“Travel changes you. As you move through this life and this world you change things slightly, you leave marks behind, however small. And in return, life – and travel – leaves marks on you.” – Anthony Bourdain
Today was short and sweet. I’m going to try to do the same with this post so I can enjoy the downtime. Plus, today was fairly uneventful.
We only walked 15km (about 9 miles) and it was mostly flat. My knee and ankles were happy to have a little break. We walked mostly through farm land and around cattle farms. It felt like being in Kansas minus the ocean breeze.
Every time there was a “cow pie” on the road, Stephen would yell, “Bomb!” The place was a battlefield.
We ran into Cute Pilgrim again. We walked about 5km to the next town (from where we had spent the night) for a coffee. We were standing outside a café trying to decide on which one to choose, based off ambiance, outdoor seating vs. indoor, shade vs. sun, aroma from the food & coffee, etc. These factors all play a role in deciding these important daily decisions. Cute Pilgrim ran outside when he saw us through the window and asked us to sit with him inside. Decision instantly made. Ummm, okay, you don’t have to ask me twice.
Apparently, Cute Pilgrim’s hitchhiking experience the other day to get his wallet was a good one. He found some guy who had to run an errand and the hostel where he left the wallet was in between the two places. It was actually the guy’s birthday and he was picking up some BBQ stuff for the party. So the driver dropped him off on his way there and picked him back up on his way back. He didn’t miss a step and even got an invite to the birthday bash. The Camino always provides.
Stephen left his phone and guidebook in the café this morning. Heyekyung and I noticed it before I left and I grabbed it. I think he’d lose his head if it wasn’t attached to his neck.
Wild oats. For at least two weeks Stephen has been trying to show me a little trick his dad and grandfather used to do with him when he was a kid. Take a dried wild oat, put it in your hand and add water. The water swells up the oat and it looks like it is swimming. Well, he finally got it to work today. You’d think he’d won an Olympic competition given his celebration.
A Gecko or lizard, or whatever these little creatures are called here in Spain, hitched a ride on my backpack. I didn’t know it until it crawled down my arm while I was walking on a highway! 😳 I screamed from the shock and threw my hiking stick in the air and the little guy went flying. Oooopsie! I also scared the bejesus out of Stephen. I thought he was suffering from a heart attack the way he screamed back at me.
This afternoon Stephen, Dora, Heyekyung and I had a little picnic in the backyard of the hostel. A little later Darren and Molly (Aussie/Kiwi) joined us. I really enjoyed getting to know them better. They shared quite a bit about their lives. It was one of those good Camino talks. What is said during the Camino talks stays in the Camino talk obviously. People share deeply personal stuff so it’s sacred. That’s one of the other reasons I really enjoy and respect the Camino. It’s a safe space for so many. ❤️ We did discuss how walking really does help you process things because you can’t do anything else to distract yourself. You are stuck with yourself and have to look at it (whatever it is for each person). Also, there is something about the rhythm of walking that gets your brain going.
Tonight we are in a really nice hostel. The beds are good, the shower was excellent. Both the washer AND the dryer worked…but the weather was so good we didn’t need the dryer. Go figure. We just hung all the clothes on the line. Most of the group from yesterday is here and Heyekyung made a Korean dish for everyone. Pork belly lettuce wraps to die for. It was really delicious. Man, she is a good cook.
Avocado update: it is nearly ripe. Maybe 1-3 days. Timing of these things are tricky. 🥑
Apologies this was a less than enthusiastic post. It was a very relaxed day without much activity. But we are one more day closer to Santiago.
Piñera – La Caridad – 14.9km
Goodnight and much love from Spain.
