O' Cebreiro

The wonderful little village of O'Cebreiro stands at the entrance to Lugo when coming from the direction of the Ruta Jacobea on the Camino Francés, where the first of the Galician mountains start to rise. The village suffers some harsh climatic conditions and dates back to the pre-Roman period, when the Celts already occupied these wild, unspoilt areas. It is set in a spectacular natural environment and consists of a series of little streets winding between the Pallozas; robust ancient dwellings which give the place a magical, mysterious feel and have fuelled many a mythology and legend. The village feels like something out of a storybook, complete with a pretty pre-Roman church and an ancient hospital which has since become a hotel, though it still has an original stone painting of hunting scenes from the Bronze Age. This place really has stood the tests of time, without trying to hang on to the past. Many of the village's 'pallozas' are now used as souvenir shops and if you're lucky you might even get to stay in one of them. The cheeses produced here are also excellent, as you would expect.