Sleeping outside the albergue!
Dirt city.
Me celebrating at Cape Finisterre. No, there is no cigar, it was too wet!
Surreal to see ZERO kms left.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Proof!
Sleeping outside the albergue!
Dirt city.
Me celebrating at Cape Finisterre. No, there is no cigar, it was too wet!
Surreal to see ZERO kms left.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
One Day From Finisterre
I am 14 k.m. from the ¨end of the world.¨
After I said my sad goodbye to Becky in Santiago (see below), I immediately began walking to Finisterre.
The first day of walking was relatively easy, apart from a section of very steep climbing. After spending a few hours sitting by a river I found in a beautiful, small town, I made it to Negreira at 5:30 p.m. I should have been hastier because the hostel was full.
I slept outside that night. That´s right. I´m tough. In the company of a few fellow pilgrims. I put my backpack behind me, laid my sleeping bag at the front of the hostel, and put my purse in my sleeping bag. It was a horrible sleep, but I survived and it was an interesting experience. I have a photo to post later. FYI -- the coldest part of the night in Spain is 5 a.m.
I also have to mention that the showers (all women) did not have walls or doors -- just a big room. Whatever.
The second night was not much better. I got a bit lost and ended up walking about 40 k.m. in the blistering sun, only to arrive in Olveiroa to find the hostel full yet again. I slept on a gym mat in a barn-esque area of the hostel, which reeked of cow poop and was full of mosquitos. The good part about that was that I was forced to go out and party at the bar across the street, and I ended up meeting a lot of new, interesting pilgrims and local folk alike.
Tonight, I am in Cee. I am also sharing a room with two Germans at a one-star pension, which might as well be a Hilton considering the last few nights I´ve had.
People say that the beginning of the Camino is life, the dry Meseta signifies death, and the last, green bit in Galicia is rebirth.
I call the walk to Finisterre, CHILDHOOD. It is absolutely beautiful. It is very tough, as you are always walking up and down mini-mountains. Two blisters have emerged on my right foot, but I reached the ocean today and it is incredible.
Tomorrow, my Camino will end. I think I will head back to Santiago with these crazy Germans to celebrate once I finish.
- J
After I said my sad goodbye to Becky in Santiago (see below), I immediately began walking to Finisterre.
The first day of walking was relatively easy, apart from a section of very steep climbing. After spending a few hours sitting by a river I found in a beautiful, small town, I made it to Negreira at 5:30 p.m. I should have been hastier because the hostel was full.
I slept outside that night. That´s right. I´m tough. In the company of a few fellow pilgrims. I put my backpack behind me, laid my sleeping bag at the front of the hostel, and put my purse in my sleeping bag. It was a horrible sleep, but I survived and it was an interesting experience. I have a photo to post later. FYI -- the coldest part of the night in Spain is 5 a.m.
I also have to mention that the showers (all women) did not have walls or doors -- just a big room. Whatever.
The second night was not much better. I got a bit lost and ended up walking about 40 k.m. in the blistering sun, only to arrive in Olveiroa to find the hostel full yet again. I slept on a gym mat in a barn-esque area of the hostel, which reeked of cow poop and was full of mosquitos. The good part about that was that I was forced to go out and party at the bar across the street, and I ended up meeting a lot of new, interesting pilgrims and local folk alike.
Tonight, I am in Cee. I am also sharing a room with two Germans at a one-star pension, which might as well be a Hilton considering the last few nights I´ve had.
People say that the beginning of the Camino is life, the dry Meseta signifies death, and the last, green bit in Galicia is rebirth.
I call the walk to Finisterre, CHILDHOOD. It is absolutely beautiful. It is very tough, as you are always walking up and down mini-mountains. Two blisters have emerged on my right foot, but I reached the ocean today and it is incredible.
Tomorrow, my Camino will end. I think I will head back to Santiago with these crazy Germans to celebrate once I finish.
- J
One Night In Paris
You thought that when I got home, I would stop posting on this blog.......but you were wrong! I can't stop, I'm addicted to it! And so, I will proceed to tell you about my trip home, there are some good highlights that are worth mentioning.
My last day in Spain, I got up and left the hostel with Jess in the morning, we walked to the town square together before she continued on to Finisterre. Having to say bye to her was tough, it made me realize that I really was leaving! So after some big hugs and a few tears from me, I sent her off to continue the adventure that is the Camino, and I headed off to find a coffee. Little did I know that a wonderful surprise was in store for me.
I don't think we have mentioned them before on the blog, but since about our third day of walking, we ended up seeing this Korean family everyday. They always stopped in the same places we stopped, and we always passed them at least once a day while walking. We didn't speak any Korean, and they didn't speak any English, so we used big smiles and lots of waving as our way of communicating. There was a mother, father, aunt and a nine year old daughter, she was the best! Whenever we would see them, she would be the most excited, and usually greeted us with hugs. Anyway, they became welcome regulars on our Camino, and about 2 days before we reached Santiago, we lost them. We figured they would catch up and appear when we least expected, but when we hadn't seen them by the time Jess left for Finisterre, we accepted that we wouldn't see them again. This is where the nice surprise comes in; when I was sitting having my coffee that morning, they walked right by the cafe I was sitting in! I ran out the front door and yelled out to them as they passed by, and was greeted with the usual cheerfulness and big smiles that they had become known for! It was great to see them one last time before leaving Santiago! I feel like something would have been missing if they had never turned up again!
After my coffee and fix of Korean cheerfulness, I walked around a bit and did some souvenir shopping for the support crew back home. When I had finished, I figured I would walk around and find a taxi to the airport, but instead a taxi found me. I was coming out of the last store, and was nearly run down by a taxi, so I hopped in and was on my way home! I'm sure it was just the fact that I hadn't been in a car for 6 weeks, but the drive to the airport felt particularly dangerous. The driver was about 89 years old, and drove about 150km an hour. Yikes! But I arrived in one piece, and got myself checked in, and about an hour later I was on my way to Paris.
My plan was to stay in one of the hotels in the Paris airport, because I arrived around 5pm and was leaving for Montreal the next day at 1pm, so it wasn't worth it for me to get a taxi all the way into Paris, just to turn around and come back. Here is where the plan went a bit sideways....upon further inspection, the only hotels in the airport cost a minimum of 550 euros a night. So obviously, I did not stay there. My pilgrim training told me just to find a "comfortable" spot and sleep in the airport, so that's what I did! In true pilgrim style I whipped out my sleeping bag, used my backpack as a pillow and got at least a few hours of decent sleep! By the time 10:30 rolled around and they let me check in for my flight I was one happy pilgrim, it was time to go home! After a very long flight, and a quick tour through Canada Customs, I was very happy to find my parents waiting for me at the airport. A few huge hugs later and we were rolling down the highway back to Ottawa.
When we arrived at my house, I was thrilled to see that Chris and Derrick were there to surprise me, and I was informed that everyone else would over shortly! What a great surprise! I missed everyone so much, and it was so great of them to give me such a warm welcome home! A few faces were missing, ( Devon, Jen, Lindsay, Liv and Barbara, can't wait to see you guys! ) but the evening was great. I went to bed early, and was up and off to work this morning! Business as usual! I did find that I appreciated every little thing about being home though, for instance, my shower, my bed, my clothes, everything!
