Backpacking Bill

Days are starting to all look the same. Didn’t take photos leaving Castrojerez.

Many avoid the Meseta. However, Tina and I are enjoying it. It’s an easier walk and, although the terrain is flat, there is beauty in the landscape. This morning we elected to put our ponchos in our travel bag because the forecast was for no rain. That may have been a mistake because it is looking like rain.

The flat terrain lets one think more about life than an achy exhausted body. The other advantage we have is that this is a cool day. It would be, I am sure, a much different experience if it were 95°F + which it was this summer.

The Camino follows the tow path of the Canal de Castilla for a few miles. This canal was built to transport grain to market. I understand that it was nearing completion in the middle to late 19th century. This was about the time that railroads were starting to be built. The canals had a short working history. Like the canals being built in the USA about the same time. Technology changes and those that abapt don’t wind up in the dustbin of history.

After their short life as a working canal, it was used for irrigation (for which it is still used) and for mills. There are some tour boats as well.

Tonight we had the Pilgrim meal at our hotel. Tina had salad, chicken with french fries (every meal has french fries) and flan. I had Castilian soup ( garlic soup) trout with french fries, and ice cream. Wine is included. We met a number of fellow pilgrims that we know from the trail. One group was from the UK, a group we met yesterday. And, one fellow shares an interest in Robert Burns. He and I (to the great shagrin of Tina and his wife) shared quotations ad nauseam.

We also discussed Spanish lisp. In Castilian there is a definite lisp. Gracias is pronounced “Grathias”. This is proper Spanish. The legend is that King Ferdinand or King Peter of Castile spoke with a lisp. Evidentially there is no historical basis for this. It likely evolved from the “s” and “z” sounds from ancient Castilian.

Tina’s Thoughts

Today I felt thankful for many things, including,

The cooler overcast weather

Continued beautiful landscape

The crosses along the Camino that remind us of God’s grace, love and mercy

For Bill.  I wouldn’t want to be walking with anyone else. He has been a helpmate in big and little ways along this journey. 

For all of you back home whom we love.

Buen Camino

This is a short day, 5.5 miles. We are doing short days instead of days off off. I think it’s a good idea in general because there is little to do in some of these sleepy Spanish villages. The down side is that there are some interesting cities where we could spend a day.

There was evidently a Hospital at this convent. The disease they were known to treat was Saint Anton’s Fire. There is evidently a fungus that can get into rye grain. This fungus, I understand, causes some really bad effects. So, people who eat rye bread would get Saint Anton’s Fire. In Castrojerez they make their bread with wheat. Pilgrims would come to the convent, eat the bread and be miraculously cured of Saint Anton’s Fire.

We had lunch at a small tavern in town. Per a suggestion from another Pilgrim we had met earlier we had croquettes and a salad. Half the croquettes, the best tasting ones, were black. It turns out that they were blood sausage croquettes.

One thing that American pilgrims have to know and deal with is the Spanish rhythm of life and adjust accordingly. Whenever you’re hungry the restaurants close and don’t open until you want to go to bed. We usually get to our location about 2:00 pm. That is good because most of the lodging places open then. Restaurants close from 3:00 until 8:00. The only place to get something to eat is a sleepy bar and often they have a very limited menu. This is not the case at lodging that supplies dinner.

I am amazed at how well I am sleeping. Some of the beds are good, like the one in Burgos, and some not so good. The one last night was average, a bit too soft. But, the absolute quiet of these remote villages is great.

Today is a long hike, 12.5 miles. Oh, if it only was kilometers.

Our lodging boasted a Spa.  While Tina partook of the amenity, I had a glass of 1.3 € wine with a fellow pilgrim, Carol from San Sebastian, Spain. Her best friend is a wine maker, P. López de Herendia – Viño Tondonia. I included Jim in the conversations via WhatsApp chat. Jim was very familiar with the wine. Carol was emphatic that Spanish wine is far better than Italian wine. That evening I sat next to an Italian fellow who was equally emphatic that Italian wine is superior to Spanish wine. I am thankful that I know so little that I can agree with both of them.

We had a communal dinner at our lodging. The meal was great but, the highlight was Tina. She sat next to a Portuguese guy and a Dutch guy. Across was me, an Italian guy and a Danish guy. She had a ball being in the middle of all these handsome men,

Tina’s Thoughts

Yes I wholeheartedly agree with Bill’s last statement.  I did have a ball at dinner last night.  I usually love the dinners that are with other pilgrams, the dinner last night was particularly fun.  Jao from Portugal was a big personality, very engaging as was his Camino best friend from Italy.   By that time of day, I am generally weary so it helps to get re energized by good food and good company.

