behind rushing in, yep we have bragging rights! Lol silliness aside it’s a problem for folks like us as everyone is booked up, but I have always kept to one rule, get past the big towns, and the pilgrims thin out, that’s where you get the better digs.. and generally they are cheaper. we stopped at a Panadería called ‘Manso’ nice place but there must have been some all night rave or something as the cafe and the street was full of drunk teenagers, mix in pilgrims with back packs and ponchos and it’s madness… glad we got out of that town! jumping back to our taxi yesterday, a necessary evil I’m afraid m when we started walking again, we felt very odd, all the folks we knew bar a few were behind us, and liza literally said I wonder what happened to Krazy Kim, I looked at the side of the tunnel we were in and there she was, ‘Cymru am Byth’ that put us right back in the game! Funny how stuff like that happens. Luego

Hey Macca, thanks for posting you should consider the e-bike option, we have met loads of folks, families, couples and big groups of friends all biking it, some without, but allot will the ‘E’ option. malc

Dia ocho / Day 8 Another big day of walking and early start at 5:30 to get us back in the game! I have a great Camino guide, published by Michelin, every page gives you a stage, but it’s not what’s on the page that counts, it’s the distance. We do on average 25 kilometres per day, which at our position yesterday was short, we needed a biggie and today was it!! 9k from Fonfria to Triacastela, then a further 22k into Sarria, the town with a really cool Monastry. If you have ever walked with a torch at night, you will know stuff that moves fast can be really frightening, it’s pitch black, Im walking along at a good pace, I look up and my torch reveals a semi clothed guy coming out of the bushes, frightened the Be-Jesus out of me… as it was he was a plastic statue of a Neanderthal man. Local albergue joke I’m sure.., highlight of today’s walk was a hippie cafe / refugió called ‘Terra de luz’ I’d been to this place in 2018, and met some great folks. Today Liza met Snake hip yoga guru guy. Part Jesus lookalike, part yoga guru dude, he literally from out of nowhere, Horizontal Planed next to liza and asked “What have you learned?” I can see Liza: thinking wtf, who’s this guy, urrrrr “I’m emptying my head, that’s why I’m on Camino, are you walking the way? Snake hip guru guy: “I walk the way every day.” Yep I can see where this is going, Snake hip Guru is gonna lay it on us! any more saffron in that shirt and his sandals will pass for kidney beans. I’m getting her out! At that moment his colleague comes over, and reminds him about the next mediation session, something I am not adversed to what so ever, but with folks that don’t speak in riddles. We fill up with food, grab a hand full of biscuits and head for the road. There are some pics below of other folks we met there, plus what looks like a birthday party for an Oompa Loompa, a little Spanish play on palabras we are in the monesterio at Sarria, in a 40 plus dorm, gonna be a snoring party tonight, with another early start to head out to Portomarrin.

Día siete/ day 7 I had forgotten the unbelievable views on the next leg of our walk. The climb up-to O Cebreiro is a tough one, with one plateau after another, in places it’s soul destroying with a full pack. We left at 7am, meaning we should get there as the cafes open. But not before we passed through the cloud base, check out the photos, they are ok, but don’t do it the full justice. Below the cloud the atmosphere is wet and cold, they are dairy farmers here, as you rise above the cloud the sun streams through you… it’s a brilliant experience, all while you tend your sore feet and calves! last night was fun, I happened to pass this guy with a very cool shirt on, so I commented in Spanish, great shirt! He must have thought I was taking the piss as he said I’ve had it 15 years, well looking good for 15!years pal, that was in English. So he’s a German guy, not Spanish, and a bit of a tit, he got a ‘take it easy from his wife’ so all was fine in the world of cool shirts. That was until our host put them both next to us at dinner! Well that was uncomfortable! Lol I can tell you one thing, he knows buggar all about wine! He ordered the mouthwash @ 24 euro, while we had a good one from Leon, needed to breath but it pretty good for 8 Euro I thought, he can use his mouthwash to wash his shirt! Just had some great intel, this year the Spanish government has given 25/30 year age groups from Spain 250 euro to walk the Camino, meaning it’s party time in all towns in the last 100k from Sarria. So we might skip around the main towns and use the places the massage lady at our Albergue has just suggested to Liza, So Samos, which has a great place to swim, Barbadilos has a wonderful Monastery, and we have more places to take us away from the crazy crowds… I have to say this is my third Camino walk, and it’s quiet, very few Americans, Canadians, you never meet many Brits, so I guess Italians are the the prominent pilgrims outside of the Spanish. We passed into Galicia this morning and it’s recognisable straight away in the way folks speak, Galician is the basis for portugués, so they have that kind of twang to their speech, I’ve been set straight twice today on how to pronounce certain words… I tell you one thing, its a long way from how folks speak in Albox / Arboleas and the south, you are lucky if you get ‘Buena’ as a greeting in fact that’s all you normally get. finally for the chicos we have met and have been keeping tabs on, no ‘Zapatos Fantásticos’ today, their footwear must have sprung a leak! We saw Emma at O Cebreiro very quickly, Jennifer was not with her today, and maybe as we are going to start mixing it up to avoid the crowds, we may not see them until Santiago Buenos tardes chicos

More pics, walk like an Egyptian, Liza drawing the sky, peligrino wellies…

We have her! Our Welsh Gorilla Graffiti Artist has revealed herself. Krazy Kim is a lively one, and her tags are getting more frequent! Liza has started photographing, wait for it ‘Michael Jackson, yep he’s out here on Camino! He will have allot to confess to Saint James im sure… pics in a min, bad Wi Fi in our expensive hotel.. malc