It is good to be back!
My last day in Spain, I got up and left the hostel with Jess in the morning, we walked to the town square together before she continued on to Finisterre. Having to say bye to her was tough, it made me realize that I really was leaving! So after some big hugs and a few tears from me, I sent her off to continue the adventure that is the Camino, and I headed off to find a coffee. Little did I know that a wonderful surprise was in store for me.
I don't think we have mentioned them before on the blog, but since about our third day of walking, we ended up seeing this Korean family everyday. They always stopped in the same places we stopped, and we always passed them at least once a day while walking. We didn't speak any Korean, and they didn't speak any English, so we used big smiles and lots of waving as our way of communicating. There was a mother, father, aunt and a nine year old daughter, she was the best! Whenever we would see them, she would be the most excited, and usually greeted us with hugs. Anyway, they became welcome regulars on our Camino, and about 2 days before we reached Santiago, we lost them. We figured they would catch up and appear when we least expected, but when we hadn't seen them by the time Jess left for Finisterre, we accepted that we wouldn't see them again. This is where the nice surprise comes in; when I was sitting having my coffee that morning, they walked right by the cafe I was sitting in! I ran out the front door and yelled out to them as they passed by, and was greeted with the usual cheerfulness and big smiles that they had become known for! It was great to see them one last time before leaving Santiago! I feel like something would have been missing if they had never turned up again!
After my coffee and fix of Korean cheerfulness, I walked around a bit and did some souvenir shopping for the support crew back home. When I had finished, I figured I would walk around and find a taxi to the airport, but instead a taxi found me. I was coming out of the last store, and was nearly run down by a taxi, so I hopped in and was on my way home! I'm sure it was just the fact that I hadn't been in a car for 6 weeks, but the drive to the airport felt particularly dangerous. The driver was about 89 years old, and drove about 150km an hour. Yikes! But I arrived in one piece, and got myself checked in, and about an hour later I was on my way to Paris.
My plan was to stay in one of the hotels in the Paris airport, because I arrived around 5pm and was leaving for Montreal the next day at 1pm, so it wasn't worth it for me to get a taxi all the way into Paris, just to turn around and come back. Here is where the plan went a bit sideways....upon further inspection, the only hotels in the airport cost a minimum of 550 euros a night. So obviously, I did not stay there. My pilgrim training told me just to find a "comfortable" spot and sleep in the airport, so that's what I did! In true pilgrim style I whipped out my sleeping bag, used my backpack as a pillow and got at least a few hours of decent sleep! By the time 10:30 rolled around and they let me check in for my flight I was one happy pilgrim, it was time to go home! After a very long flight, and a quick tour through Canada Customs, I was very happy to find my parents waiting for me at the airport. A few huge hugs later and we were rolling down the highway back to Ottawa.
When we arrived at my house, I was thrilled to see that Chris and Derrick were there to surprise me, and I was informed that everyone else would over shortly! What a great surprise! I missed everyone so much, and it was so great of them to give me such a warm welcome home! A few faces were missing, ( Devon, Jen, Lindsay, Liv and Barbara, can't wait to see you guys! ) but the evening was great. I went to bed early, and was up and off to work this morning! Business as usual! I did find that I appreciated every little thing about being home though, for instance, my shower, my bed, my clothes, everything!
It is good to be back!
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Last Day
Today is my last full day in Spain, and as excited as I am to come home and see all of you and talk your ear off about the Camino, it is also quite sad to say goodbye to the country that has taken care of me for the last 6 weeks! Tomorrow I will be flying from Santiago to Paris, and then on Tuesday I fly from Paris to Montreal, and then back to Ottawa! So today I have to play the One Last game; one last glass of wine, one last Spanish coffee, one last picture of a beautiful cathedral, etc.
I also have to say how much I am going to miss being a dirty pilgrim. I didn´t walk 20km yesterday and therefore felt as though I accomplished nothing! I´m already having walking withdrawl! The other thing I am going to miss about being a pilgrim, is the aspect of it that makes it socially acceptable to look like a hobo all the time!. I have been wearing the same 2 shirts for the last 6 weeks, ( yes, they were washed often ) , I can´t remember the last time I brushed my hair, I have forgotten how to use makeup, am constantly covered in dirt or sweat or both, and yet everyone expects this from pilgrims so there is no problem! Going back to a life where you are expected to be presentable most of the time is going to be quite and adjustment!
Although, I am very much looking forward to my first shower in my own bathroom! It´s going to be the best welcome home present ever!
Enough of the silly-ness, I have to be off to get my fix of everything Spanish! This may be my last opportunity for Internet access until I get home, so if that is the case, I´ll see you all in a few days!
I also have to say how much I am going to miss being a dirty pilgrim. I didn´t walk 20km yesterday and therefore felt as though I accomplished nothing! I´m already having walking withdrawl! The other thing I am going to miss about being a pilgrim, is the aspect of it that makes it socially acceptable to look like a hobo all the time!. I have been wearing the same 2 shirts for the last 6 weeks, ( yes, they were washed often ) , I can´t remember the last time I brushed my hair, I have forgotten how to use makeup, am constantly covered in dirt or sweat or both, and yet everyone expects this from pilgrims so there is no problem! Going back to a life where you are expected to be presentable most of the time is going to be quite and adjustment!
Although, I am very much looking forward to my first shower in my own bathroom! It´s going to be the best welcome home present ever!
Enough of the silly-ness, I have to be off to get my fix of everything Spanish! This may be my last opportunity for Internet access until I get home, so if that is the case, I´ll see you all in a few days!
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Can´t Stop, Won´t Stop
We´ve arrived safe and sound and I can finally brag that I completed the Camino de Santiago sans blisters.
But, I´ve decided to tempt fate and continue on to Finisterre. It´s a three day trip to the ¨end of the world¨ and I´m excited to continue my walking regimen on Monday morning.
It´s too bad that Becky does not have enough time to come with me to the coast, but I am extremely proud of her. She absolutely conquered the Camino. It´s insane to enter into something like this without debating it back and forth for months or years. Even while in the worst pain, she would always pick herself up and keep going. I can´t express how amazing a person she is and what wonderful company she was along the way. I am a difficult person to travel with, I´m sure, and Becky is a CLASS ACT.
Classy lady, go home and hug your family and friends. :)
I have chosen not to write about Santiago as my final destination because I don´t feel that way. I shed a few tears when I saw it in the distance for the first time, but it´s a bit anticlimactic. Although, even if I was presented with Jesus floating on a spaceship, after walking 788 km, I´d still be kinda disappointed, you know?
Woohoo!
-J
But, I´ve decided to tempt fate and continue on to Finisterre. It´s a three day trip to the ¨end of the world¨ and I´m excited to continue my walking regimen on Monday morning.