When we planned this Camino, we looked at various itineraries and scenarios for how we wanted to spend our days. The average Camino Francés takes 32-35 days. We are doing it in 42 days and as I mentioned in another post,  we have booked all of our lodgings in advance,  Many people plan rest days but we chose to do shorter walk days interspersed instead of 2 nights in the same place.  We have been happy with that decision until arriving in Burgos.  We arrived in Burgos, last Saturday after 14 miles of walking on little sleep from the night before.

I arrived  tired and crabby. 😺 After a shower and a short rest we went hunting for dinner. In Spain at 5:00 pm it’s impossible to find a place that will serve a full dinner so we opted for pinchos and then I went straight to bed having missed the best of Burgos.  On our way out of town, the next morning we came across the most beautiful cathedral I have seen in Europe. The plaza and area around it reminded me of a swiss village. It was breathtaking and  I  instantly regretted that we didn’t have time to enjoy it. Burgos by far, in my opinion is the loveliest small city we have passed through on the Camino.  Take note for any of you who may be in this part of Spain.  Burgos is a gem.   

This morning started off with a  fun happening. The cafe we wanted to go to for breakfast didn’t open for half an hour so, we stopped in a cafe for a coffee (our usual double espresso for me and a latte for Tina). We were descended upon by a group of revelers from the night before. They were students (law, art and political science). They were a bright shining start to our day. One had taken down a string of flags that had been strung at a plaza. He wrapped the flags around himself and said it was a costume for the El Cid celebration. He wanted us to take the flags as a gift in celebration of El Cid, we declined, I didn’t want to get arrested by the Guardia Civil. I guess you had to be there to see the fun of it. The gal in the photo is from Morocco. Tina spoke with her briefly and in passing advised her to wait for the right man to be in her life. She came to tears and said that we were her family.

On the way out of Burgos we encountered the group of fellows we met on the first day. John took our photo

We walked with a woman pilgrim this afternoon from San Sebastian. She told us a story about early pilgrims. In medieval times there was nothing to mark the way. They followed the path of the milky way.

We made it to Rabé de las Calzadas. According to the locals it is 476 kilometers to Santiago (295 miles)

Looking forward, there will not be much of note to report. We are entering the Meseta, a long stretch of the flat uninteresting terrain. It is a time for contemplation. Read that to be boring. However, many believe it to be an important part of the Camino. My posts will probably be shorter.

Today is another long slog. The operator of our lodging last night sat everyone down and told us the recommended alternate route into Burgos. It’s a little longer but a much more attractive route. The official route evidentially goes through a mostly industrial area.

We walked with the French family for a little while. The entire family is walking to Santiago. They started at their home in Belgium. Not sure if they started walking there. They seem like a really great family. They will have so many memories. Their children will be able, with their photos, to relate the adventure to subsequent generations. The youngest daughter is three, she gets a ride sometimes.

The rocks st the base of the cross are put there by pilgrims. Some are in remembrance of someone in their life. Some represent leaving a worry or a care. On the Camino one learns that you can do very well without a lot of extra stuff in your life. A couple of  days ago my Fitbit band partially broke. I am having to rig it on my wrist. I think I will just do without it. Just another thing to worry about.

The game the guys in the photo are playing is that they ask a passerby to toss a ball into the basketball basket. If you get the ball in you get a shot of some kind of liquor. If the player is a good looking gal they grab the basket and assure a win.

Fortunately tomorrow will be a shorter day, just nine miles, did I say short? At this point it seems short compared to the fourteen today.

Tina’s Thoughts

I had very tired feet walking into Burgos yesterday but the walk in was lovely.  They have a walking/bike path that follows the river into town for many miles and it’s delightful for the locals.  The weather was idyllic and so many people were out strolling,running ,roller blading and biking.   It helped get us through the last couple of miles. 

One thing I have noticed about the Spanish towns big and small is they center around a plaza with the focal point being a church or cathedral.   Streets with shops and restaurants radiate off of the plaza.  It’s all very communal and walkable. 

Sorry this post got out of order because I updated it while off WiFi. Up to this day everything has been new and interesting. We may have been jaded by seeing yet another classic village but, everything had an element of wonder. Today doesn’t seem to be inspiring. The Camino is mostly a farm access road next to a busy highway.

Compare yourself to this random pilgrim picked at random. We met a Dutch gal who was walking the Camino after recently losing her husband of some 40+ years. She started her pilgrimage in the Netherlands. She is a chef at a restaurant, she has two grown children, she has a catering business, and she is a foster parent to two children with disabilities . She also volunteers for various organizations. I can’t imagine her day to day life. The previous night she stayed at a monastery where she cooked the evening meal for 51 other pilgrims. One of the other pilgrims took her towel (they are not supplied at the common shower facility in the monastery, you also sleep on a mattress on the floor). Her comment regarding the loss of her only towel was “I hope they need it more than I do”

Encountered a lot of these small snails on grasses beside the road. I believe they are Vineyard Snails. They are a problem for farmers when the farmers are harvesting, the snails get into whatever it is being harvested. They are also gathered and find their way into tapas.

