CDS14: Burgos to Hornillos

June 23, 2018March 13, 2019Leave a comment

The lights turned on in the entire albergue soooo early. I wasn’t ready. But we got up, got ready and as we were leaving, so was Aaron. We had him take a nice photo of us in place of our standard selfie. It was in front of the cathedral which is SO stinking beautiful. They began construction on it in 1221 and based it off of French Gothic design. The architecture is absolutely stunning. You could pay to go tour it. Buuuut… We didn’t.

So because Aaron left with us, he walked with us for quite a while. Debbie ultimately dropped back cause people’s conversations for too long bother her. Aaron walked with me for the first 8 kilometers or so. Talked about his life being in a children’s home, racism in Arkansas, and his goal of opening a school in the D.R. Very interesting. He was a nice guy, just, interesting. He says ‘bless’ ‘bless their heart’ and ‘atta girl’ more than I ever care to hear. So, by the time we got to the first stop I was ready for a break from Aaron. I used waiting for Debbie as my crutch to get him to keep walking. He was going to wait with me. I insisted he didn’t.

We stopped at the cafe, running into Emma, Kirean, Frances, Lisa, and Keith. We sat outside with them until they left. Aaron was inside. As we began to leave, the Aussies came up and sat down. That’s that small time Camino experience. We packed back up and headed out. After a gradual incline, we had lots of flat. But it was absolutely stunning. We were very lucky that everything is green this time of year. We have seen so many Camino pictures of these beautiful fields being yellow, brown, and dried up. We had a pretty steep decline down into Hornillos. I wanted to take a picture at the top with Debbie before we dropped down because it was so dang beautiful. Debbie urged me to push ahead so I did, and I got us two beds at a very adorable albergue in a woman’s house. We washed our clothes in her cute backyard where I left my Fitbit next to the laundry sink and panicked two hours later when I realized it. We went to the first restaurant and ordered from the Pilgrim menu. I finally remembered to not ask for tuna and my salad was perfect! Also, we got to choose water or wine and I decided and clearly ordered water. He definitely brought me wine. Debbie was cracking up saying it must have looked like to him that I needed the wine! Too funny.

Aaron was there, waiting for his friends to decide if they were going to press on or not. While we were there the Aussies passed through, Rupert came through and Valentina! She, Silvano, Rachel, and Rupert had got an air bnb together which was apparently not as glamorous as the rest of us hoped it would be. They were out late so Valentina left, Rachel stayed the day in Burgos and she wasn’t sure what happened to Silvano until he walked in about an hour later as she was leaving. He was staying in Hornillos too. Aaron’s group was and a few other people we met through New York from London and Germany. We went back to the albergue and I laid in bed frantically catching up on my blog, almost falling asleep.

I wanted to go walk around this tiny Town and Debbie was looking for some ice cream- or candy! We checked the town once without much luck and then I did another loop on my own. I went a little farther a different direction and found the supermarket, which had chocolate. I went and told Debbie and then called my Dad for Father’s Day. I talked to my parents and brother for a while which was nice. It was a small town and because of the World Cup, everyone was going to watch the match. It was Mexico vs. Germany and there was a guy from Mexico in the bar with us, jersey and all! Hes been carrying that jersey and wearing it. If you don’t want to know how the game ended, don’t read past this sentence.

Literally no one thought Mexico would win. I didn’t either. So I went to watch the last ten minutes of the game only to be SERIOUSLY surprised along with everyone else that Mexico was up one. Everyone we have met along the way that stayed in Hornillos was in this bar. We watched to the end. Through the excitement of the one guy, tears to his eyes for his team. Everyone applauded for him, it was so incredibly sweet. Silvano was standing with me for a while, talking about soccer and when Italy not being in the World Cup got brought up he immediately threw his hand over his heart and said “we do not speak of this. It is a national tragedy” which was extremely heartfelt and humorous.

Day mileage: 12.9
Total mileage: 202.80
Personal mileage: 14.85

CDS13: Atapuerca to Burgos

June 18, 2018March 13, 2019Leave a comment

I was definitely the last one up this morning, whoops! I was up way later than I ever intended to be, but hey, we made it out by 7.