It´s too bad that Becky does not have enough time to come with me to the coast, but I am extremely proud of her. She absolutely conquered the Camino. It´s insane to enter into something like this without debating it back and forth for months or years. Even while in the worst pain, she would always pick herself up and keep going. I can´t express how amazing a person she is and what wonderful company she was along the way. I am a difficult person to travel with, I´m sure, and Becky is a CLASS ACT.
Classy lady, go home and hug your family and friends. :)
I have chosen not to write about Santiago as my final destination because I don´t feel that way. I shed a few tears when I saw it in the distance for the first time, but it´s a bit anticlimactic. Although, even if I was presented with Jesus floating on a spaceship, after walking 788 km, I´d still be kinda disappointed, you know?
Woohoo!
-J
We Made It!
Well everybody, we made it. After 38 days of walking, we finally arrived in Santiago yesterday around 3pm. It was a great walk from Arca, but turned into a very hot day, so we were very hot, tired and thirsty when we got here, which made the fact that we were pilgrims so much more obvious. It still hasn´t quite sunk in that I´m really at the end.
We immediately headed to the cathedral, which is where the Camino technically ends, so we felt we had to walk there first before we could do anything else. We sat in front of the church for a while admiring the architecture and people watching before decided we wanted our Compostelas. So we headed to the Pilgrim´s Office, to register and get our documents making us certified pilgrims. From there we found a small hotel to stay in, and dropped off our stuff, got showered and dressed and headed out to explore the city. Our timing was excellent, yesterday was the first day of the Fiesta, so there were tons of people everywhere, people busking on the side of the streets, marching bands and fireworks, the whole shabang! We decided that the festivities were in our honour, and that they were just welcoming us to Santiago.
We found a few other pilgrims and met a few new people, had dinner, and started celebrating our arrival! We left the bar around 2am, and the streets were still packed with people, and music and craziness, so we felt it would not be right to go to bed, instead we got some ice cream, headed back to the bar in our hotel, got another bottle of wine and continued the party! The 38 days of walking caught up with me around 4am, so I turned in for the night. Jess, being the hero that she is, ended her night around 7:30 this morning! We were both quite slow getting up and ready this morning, but because we are good little pilgrims, we got our butts out of bed and headed to the cathedral to attend the mass they hold for the pilgrims at noon.
Since then we have wandered around the city, found a nice cheap room for tonight and have been on the lookout for any pilgrims we may know that are arriving today. Now I believe it is time for a snack, as it usually is.
All around, it has been an amazing trip. Lots of tears and lots of laughs, definitely the best thing I could have possibly done for myself. After finishing the Camino, I feel like I can do anything, I am Superman!
Anyone else have a country they want me to walk across?
We immediately headed to the cathedral, which is where the Camino technically ends, so we felt we had to walk there first before we could do anything else. We sat in front of the church for a while admiring the architecture and people watching before decided we wanted our Compostelas. So we headed to the Pilgrim´s Office, to register and get our documents making us certified pilgrims. From there we found a small hotel to stay in, and dropped off our stuff, got showered and dressed and headed out to explore the city. Our timing was excellent, yesterday was the first day of the Fiesta, so there were tons of people everywhere, people busking on the side of the streets, marching bands and fireworks, the whole shabang! We decided that the festivities were in our honour, and that they were just welcoming us to Santiago.
We found a few other pilgrims and met a few new people, had dinner, and started celebrating our arrival! We left the bar around 2am, and the streets were still packed with people, and music and craziness, so we felt it would not be right to go to bed, instead we got some ice cream, headed back to the bar in our hotel, got another bottle of wine and continued the party! The 38 days of walking caught up with me around 4am, so I turned in for the night. Jess, being the hero that she is, ended her night around 7:30 this morning! We were both quite slow getting up and ready this morning, but because we are good little pilgrims, we got our butts out of bed and headed to the cathedral to attend the mass they hold for the pilgrims at noon.
Since then we have wandered around the city, found a nice cheap room for tonight and have been on the lookout for any pilgrims we may know that are arriving today. Now I believe it is time for a snack, as it usually is.
All around, it has been an amazing trip. Lots of tears and lots of laughs, definitely the best thing I could have possibly done for myself. After finishing the Camino, I feel like I can do anything, I am Superman!
Anyone else have a country they want me to walk across?
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Christmas Eve
Technically I am supposed to be in bed right now, the albergue shut its doors and turned off the lights about 20mins ago, and I only have 3 minutes of Internet time to post this. Just wanted to say goodnight to all of you on the equivalent of our Christmas Eve. Tomorrow we will arrive in Santiago after 38 days of walking. Unbelievable! I am so excited, but also sad that this means the end of this wonderful trip is coming.
Goodnight to all, and our next post will be from Santiago!
Hasta Manana!
Goodnight to all, and our next post will be from Santiago!
Hasta Manana!
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Honorable Mentions
I just wanted to follow up Jess´s entry with a little side note about some great pilgrims we met last night in Palas de Rei. The two men who were sleeping in the bunks beside Jess and I turned out to be some great people. The first is an older Austrian man named Rudy, who started walking the Camino from his front door in Austria, as is the tradition for European pilgrims. This means that he has been walking for about 3000km now.....which makes me slightly less proud of my 800km walk......only slightly. He recently won a long battle with cancer, and his way of saying ¨thank you¨ to the powers that be, is to walk this ridiculous distance. He is a hero! He had much to say, and we were even treated to a little traditional Austrian yodeling, which was awesome!
Note to self: learn how to yodel.
The other gentleman in the room was a guy who is from Galicia ( the Spanish province we are in, for those of you not paying attention ), and he is so proud of this area, that he whipped out tons of beautiful pictures he had taken and told us a lot about the culture and specialties of this province. His contribution to the evening´s entertainment, was that he was also a piper, and played us some traditional Galician tunes on his flute. It was quite a musical evening all around! He also walked with us today for a bit, and continued playing his flute while we walked.......it was really great, but made me feel a little like I was marching off to war.
All around, the people you meet along the way contribute a lot to the Camino, so I´m glad we got to meet those dudes and hear their stories, and figured there was a place for them on this blog!
Note to self: learn how to yodel.
The other gentleman in the room was a guy who is from Galicia ( the Spanish province we are in, for those of you not paying attention ), and he is so proud of this area, that he whipped out tons of beautiful pictures he had taken and told us a lot about the culture and specialties of this province. His contribution to the evening´s entertainment, was that he was also a piper, and played us some traditional Galician tunes on his flute. It was quite a musical evening all around! He also walked with us today for a bit, and continued playing his flute while we walked.......it was really great, but made me feel a little like I was marching off to war.
All around, the people you meet along the way contribute a lot to the Camino, so I´m glad we got to meet those dudes and hear their stories, and figured there was a place for them on this blog!
Arzua
First, a note to my father.
Dear Dad,
I´m very sorry I have been writing so much about nudity. However, sex sells and I do what I can to keep the readers coming back.
But seriously folks, I can´t help but share the horror stories as they are always what comes to mind when I can actually get behind a computer. However, you won´t be hearing any more from me as I am now completely desensitized. Moving on.