Jeremy, our friend from Calgary, joined us for dinner. He is now traveling solo his three traveling companions have gone to other places. Had a great dinner that lasted a lot longer than anticipated. butt, what a joyful evening.

Looking forward, it happens that we will be getting to Burgos during another festival. This will be another unplanned highlight to our Camino. This one is called “El Cid Week”.

Tina’s Thoughts

Hello y’all. Thank you for sending love and prayers to us on this journey.  We feel it all.  We have almost come to an end to week 2 and we are still here. Ha ha. There are so many people walking this Camino that apparently at this stage it is difficult to find lodging,  We are thankful we booked ahead.

One of the most striking things I am finding as we walk is how steep the  terrains are, Not as steep as the Pyrenees but there are daily uphills nonetheless. They say walking the Camino is a metaphor for life and I believe it’s true.  We all face daily challenges, some more difficult than others. When we get to the top often there is a gentle resting flat piece before we go downhill, however there are times that we face a sharp and dangerous decline.  These are more challenging and.difficult than the uphills and we have to take them slowly and carefully;  One step at a time, otherwise we will have a big crash!

The resting spots (of which there are many beautiful ones) are a gift for me, as I am not by nature a person who loves to walk these long distances.  😊. Psalm 23 keeps me going during the toughest of days, 

Until the next time, Buen Camino!

I can’t believe that we are into our second week. And, that we are still going. We will be entering Burgos tomorrow, Just found out that they are having a festival when we are there. This one translates to “El Cid Week”. Lots of medieval stuff.  I hope they won’t be reveling through the night – I would like to get some sleep.

In Agé we again encountered our friends from Florida. They seem to be having a great Camino. We also happened upon the Dutch gal who had her towel stolen from the Monastery where she was staying. As I travel the Camino I realize that it is a moving community. We encountered the same individuals time and again.

Our lodging is more like a true Albergue, there is a common lavatory and shower, no separate men’s and women’s. There are separate cubicles with doors and locks. It is, however, new to us.

At dinner were people from Germany, France, Taiwan and USA. Maybe other places but I didn’t talk to everyone.

This was a comparatively short day, if you can call walking ten miles short

Met a young Italian guy from Bologna this morning. He had his backpack on a small cart that he was pulling. He recently had open heart surgery and a valve replacement. His cardiologist just gave him the OK to walk the Camino as long as he didn’t carry a backpack. I thought I was motivated, he is way more motivated than I.

Made it to Domingo de la Calzada. This is a relatively large town and has a lot of history.

We had an early dinner by Spanish customs: 5:30 pm

This was a long slog day. There were hills ( There are always hills, whoever laid out this route never saw a hill he didn’t want to climb) and they were hard but doable.

Seemed every time we went to the Wash Machine, someone had beaten us to it. A group of French gals tried to help us out. The two of us and the three of them in Spain with no common language – that was a funny encounter.

Dinner place opened at 6:30, got there about 6:45. There were no places; told we would have to wait until 8:00. It was a late night. We ate with a new friend, Chris, from California.

Today is a relatively short day. Instead of doing layover days,we are doing short days.

Although Logroño was a great place to see, I am very pleased that we have moved on. The wine festival was fun to see but the noise at night was, for me, problematic.

Although I didn’t get a photo, it is interesting that they hose down all the streets at the beginning of the day.

Ran into a group of four guys from the Tampa, Florida area. We first encountered them on, I believe, the second day but again here in Navarrete. It turns out that they are in a Bible Study together in Florida. It’s interesting to hear what motivates people to do their Camino.

Well, it does mean something. They were erected along highways in Spain to advertise Brandy de Jerez made by the Osborne Group. They are called Osborne Bulls. They passed a law prohibiting advertising on roads (sounds like a good idea for USA) but left the Osborne Bulls. Then there was an initiative to remove the Bulls. There was such a public outcry against the initiative that the bulls remain.

In medieval times there were many hospitals along the Camino to treat the infirmed that were traveling the Camino for a miracle cure in Santiago. I can’t imagine what a medieval hospital was like. They didn’t have much but homespun remedies and prayers to offer.

Today was a relatively short day. Tomorrow is not. We are looking at 21.76 km tomorrow to get to Azofra 13.5 miles . The profile looks fairly flat but it will be a lot of miles and the temperature is projected to be 82°F. It is dry and very little shade. We will have to make sure that we drink lots of water.

Hearing Quiet

Last night was the first time that I can remember hearing silence. It seems that there is always noise: cars, airplanes, lawnmowers, leaf blowers and, in Logroño, revelers. Last night all I heard was silence. Or, maybe my hearing is going bad.