The walk to Burgos was pretty uneventful. There was just one hill in the beginning to get up and over and after that, mostly flat. This hill had some serious rocky points.

Even though we had cut time out of the original walk in, making the actual mileage of today shorter, it felt long and Debbie was not feeling well. It started out just fine. We stopped for breakfast, saw Frances, Lisa, and Keith. Chatted, ate, and headed out. But after that, Debbie’s feet were just killing her. Not sure what happened, but she was not well. She doesn’t know why either. Went through some small towns and accidentally took the street route instead of the nature one. Not what we intended, but what happened. It just made most of our walk into Burgos flat, industrial, hot, and full of concrete. Which was NOT helping Debbie.

We got to Burgos with some confusion. Big cities are the worst at posting Camino signs it seems. But once again, the kindness of strangers proved evident when a confused Debbie and Desirée were graciously helped by two different noticing strangers passing by and stopping on their own to offer help. And once again, a kind human walked us the right way. People are inherently good, I know it.

We got to the albergue just as it was opening and waited FOREVER to get checked in. Debbie was not doing well. She went and sat inside while the line dragged on. Eventually, we got registered and sent to the third floor. I immediately jumped in an open shower, by the time I got out, Debbie was passed out asleep. We had seen Emma going up to our bunks and her and I agreed to meet up later. So until then, I decided to wander around the city on my own and look for a farmacy while I was at it. It was such a beautiful city. Filled with fancy shops, cafes and loads of people out and around just, doing what they do. Dressed so beautifully. It was great to see. I loved every minute. I found the farmacy, just as the gates were sliding down FOR FREAKING SIESTA. So, I decided to head back and get a snack.

I walked through a little Bazar shop hoping for some aloe. My arms didn’t looked burned, but they hurt. I woke myself up sleeping cause I turned onto one of them in my sleep. No luck. So I found a cafe and enjoyed myself some patatas bravas 🤤 so I could use their WiFi. Talked to my parents a bit and was able to text Emma to meet up. She was with Mike and we decided to go walk around for a farmacy aaaanndd the H&M. I wanted a tank top and comfy shorts! I’ve been wearing the shorts I hike in all day, showering and putting them back on! I wanted comfy shorts for after hiking. And a tank for this unanticipated heat. Emma wanted new clothes and had been itching to get to H&M, so we did and it was fabulous. We got all we needed and there was an open farmacy next door! I got aloe and some muscle pain oil? I wanted icy hot but quickly realized I don’t know what that would be called in Spain nor do I know what icy hot is made up of to look for that. Soo.. muscle oil was it. I think it works.

We eventually headed back and I wanted to check on Debbie. I had been gone for a couple hours at this point. We walk into the albergue, into the main kitchen area only to find Jens sitting with some other people we have seen along the way. We sort for a minute when I hear someone tell teacher and I look up to see New York waving at me from the washing machines. It was his last night here. Tomorrow he is going to Rome. It was kind of a genuinely sad moment. He admitted he was going to miss me (not in a weird way!) But I was too. It’s in the way of the Camino. You make friends and see the same people all the time that the comradery evolves into something sort of magical. Because while every single persons Camino experience is different, you simultaneously share something so unique with a whole bunch of people you don’t even really know. Its enough to connect you. Because they’ve literally traveled what you’ve traveled the days you’ve done it. They get it. More than just anyone who’s traveled the Camino. They get it because they’ve been on YOUR Camino. And you on theirs. It connects you in this really strange way. It really is something quite special. And because of that, New York leaving is sad.

We talked for a few minutes. He bought some what I’ve come to call real-human clothing from H&M for Rome. Who wants to be in Rome in hiking gear? He pulled out his clothes he purchased, asking for fashion advice (see Mom, it even happens here). He told me he saw Debbie walk outside. I ran out to find her, eventually finding her and told her of my adventures and purchases. She decided to head out on her own and look for Advil and I went back inside for a few moments to the kitchen then ultimately upstairs to pack my bag and maybe nap, or at least rest. Emma invited Debbie and I to meet back down stairs at 6 to go get dinner with some Aussie friends, her Dad, Jens, and Jen (yeah, well, that’s confusing to read).

Debbie returned and we talked for a little when Aaron walked over. Aaron was part of a group behind us in line to get into the albergue.