Now on to weather, culture, geography and the like.
We had a lovely 32 km walk today through the thick Galician forests -- imagine ´The Shire´from Middle Earth (Lord of the Rings for you non-nerds). The path often looks like a tunnel because of the overhanging trees. Unlike back in the Meseta, there are towns every 2 km or so, so walking seems to go much quicker.
Right now, we are in a town called Arzua (pronouced Are-thoo-ah) which is renowned for its smooth, creamy cheese. I´ll be endulging a bit later on tonight and I have been assured by Greg from Tennessee that it is quite delicious with beer.
It was pretty hot out today, even though Galicia is known for its soggy weather. They call this section of the walk the ´Rompe-Piernas´ which means ´Break Legs´. It´s a lot of up and down, but it´s a welcome change from giant mountains and neverending plains.
I can´t wait to upload photos of Galicia on here. No working USB jack yet, sorry.
The hostel we are staying at today is absolutely gorgeous, shower doors and all. The water was warm and the pressure good. The beds appear clean. The hospitaleros are welcoming. All in all, an absolute hit after the municipal shitholes we´ve been staying in lately.
Two more days ´til Santiago. I might have a treat for you all after that.
I miss you guys.
-J
Dear Dad,
I´m very sorry I have been writing so much about nudity. However, sex sells and I do what I can to keep the readers coming back.
But seriously folks, I can´t help but share the horror stories as they are always what comes to mind when I can actually get behind a computer. However, you won´t be hearing any more from me as I am now completely desensitized. Moving on.
Now on to weather, culture, geography and the like.
We had a lovely 32 km walk today through the thick Galician forests -- imagine ´The Shire´from Middle Earth (Lord of the Rings for you non-nerds). The path often looks like a tunnel because of the overhanging trees. Unlike back in the Meseta, there are towns every 2 km or so, so walking seems to go much quicker.
Right now, we are in a town called Arzua (pronouced Are-thoo-ah) which is renowned for its smooth, creamy cheese. I´ll be endulging a bit later on tonight and I have been assured by Greg from Tennessee that it is quite delicious with beer.
It was pretty hot out today, even though Galicia is known for its soggy weather. They call this section of the walk the ´Rompe-Piernas´ which means ´Break Legs´. It´s a lot of up and down, but it´s a welcome change from giant mountains and neverending plains.
I can´t wait to upload photos of Galicia on here. No working USB jack yet, sorry.
The hostel we are staying at today is absolutely gorgeous, shower doors and all. The water was warm and the pressure good. The beds appear clean. The hospitaleros are welcoming. All in all, an absolute hit after the municipal shitholes we´ve been staying in lately.
Two more days ´til Santiago. I might have a treat for you all after that.
I miss you guys.
-J
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
The End is Nigh!
Three more days of walking! That´s just plain nuts! I can´t believe we have been walking for 36 days straight! That´s not normal. But then again, I think at this point it´s blatantly obvious that we are not normal.
I just need to put in my 2 cents on the whole public showering situation.
Yesterday, when presented with the women-only showers with no doors-curtains-or-anything-situation, I thought it was going to be a bit awkward, and had to take a moment to get over my Canadian aversion to being naked in public. But, after a few minutes of summoning up some courage, I conquered the whole naked ordeal. I felt like such a trooper!
Then today´s extra-special shower arrangement came up.
I no longer felt like a trooper, but more like I was being taken to the very edge of my comfort-zone, and then violently thrown off it.....turns out yesterday was just a warm up. But like Jess said, we prevailed! We planned our timing carefully, and were prepared to scream loudly should anyone have the misfortune of walking by our door-less shower stalls. Just when you think you have gotten the best of the Camino......it throws you another curveball!
Back to the non-public nudity portion of this blog.
Yesterday we walked from Sarria, through some of the most beautiful landscape we´ve seen yet, to Portomarin. During this walk we passed the 100km-to-Santiago mark, and ended the day with about 90km to go! Amazing!
Unfortunately, to get your ¨Compostela¨ (certificate for completing the Camino ) you only need to walk the last 100km, so obviously this is an option that many people take. I mean, who is crazy enough to walk 700km more than needed to get the same certificate? But for us, who are just that crazy, it means we have now been joined by a lot more people on the trail. And nothing against people or anything, but it is a big change from the peacefulness we have enjoyed the last 5 weeks, and I´m not thrilled about it! And I understand that most people do not have the luxury of being able to leave their real lives for 5 or 6 weeks to complete the entire Camino, but still! I think there should be a different certificate for people who have walked the whole thing, perhaps a slightly nicer one on fancy paper or something, something that says ¨Hey, I´ve been walking since France!¨. Is that too much to ask?
Apparantly.
Anyways, enough time spent ranting about the injustice of being a pilgrim, I´m running out of Internet time, and have yet to say how despite the doorless showers, hoards of new pilgrims, hot sun, and sore feet, I am going to miss the old Camino in about 3 days when I have to say goodbye. And on a bigger scale, I´m also going to miss the beautiful country of Spain in about 6 days when I have to fly back to Paris! Where else do they sell wine in vending machines and willingly get trampled by bulls?
But for now, I have to go enjoy one of my last pilgrim´s dinners, and absorb as much of the Spanish culture as I can to take home with me!
Hasta la vista, baby.
I just need to put in my 2 cents on the whole public showering situation.
Yesterday, when presented with the women-only showers with no doors-curtains-or-anything-situation, I thought it was going to be a bit awkward, and had to take a moment to get over my Canadian aversion to being naked in public. But, after a few minutes of summoning up some courage, I conquered the whole naked ordeal. I felt like such a trooper!
Then today´s extra-special shower arrangement came up.
I no longer felt like a trooper, but more like I was being taken to the very edge of my comfort-zone, and then violently thrown off it.
Back to the non-public nudity portion of this blog.
Yesterday we walked from Sarria, through some of the most beautiful landscape we´ve seen yet, to Portomarin. During this walk we passed the 100km-to-Santiago mark, and ended the day with about 90km to go! Amazing!
Unfortunately, to get your ¨Compostela¨ (certificate for completing the Camino ) you only need to walk the last 100km, so obviously this is an option that many people take. I mean, who is crazy enough to walk 700km more than needed to get the same certificate? But for us, who are just that crazy, it means we have now been joined by a lot more people on the trail. And nothing against people or anything, but it is a big change from the peacefulness we have enjoyed the last 5 weeks, and I´m not thrilled about it! And I understand that most people do not have the luxury of being able to leave their real lives for 5 or 6 weeks to complete the entire Camino, but still! I think there should be a different certificate for people who have walked the whole thing, perhaps a slightly nicer one on fancy paper or something, something that says ¨Hey, I´ve been walking since France!¨. Is that too much to ask?
Apparantly.
Anyways, enough time spent ranting about the injustice of being a pilgrim, I´m running out of Internet time, and have yet to say how despite the doorless showers, hoards of new pilgrims, hot sun, and sore feet, I am going to miss the old Camino in about 3 days when I have to say goodbye. And on a bigger scale, I´m also going to miss the beautiful country of Spain in about 6 days when I have to fly back to Paris! Where else do they sell wine in vending machines and willingly get trampled by bulls?
