Camino Inglés Port of Call: Ferrol, Spain
“Well, that’s not a ship you see every day,” I said to myself. A rope went from the bow up over the three masts and down to the stern, the entire thing festooned with flags from a variety of countries. Ropes crisscrossed every which way. A reminded me of the USS Constitution in Boston Harbor.
As I got closer, I realized people were boarding the ship. At first I thought it must be an historical replica docked permanently. How delighted I am that I went to check it out to find out the real story.
The Frigate ASA Libertad hails from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Since it’s construction in 1956, it has made over 50 training voyages. With 300 crew board, it sails each year to various ports around the world in order to not only train future naval officers but also to keep up good relations with other navies around the world.
It took them 21 days to cross the Atlantic. From here, they’ll go to Norway, Germany, Holland, Portugal, then back across the Atlantic to Costa Rica, up to Baltimore in the US and eventually return to Argentina.
As I hadn’t yet made my way to my hotel, I had my Camino backpack with me. I asked the first young naval officer I saw if it was OK to board with the backpack. He maintained his huge smile and said, “Of course.” I couldn’t believe I was allowed to board a military vessel with a 12 pound pack on my back. We’re not in Kansas anymore . . .
There was no security check. No line to wait on to get on board. There was one policeman watching from a distance, and that’s the only security I saw.
There were more than a dozen other young naval officers aboard, all of them greeting visitors with big smiles, answering questions, taking our photos when we requested.
I chatted with an older man who stood behind a table representing the Argentinian tourism office. After the European legs of the trip, he’ll head to Ireland to research his ancestry.
I learned that each year they do different ports of call and the trip can go anywhere from three months to nine months.
I’m due to start my Camino tomorrow. But the ship takes off at 10 AM – apparently with a bit of fanfare. So I’m thinking this Camino might get off to a late start tomorrow.