Aaron from Arkansas.

He sat on the the floor, feet under Debbie’s bed and talked with us for over an hour. He heard me say aloe and came to ask if he could have some because Aaron is from Arkansas. And the sun has been out these last couple days. We talked about the mission work he’s done, which had allowed him to spend some time in Cambodia, right near where Debbie has been living for two years, so that’s a small world. He explained his dream for opening up a home for children with autism in the D.R. He is a really nice guy but I was so tired I just laid down trying to stay awake while the conversation continued. Ultimately it was almost six and we needed to head down to meet Emma.

We go down and eventually we all move to the restaurant to have a drink first. It was a big group. The Aussies are a group of four, Jens, Emma, Kieran, Jen came from her hotel, Debbie, me, and Kat joined us. Kat is from Florida. Her first day on the Camino is tomorrow and she found Jen and Emma by being lost in Burgos looking for the albergue and asking them for help. She’s the baby of our group, rolling in at 23 years of age. Her parents are both retired Navy officers and so she moved around about growing up- but Florida is where she had been the longest. This is her first trip abroad and her first trip abroad without her parents. So all of us and Rupert joined as he walked by for a beer, sat and had drinks before heading out to eat. Debbie was still not feeling well so she grabbed some food and went back in for the night.

Rupert, Emma, and Jen

Jen, Kat, and Yens

We went a little farther into town and say where we could get tapas. I ended not get tapas, rather a Cesar salad that tasted like the dressing had fresh anchovies in it. But we had a blast. Jen bought wine for us to share and we all just sat around this table and chatted and ate. Jens taught me about NFC, which is essentially Android’s version of Airdrop. It was awesome! But it requires you to place your phones in contact back to back, which feels weirdly intimate haha. Emma took this funny photo of Jens and I as he was aidropping the group photos.

After we left, we headed to the Irish bar because last night Kieran and I were talking about Guinness and they happened to have a bar in this big city that serves it! So we all went and had a pint. After that, trying to make our way back to the albergue (curfew was 10:30) we ran into Frances, Keith, and Lisa who insisted upon having a night cap. So into the restaurant across from the albergue we went until it was close to 10:30. We had a blast, it was quite fun with all of us sitting around talking. Walking in, we passed a priest who is walking the Camino. Well, he looks like he might be a preist? He wears the old school stereotypical-halloween-costume type robes. I don’t know much about him, but I’m curious.

Day mileage: 12.4
Total mileage: 189.9
Personal mileage: 17.8

CDS12: Tosantos to Atapuerca

June 17, 2018March 13, 2019Leave a comment

Another day pushing a little farther! With the sun at our backs, we headed out. Today looked like it was going to be a warm one, even before the sun was completely up. You just couldn’t see a single cloud. The chill of spring in the mornings and evenings is still here, but so is that summer sun. Every day it creeps in a little more, today being so exception.

Debbie was so excited that I took my purple jacket off so quickly (cause I wear it all the time, cause, cold.) and rolled my sleeves up she HAD to get photo evidence. She said we need to document it because I’m never like this! We stopped for breakfast after the first four kilometers and continued on our way!

We walked up a pretty steep hill filled with giant rocks and dirt. Across the top and back down the other side… Only to enter what looked like a dark tunnel, to come out the other side and go straight back up a hill again! It was intense. Debbie rested at the top and looked so comfy drinking her water before we headed back down, then back up again.

After that, it was pretty flat. We walked by loggers, where all I could think about was how I was witnessing deforestation in real life and how AWESOME the animatronics were on this crane they were using! The slightest movements were so visible and possible with every move it made to relocate the logs. Anyways…lol

We had a beautiful Forrest walk into San Juan where the book suggested we stop. We rested for a while and decided to push on an extra 4 miles to Atapuerca. Which was, as to be expected, fairly flat. We had to come down into the two cities before arriving, but mostly flat. By the time we got to Agés (the city before Atapuerca) we were on pavement and walked on that the rest of the way into the town.