But for now, I have to go enjoy one of my last pilgrim´s dinners, and absorb as much of the Spanish culture as I can to take home with me!
Hasta la vista, baby.
Three Euros ... No Doors
Hey everybody.
We are doing great! Three more days of walking before we reach Santiago. Can you believe it? I certainly can´t. I have a strange combination of feelings while walking, now. I feel happy that the end is close, but cautious because I´m sure that I´ve been far too lucky so far in terms of injuries. Hopefully I can make it there in one piece.
So I´ve lost a part of myself these last few days. Turns out, when you pay 3 Euros for a night at a hostel, you get what you pay for. Yesterday, I went to take a much needed shower and something was missing. I tried as hard as I could to find out how to close the shower stalls to no avail. No doors.
So there I was, in all of my Canadian glory, showering in front of other people. God, it´s really hard. If you´ve gone your whole life associating the act of showering with privacy, it´s difficult when the latter is lacking.
But, after about 30 seconds, I was fine. I was used to it. It´s OKAY.
However, today we did the same thing and paid 3 Euros for our hostel. We were tired and, apparently, didn´t learn our lesson.
Today´s shower situation was almost too much for me, but I couldn´t just live in my filth. The shower was CO-ED, with no doors. My LIFE!!!!
Becky and I ended up waiting until the men cleared outta there and then went in to do our business. What can I say? I´m no longer bashful.
FYI -- we´re in a town called Palas de Rei.
See you soon!
-J
We are doing great! Three more days of walking before we reach Santiago. Can you believe it? I certainly can´t. I have a strange combination of feelings while walking, now. I feel happy that the end is close, but cautious because I´m sure that I´ve been far too lucky so far in terms of injuries. Hopefully I can make it there in one piece.
So I´ve lost a part of myself these last few days. Turns out, when you pay 3 Euros for a night at a hostel, you get what you pay for. Yesterday, I went to take a much needed shower and something was missing. I tried as hard as I could to find out how to close the shower stalls to no avail. No doors.
So there I was, in all of my Canadian glory, showering in front of other people. God, it´s really hard. If you´ve gone your whole life associating the act of showering with privacy, it´s difficult when the latter is lacking.
But, after about 30 seconds, I was fine. I was used to it. It´s OKAY.
However, today we did the same thing and paid 3 Euros for our hostel. We were tired and, apparently, didn´t learn our lesson.
Today´s shower situation was almost too much for me, but I couldn´t just live in my filth. The shower was CO-ED, with no doors. My LIFE!!!!
Becky and I ended up waiting until the men cleared outta there and then went in to do our business. What can I say? I´m no longer bashful.
FYI -- we´re in a town called Palas de Rei.
See you soon!
-J
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Success!
Well folks, we were successful in our crazy attempt to climb a mountain and walk 32.5km in one day! Now we are unstoppable! I´m not going to lie, it was ridiculously difficult. We even tried to stop early because we were so tired and sore, but the only towns we passed through seemed very unwelcoming so we decided to walk on. After about 12 hours on the road (10.5 walking, 1.5 worth of breaks ) we finally rolled in to Triacastela. We were both very relieved that it was a nice place and both very relieved that the restaurant was only abot 50m down the street, had it been any further away we both would have opted to skip dinner and go to bed!
We had some great food, a good night´s sleep and got up this morning to do some more walking. I know, how very unlike us!
Today we walked abot 20km to Sarria, which seems like a nice place so far! The hostel is nice and only 4 people per room really cuts down the chances of getting stuck with a snorer! The clothes are washed, the feet are rested, so we are doing the usual afternoon hang out and wait for dinner routine.....I think we have spent almost as much time waiting for dinner so far as we have walking!
I´ll let you know how it is!
We had some great food, a good night´s sleep and got up this morning to do some more walking. I know, how very unlike us!
Today we walked abot 20km to Sarria, which seems like a nice place so far! The hostel is nice and only 4 people per room really cuts down the chances of getting stuck with a snorer! The clothes are washed, the feet are rested, so we are doing the usual afternoon hang out and wait for dinner routine.....I think we have spent almost as much time waiting for dinner so far as we have walking!
I´ll let you know how it is!
Friday, July 11, 2008
My Sentiments
Usually, in the middle of the walking day, I forget that I´m in Spain. Looking around, I see the cars, signs, architecture and people, and comprehend that they´re strange and different. And yet, I don´t get the sense that I´m travelling -- I feel more like I´m at home.
One Last Mountain
So I bet you all thought we fell off a mountain or got run over by goats or decided to stop walking and become flashers ourselves. But alas, none of these things are the case. As you probably figured, we have been without internet access for a little while. So I´ll give you all a quick update!
We stopped in Hospital de Orbigo, and met Jess´s grandparents for lunch, and ate so much that neither one of us was hungry for dinner, so we went to bed instead! The town was beautiful, they had an amazing medival bridge, and beside it was a perfectly preserved jousting field, which was very cool to see.
The next day we got up and walked to the first little village for breakfast, and caught the morning news, which showed highlights of the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, and let me tell you, it is a brutal tradition that these people take part in! We actually saw someone get killed by a bull on live tv, and many more trampled within inches of breathing. It is crazy that anyone would do this voluntarily! After this disturbing morning newscast, we walked through to Astorga, where we stopped for a bit and saw Gaudi´s Palace, which was amazing, definitely one of the most beautiful buildings so far! We decided to continue on an extra 5km to the next little town, where we practically had the hostel to ourselves. Other than us, there were 2 other women who stayed there that night, and we were the only ones who opted to eat dinner at the hostel, so we were treated to a private dinner of home made spaghetti and white bean salad! Delicious!
From there we walked to Rabanal, where we passed a very uneventful afternoon of playing with local puppies and reading, and after dinner we went to bed as usual, we wanted to leave very early the next day because we had a lot of walking to do, and our hostel wasn´t very nice! Shortly into our walk the next day, we climbed a small mountain which hosted the Iron Cross at the top, an important pilgrim monument. A simple cross, with a huge pile of rocks at the bottom, that have accumulated after many years of pilgrims leaving a stone from their home country behind at its base. It was beautiful to see, but we didn´t stay long, because we had a lot of downhill walking to do before we reached our destination. 27km later, we roll into beautiful Molinaseca, where we had one of the best pilgrim´s dinners yet, and a great hostel to boot!
After a good night´s sleep, we got up and walked about 25km to Cacabelos, which is famous for it´s wine, and featured a hostel in the courtyard of the local church. The accomodations were small ( 2 beds in a 8´X 8´ locker, much resembling my storage unit in Carp ) but quite nice, it was private and clean, which is all we really wanted, and quite unique. We had dinner with a small group of other peregrinos, including women from Japan, England, Australia, and a man from Arizona. A good group of people, and a fun dinner later, we headed back to our room for a good night´s sleep.