The albergue we wanted to stay at only had 36 beds so we wanted to get there quick! And we did. We registered, paid, and walked into a room with none other than Emma and Kieran (her dad). In there with us was a new person to us, Jen. Jen is from Canada and found Emma and Kieran out on the trail so it was a good group of people once again! We went down to the restaurant to have a break and a snack. We sat with Emma, Mike (someone we have met before from Connecticut/Florida) and two new people to me, Frances and Lisa (Ireland). Lisa was planning to do the whole Camino and invited Frances, who is her neighbor, to join for a week. We all gave him a hard time about skipping the hardest parts of the Camino, all in good fun. It was a nice chat and break to kill time until the market opened up again.. Because siesta. We went to the market and I got paella and olives. But was still SO hungry. So Debbie and I went back to the restaurant to share a small pizza, which was yummy. Back there we sat with Mike and Kieran. They talked, exchanging hip replacement stories and discussions of their white hair.

I walked back to grab my water from the albergue and check the market for something similar to icy hot. My shin has been on fire the last two days and SO uncomfortable. But, no luck. I went back to the albergue to sit outside and write. While out there, Jens (pronounced like yen-ce) comes out asking if anyone needs Wifi. I didn’t know who he was at the time but come to learn (after connecting to his hotspot) his name and that he’s from Berlin. This guy is seriously the happiest guy you’ll ever meet. I sat outside, talking with Emma, her Dad and a few other people for a while before heading back to the restaurant- I wanted to watch the first Spain vs. Portugal match. I went with Kieran and the place was packed with locals and pilgrims, it was a pretty sweet spot to be, watching the game. I had my first beer here since being in Spain and watched up to the 70th minute. I was falling asleep and THOUGHT I knew how the game was going to end. OF COURSE everything happened after I left during the last 10 freaking minutes. Kieran and Jen came back and Kirean was eager to tell me what happened. Gah! I missed it. But it was a good night!

Day mileage: 16.2
Total mileage: 177.5
Personal mileage: 17.8

CDS11: Santo Domingo to Tosantos

June 17, 2018June 17, 2018Leave a comment

Everyone was up so freaking early this morning and I don’t know why! We had like 16 beds in our room and I woke up at 5:58am and only like four people were left in the room! It was crazy. Everyone was up so I got up and eventually we headed out.

Eventually, we came across Arthur. Arthur is friends with New York and his coworker. We all walked and talked for a while but eventually just Arthur and I were walking together. Talking about white water rafting, politics, his family history. His parents were immigrants into New York and he grew up in the projects, watching them work sun up to sun down to provide. It was a pretty remarkable story and to see how proud he is of his family was beautiful. He has a twin brother who’s a missionary abroad. Arthur and I walked a while, slowly, while Debbie was ahead. Eventually we caught up to her at the first stop where she and I stopped at this cute cafe for some breakfast. After that, we walked on. More beautiful sights, beautiful bridges.

The book for today had us stopping in Belorado, after 14 miles of trekking. Emma suggested to push forward to Tosantos, to push forward a little the next day, ultimately to make the walk into Burgos (the major city) a shorter one in just two days. We decided we would figure it out as it goes and by the time we got to Belorado we decided to push ahead the extra 2.5 miles to Tosantos. Which was a great idea because as small of a town as Tosantos is, the Albergue we stayed in was just to die for. It was so stinking cute! We first walked into town and went to the first place listed as a place to stay when the guy told us that everyone just sleeps on the floor on mattresses and we were like NOPE. Not doing that. So we went to a place called Arancones which was so nice! It was small, had maybe 20 beds, if that? We got there and found Emma and her Dad staying there too! Later, Valentina, Rachel, Rupert (guy from Texas), and Silvano came in. We had seen them a lot and were excited they were with us! We showered, had our clothes washed, and sat down to eat the most delicious food ever. A woman runs the albergue with her husband and they are both fabulous cooks! We were drooling once again over our food. Debbie had cream of zucchini while I had garlic soup, followed by Debbie’s stuffed eggplant and I had chicken with a delicious salad. Still, with tuna. I picked it off. Again.