Today we ended in a little town called Vega de Valcarce, and are staying at a Brazilian hostel, the dinner we just finished was amazing, Brazilian style food and all the wine we could handle! We have 7 days of walking left, and the end seems so close, but we are still about 169km from Santiago. Tomorrow we will be climbing our last mountain of the Camino, called O Cebriero, and hope to travel about 32km by the time the day is done! So needless to say, we are going to bed nice and early today, so if internet access permits, we should be filling you in on how the day went tomorrow night!
We stopped in Hospital de Orbigo, and met Jess´s grandparents for lunch, and ate so much that neither one of us was hungry for dinner, so we went to bed instead! The town was beautiful, they had an amazing medival bridge, and beside it was a perfectly preserved jousting field, which was very cool to see.
The next day we got up and walked to the first little village for breakfast, and caught the morning news, which showed highlights of the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, and let me tell you, it is a brutal tradition that these people take part in! We actually saw someone get killed by a bull on live tv, and many more trampled within inches of breathing. It is crazy that anyone would do this voluntarily! After this disturbing morning newscast, we walked through to Astorga, where we stopped for a bit and saw Gaudi´s Palace, which was amazing, definitely one of the most beautiful buildings so far! We decided to continue on an extra 5km to the next little town, where we practically had the hostel to ourselves. Other than us, there were 2 other women who stayed there that night, and we were the only ones who opted to eat dinner at the hostel, so we were treated to a private dinner of home made spaghetti and white bean salad! Delicious!
From there we walked to Rabanal, where we passed a very uneventful afternoon of playing with local puppies and reading, and after dinner we went to bed as usual, we wanted to leave very early the next day because we had a lot of walking to do, and our hostel wasn´t very nice! Shortly into our walk the next day, we climbed a small mountain which hosted the Iron Cross at the top, an important pilgrim monument. A simple cross, with a huge pile of rocks at the bottom, that have accumulated after many years of pilgrims leaving a stone from their home country behind at its base. It was beautiful to see, but we didn´t stay long, because we had a lot of downhill walking to do before we reached our destination. 27km later, we roll into beautiful Molinaseca, where we had one of the best pilgrim´s dinners yet, and a great hostel to boot!
After a good night´s sleep, we got up and walked about 25km to Cacabelos, which is famous for it´s wine, and featured a hostel in the courtyard of the local church. The accomodations were small ( 2 beds in a 8´X 8´ locker, much resembling my storage unit in Carp ) but quite nice, it was private and clean, which is all we really wanted, and quite unique. We had dinner with a small group of other peregrinos, including women from Japan, England, Australia, and a man from Arizona. A good group of people, and a fun dinner later, we headed back to our room for a good night´s sleep.
Today we ended in a little town called Vega de Valcarce, and are staying at a Brazilian hostel, the dinner we just finished was amazing, Brazilian style food and all the wine we could handle! We have 7 days of walking left, and the end seems so close, but we are still about 169km from Santiago. Tomorrow we will be climbing our last mountain of the Camino, called O Cebriero, and hope to travel about 32km by the time the day is done! So needless to say, we are going to bed nice and early today, so if internet access permits, we should be filling you in on how the day went tomorrow night!
Monday, July 7, 2008
One cr-azy day.
Yesterday was a bit of a weird one. I didn´t have access to the internet, so I spent the last 24 hours mulling over whether I should post this or not.
The day began as we woke up late -- 7:15 a.m. -- in Villar de Mazarife, a super tiny town just past Leon.
The hospitalero there has one brown eye and one blue eye, and a long grey ponytail. I pin him at 62-years-old. His name is Pepe. I met him two years ago on my last camino. During the winter, he is a physiotherapist in Alicante, Spain and during the summer he runs his hostel. I must mention that he is also a spiritual healer.
Last time I visited Pepe, I was in a bad place. He helped me out by talking to me the morning of my departure from Villar de Mazarife (about the passing of my Mom and other things) and also straightened the tendons in my legs where I was experiencing Tendonitis. What a guy.
This time was no different. I have had a crick in my neck for nearly two years. I think it occurred when I checked my blind spot a little too enthusiastically one day. Since then, I haven´t been able to check my blind spot with the same vigor.
So, back to the story. Pepe fixed me up again. He assured me that I was in a much better place than last time he saw me and that we would meet again.
He fed Becky and I some Churros (Google it) and we were on our way.
I was feeling rather peaceful and spiritual on our way out of the town. I popped in the old iPod earbuds and bounced down the street happily.
Here´s when life changed.
I must mention I was listening to the audiobook version of Deepak Chopra´s ¨The Higher Self¨. I was just about out of the town when I hear a big ol´¨HOLA¨come from across the road.
I look to my left to see a (estimated) 50-year-old man mopping the entryway of his home with, well, absolutely no clothes on. Flasher, indeed. I won´t elaborate too much here.
My response? Although I always thought my response to a flasher would be clever and hilarious, all I could muster was a, ¨Hola-ugh!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!¨
I kept on walking and turned around to Becky, who was about 25 feet behind me, and yelled, ¨HEY! Don´t look in there!¨ as I pointed to the guys house.
Luckily for her, the guy had closed the door by then.
So, honestly, the day got better from there. We went to a bar in the next town for coffee. I had been there the last time I did the camino as well, and mentioned to the barkeep that I remembered the kittens he had showed me in his patio two years ago. He responded, ¨If you stick around a few days longer, you might see some more.¨
But what do you know. We stuck around 5 minutes longer, and saw some brand new, baby kitties.
It was a good end to the weirdness.
-J
The day began as we woke up late -- 7:15 a.m. -- in Villar de Mazarife, a super tiny town just past Leon.
The hospitalero there has one brown eye and one blue eye, and a long grey ponytail. I pin him at 62-years-old. His name is Pepe. I met him two years ago on my last camino. During the winter, he is a physiotherapist in Alicante, Spain and during the summer he runs his hostel. I must mention that he is also a spiritual healer.
Last time I visited Pepe, I was in a bad place. He helped me out by talking to me the morning of my departure from Villar de Mazarife (about the passing of my Mom and other things) and also straightened the tendons in my legs where I was experiencing Tendonitis. What a guy.
This time was no different. I have had a crick in my neck for nearly two years. I think it occurred when I checked my blind spot a little too enthusiastically one day. Since then, I haven´t been able to check my blind spot with the same vigor.
So, back to the story. Pepe fixed me up again. He assured me that I was in a much better place than last time he saw me and that we would meet again.
He fed Becky and I some Churros (Google it) and we were on our way.
I was feeling rather peaceful and spiritual on our way out of the town. I popped in the old iPod earbuds and bounced down the street happily.
Here´s when life changed.
I must mention I was listening to the audiobook version of Deepak Chopra´s ¨The Higher Self¨. I was just about out of the town when I hear a big ol´¨HOLA¨come from across the road.
I look to my left to see a (estimated) 50-year-old man mopping the entryway of his home with, well, absolutely no clothes on. Flasher, indeed. I won´t elaborate too much here.
My response? Although I always thought my response to a flasher would be clever and hilarious, all I could muster was a, ¨Hola-ugh!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!¨
I kept on walking and turned around to Becky, who was about 25 feet behind me, and yelled, ¨HEY! Don´t look in there!¨ as I pointed to the guys house.
Luckily for her, the guy had closed the door by then.
So, honestly, the day got better from there. We went to a bar in the next town for coffee. I had been there the last time I did the camino as well, and mentioned to the barkeep that I remembered the kittens he had showed me in his patio two years ago. He responded, ¨If you stick around a few days longer, you might see some more.¨
But what do you know. We stuck around 5 minutes longer, and saw some brand new, baby kitties.
It was a good end to the weirdness.
-J
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Lovely Leon
After a short 12km walk yesterday, Jess and I arrived in beautiful Leon. Once we arrived, we got a petit-peut lost, and ended up taking an extra half an hour tour around the outskirts of the city! A helpful ex-pilgrim pedestrian helped us out, and walked us to the front door of the hostel. From there it was easy! The hostel was big, not awful, but not super nice either, so we were happy to be in a great city for touring around so we didn´t have to spend too much time at the hostel.
And tour we did! We visited the amazing gothic cathedral in the town square, and took a nice walk up and down the main street, window shopping and drooling over all the pretty things that we wanted, but would be impractical for pilgrims. We also ate a bit, had a beer, a coffee and basically relaxed. The city is just beautiful, it´s easy to see why it´s Jess´s fave. Unfortunately, around dinner time, Jess started to feel not-so-good, so we had a quick bite and then were both happy to retreat back to our uncomfortable bunk beds for the night.
Today we got up around 6am and started the long walk out of Leon, to end up in Villar de Mazarife, about 22km away. We got here in good time, around 1:30, and I had a nap as usual. The town is very small, so not much venturing about is required, a relaxing afternoon of reading and sitting is all that we have planned. Oh, and waiting for dinner of course! Tonight we will be having Paella, for the first time since our trip began, and I am very excited! I´ll let you know how it was so you can all be jealous!
And tour we did! We visited the amazing gothic cathedral in the town square, and took a nice walk up and down the main street, window shopping and drooling over all the pretty things that we wanted, but would be impractical for pilgrims. We also ate a bit, had a beer, a coffee and basically relaxed. The city is just beautiful, it´s easy to see why it´s Jess´s fave. Unfortunately, around dinner time, Jess started to feel not-so-good, so we had a quick bite and then were both happy to retreat back to our uncomfortable bunk beds for the night.
Today we got up around 6am and started the long walk out of Leon, to end up in Villar de Mazarife, about 22km away. We got here in good time, around 1:30, and I had a nap as usual. The town is very small, so not much venturing about is required, a relaxing afternoon of reading and sitting is all that we have planned. Oh, and waiting for dinner of course! Tonight we will be having Paella, for the first time since our trip began, and I am very excited! I´ll let you know how it was so you can all be jealous!
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Tortilla, Tortilla, Tortilla!
We started our day today with a walk from El Burgo Ranero to Reliegos, which consisted of a 13km stretch with nothing in it, another one of these days where staring at a neverending field is my main activity. ( see Jess´s Meseta pictures )
But when we did get to Reliegos, we stopped at a little cafe and had some coffee and I decided to have some tortilla for breakfast. For those of you who don´t know, Spanish tortilla is a delicious combination of potatoe, egg, onion and garlic, it resembles a large omelet, and is amazing! When we left Reliegos, we walked 6km to Mansilla de la Mulas, where we stopped for a beer, and more tortilla. Mmmm! The last stretch of our walk today was 5km to Puenta Villarente, where a very nice little hostel awaited us, and they informed us that they were serving tortilla and salad for dinner! So that means that all three meals today for me have been tortilla! Oh darn.......I hate being forced to eat something delicious all day long!
In case you haven´t noticed from the prevalence of food mentioning in our blog, the food here is definitely a major bonus to this trip!
Hasta Luego!
But when we did get to Reliegos, we stopped at a little cafe and had some coffee and I decided to have some tortilla for breakfast. For those of you who don´t know, Spanish tortilla is a delicious combination of potatoe, egg, onion and garlic, it resembles a large omelet, and is amazing! When we left Reliegos, we walked 6km to Mansilla de la Mulas, where we stopped for a beer, and more tortilla. Mmmm! The last stretch of our walk today was 5km to Puenta Villarente, where a very nice little hostel awaited us, and they informed us that they were serving tortilla and salad for dinner! So that means that all three meals today for me have been tortilla! Oh darn.......I hate being forced to eat something delicious all day long!
In case you haven´t noticed from the prevalence of food mentioning in our blog, the food here is definitely a major bonus to this trip!
Hasta Luego!
The Meseta
I know, I know. We were complaining about mountains for a while and now I´m going to complain about prairies.
Since we were in Burgos, about a week and a half ago, we have been walking La Meseta.
It´s flat, often yellowy and very boring. Behold.
Tomorrow we are in LEON! I love, love, love Leon -- it is very close to my heart. It is very beautiful and filled with great architecture.
Hope you´re all de-hungover´d from Canada Day,
J
Since we were in Burgos, about a week and a half ago, we have been walking La Meseta.
It´s flat, often yellowy and very boring. Behold.
Tomorrow we are in LEON! I love, love, love Leon -- it is very close to my heart. It is very beautiful and filled with great architecture.
Hope you´re all de-hungover´d from Canada Day,
J
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Shoutout
Becky and I have been meaning to write this for quite a while:
A big congratulations to Derrick for being accepted to his program.
That´s really fantastic news, and ¨best of luck in future endeavours¨-- report card style.
Thanks so much for all the comments, Derrick, and to everyone else who is keeping track. I don´t dare name anyone for the fear of leaving out some important pilgrim-watchers. You guys really keep us going. You´re the Peptobismol to our homesickness. (?)
-J
A big congratulations to Derrick for being accepted to his program.
That´s really fantastic news, and ¨best of luck in future endeavours¨-- report card style.
Thanks so much for all the comments, Derrick, and to everyone else who is keeping track. I don´t dare name anyone for the fear of leaving out some important pilgrim-watchers. You guys really keep us going. You´re the Peptobismol to our homesickness. (?)
-J
The City of Frogs
I believe that Camino-wise we last filled you in about our wonderful stay in Boadilla, so I´ll back track a little and give you some of the highlights since then. We ended the next day in Carion de los Condes, and after a bit of wandering around and a beer or two, we found our albergue (hostel), and it was delightful! It was attached to the huge church in one of the town´s squares, and was run by nuns! They informed us that everyday at 6pm they have a sing-along where all the pilgrims go and share songs from their home country. We unfortunately missed this little ritual, because we were absolutely ravenous and had to go out in search of food, but I thought it was such a cute tradition, that it was worth mentioning.
This was also the night that Spain beat out Germany in the Eurocup Final (soccer, for those of you who are lost), we were expecting a lot of noise and partying to keep us up that night, but we were pretty exhausted so we still managed to get a good nights sleep. Small tidbit, this was also the day that it was 46 degrees in the sun.......so we found the nearest shady spot and parked ourselves for the afternoon.
The next day we knew we had a 17.5km stretch first thing in the morning with absolutely nothing, no towns, roads, cafes, or anything. Just flat fields. Yay. This may not sound like a horrible thing, but after you´ve walked for about 3 hours without having anything to look at besides the gravel path you are walking on, you start to go a little crazy. Needless to say, I was very happy to see buildings in the first town we eventually came upon. We stopped and had a coffee, and then decided to continue on another 6km to the town of Ledigos. Here we found very small, but clean hostel with a bar attached, and settled in for the evening.
From Ledigos we got up and travelled to Sahagun, which is where we spent our Canada Day ( see previous post! ) , and had a pretty laid back afternoon of wandering around the city and learning about the world from 2 Spanish guys we met there. Nothing scandalous, they were 45 year old teachers who liked to talk, so we sat and listened to their stories which were explained in a pretty hilarious Spanish-English-French mix. We had dinner and went to bed, and were pleasantly surprised by a relatively quiet night. Very few snorers, and the ones that did snore, did so intermittently, so it was great for sleeping!
Today we walked from Sahagun to El Burgo Ranero, which translates to the City of Frogs. So far, we have seen no frogs........but we have seen a cute puppy, a few hilarious old guys ( one referred to me as ¨the chubby one¨, which is totally not offensive coming from an 80 year old! ), and a nice church. We also enjoyed a beer and a yummy potatoe dish, along with cow intestines ( surprisingly good ) in a tasty sauce, so we´ll see what else this little town has to offer us later this afternoon!
One last thought, our hostel is built out of straw and mud piled up into walls, so cross your fingers that the Big Bad Wolf doesn´t pay us a visit.
Jess is very desperate for an English book to read, and has just found one at the hostel called ¨Mongoose Watch: A Family Observed¨, so I think I´d best go stop her so I don´t have to spend all day walking tomorrow learning everything I didn´t want to know about mongooses......( mongeese? )
This was also the night that Spain beat out Germany in the Eurocup Final (soccer, for those of you who are lost), we were expecting a lot of noise and partying to keep us up that night, but we were pretty exhausted so we still managed to get a good nights sleep. Small tidbit, this was also the day that it was 46 degrees in the sun.......so we found the nearest shady spot and parked ourselves for the afternoon.
The next day we knew we had a 17.5km stretch first thing in the morning with absolutely nothing, no towns, roads, cafes, or anything. Just flat fields. Yay. This may not sound like a horrible thing, but after you´ve walked for about 3 hours without having anything to look at besides the gravel path you are walking on, you start to go a little crazy. Needless to say, I was very happy to see buildings in the first town we eventually came upon. We stopped and had a coffee, and then decided to continue on another 6km to the town of Ledigos. Here we found very small, but clean hostel with a bar attached, and settled in for the evening.
From Ledigos we got up and travelled to Sahagun, which is where we spent our Canada Day ( see previous post! ) , and had a pretty laid back afternoon of wandering around the city and learning about the world from 2 Spanish guys we met there. Nothing scandalous, they were 45 year old teachers who liked to talk, so we sat and listened to their stories which were explained in a pretty hilarious Spanish-English-French mix. We had dinner and went to bed, and were pleasantly surprised by a relatively quiet night. Very few snorers, and the ones that did snore, did so intermittently, so it was great for sleeping!
Today we walked from Sahagun to El Burgo Ranero, which translates to the City of Frogs. So far, we have seen no frogs........but we have seen a cute puppy, a few hilarious old guys ( one referred to me as ¨the chubby one¨, which is totally not offensive coming from an 80 year old! ), and a nice church. We also enjoyed a beer and a yummy potatoe dish, along with cow intestines ( surprisingly good ) in a tasty sauce, so we´ll see what else this little town has to offer us later this afternoon!
One last thought, our hostel is built out of straw and mud piled up into walls, so cross your fingers that the Big Bad Wolf doesn´t pay us a visit.
Jess is very desperate for an English book to read, and has just found one at the hostel called ¨Mongoose Watch: A Family Observed¨, so I think I´d best go stop her so I don´t have to spend all day walking tomorrow learning everything I didn´t want to know about mongooses......( mongeese? )
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Happy Canada Day!
Good news everybody! We´re over halfway done. It feels like much more. We´re motoring along at a good rate and will be in Leon by Friday to eat some serious tapas.
We are doing well, physically. Becky has become a walking machine and my shinsplints are being kept at bay. Today we are heading into a city called Sahagun.
So, it´s true -- we probably won´t end up at Parliament Hill this evening. I hope you all have a wonderful time making clowns of yourself with large amounts of Alexander Keiths and cheesy temporary tattoos.
Have one more for your buddies in Spain, will ya? We´ll have one for you, we promise.
Let´s see here ... what´s new? Well, maybe I should just take this opportunity to explain what a typical day for us is like.
5:50 a.m. - Wake up, curse the world and get dressed
6:15 a.m. - Leave the hostel, hobbling
7:30 a.m. - Stop for breakfast which includes cafe con leche, orange juice and toast or pastry
11:00 a.m. - Stop for lunch (bocadillo)
1:30ish p.m. - Find our hostel
2:30 p.m. - Have a shower and handwash the laundry, hang it out to dry
3:30 p.m. - Read and wait for dinner, getting hungrier and hungrier
7:30 p.m. - Have dinner, the best part of the day, sometimes
8:30 p.m. - Put away laundry and get ready for bed
9 p.m. - Sleep, hoping that no one will snore
Well, that´s it really. Just the basics.
We´ll be celebrating Canada Day on the inside. Maybe I´ll give myself a temporary Maple Leaf tattoo with a pen.
Take care!
-J
We are doing well, physically. Becky has become a walking machine and my shinsplints are being kept at bay. Today we are heading into a city called Sahagun.
So, it´s true -- we probably won´t end up at Parliament Hill this evening. I hope you all have a wonderful time making clowns of yourself with large amounts of Alexander Keiths and cheesy temporary tattoos.
Have one more for your buddies in Spain, will ya? We´ll have one for you, we promise.
Let´s see here ... what´s new? Well, maybe I should just take this opportunity to explain what a typical day for us is like.
5:50 a.m. - Wake up, curse the world and get dressed
6:15 a.m. - Leave the hostel, hobbling
7:30 a.m. - Stop for breakfast which includes cafe con leche, orange juice and toast or pastry
11:00 a.m. - Stop for lunch (bocadillo)
1:30ish p.m. - Find our hostel
2:30 p.m. - Have a shower and handwash the laundry, hang it out to dry
3:30 p.m. - Read and wait for dinner, getting hungrier and hungrier
7:30 p.m. - Have dinner, the best part of the day, sometimes
8:30 p.m. - Put away laundry and get ready for bed
9 p.m. - Sleep, hoping that no one will snore
Well, that´s it really. Just the basics.
We´ll be celebrating Canada Day on the inside. Maybe I´ll give myself a temporary Maple Leaf tattoo with a pen.
Take care!
-J
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