The sun was out today- more than it has been the last couple of days. Everyone was outside enjoying it- but it was dang hot! I was trying to fix my tan lines. Debbie went in to fix her feet. I sat with Rachel, Valentina, Silvano, and Emma for a while. Emma eventually went in to eat with her dad and the rest of us sat there to chat. I was going to go into bed but Rachel and I began talking about hiking and Tanzania and Malawi and I asked her if she knew where Mushroom Farm was (the most magical place in Malawi!) and she had been there! It was SO wonderful to talk to someone else who had enjoyed this little slice of heaven in Malawi. I told her about the worst hike of my life (shout out Bec, Mitch and Meg!) and we just shared great times and the deliciousness of the food! So instead of going to bed, I sat with the three of them while they had dinner and we continued to talk. All about expressions, language, ASL, and how upset Silvano was that Valentina and Rachel were splitting one Pilgrim menu and he was paying more and getting less food (they got extra for half the price) which was funny. Silvano is Italian and when he wants to say “what are you talking about!?” Or “what are you saying!?” As in a manner of what the person is saying is absurd, he translates it to English as “What are you speaking!?” and no one corrected him, but after tonight, Valentina called him out. It was in a very kind way, she was appreciating how he says it. And now, he continues to say it often. We just had a blast together, laughing.

Day mileage: 17
Total mileage: 161.3
Personal mileage: 17.61

CDS10: Nájera to Santo Domingo

June 16, 2018June 17, 2018Leave a comment

Debbie and I were the first ones out the Albergue this morning! That never happens! I mean, we are never last, but most certainly not first. We left a little earlier for us and headed out towards Santo Domingo.

Overall, the day was pretty uneventful into Santo Domingo. Beautiful sights and a couple decent hills.

We got into Santo Domingo, got our room and showered. While I was showering, Debbie met and talked to Emma, an Irish girl in the bed next to ours. Eventually I joined them and they were both so excited because it turns out that Emma did a scholarship abroad which landed her in the exact city Debbie’s brother live(s)(d)(?) in Montana. The city is very near and dear to both of them and it was sweet they had each other to reminisce of it’s wonders with. Emma and her father are walking the Camino together. She has done it in parts and is now doing the whole thing with her dad.

Eventually, we headed into town to find food. I told Debbie she had to decide which way we go because both of us are indecisive and she’s been making me make a majority of the decisions which is ABSOLUTE TORTURE. haha.. maybe that’s dramatic. But I made her choose! Which worked out well because after many a turns, we found a DELICIOUS place to eat. I had beans with chorizo, grilled (not fried!! 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼) Chicken with grilled peppers that was soooo good! Debbie had spaghetti with tomato sauce and a spinach stew. We both thuroughly enjoyed our meals. Which came with an entire bottle of wine, huge bottle of water, bread and ice cream! We were both so happy. We talked to a lovely couple from London for a while who we both loved.

After, we went looking for an ATM. Where I had to remind Debbie that the green enter button is universal (she’s going to hate me for adding this because I give her such a hard time- I’m only teasing!) on ATMs even if she can’t read the language of the word continue or enter.

On our way back we ran into two other girls we have seen on the trail and in albergues often, Valentina and Rachel and talked to them for a while. Valentina we met back in Pamplona and have seen Rachel since Estella. Valentina we knew was from Mexico City and works for Calvin Klein. But tonight we learned that Rachel has been living in Tanzania, working on a vegetable farm and volunteering with a family and absolutely loves it. She’s from Canada but has been in Tanzania for the last two years, picking up some solid Swahili! We all decided to walk to the market together. Rachel and I talked about Africa and Valentina and Debbie walked together and talked. We got some snacks and headed back to the albergue. We left Valentina and Rachel at the farmacy, there was something up with Valentina’s foot.

Back at the Albergue I sat downstairs and wrote, the ended up playing cards with a guy named Joshua from Argentina who asked if he could join me. He said he didn’t know many card games but if I had patience, he would learn. We started to play when low and behold who walks in but none other than New York. I decide to teach Joshua Go Fish, thinking that would be easy to teach him and New York would know too. Except he didn’t. Neither of them had ever played Go Fish. I don’t know about card games abroad, so as far as I’m concerned, Joshua gets a pass. But New York!? I feel like Go Fish is an American childhood staple! So that was pretty surprising and funny to find out. We played a round, Joshua won, and then everyone left. New York went to go find his friend (there’s a second New York!) And Joshua was going to scope out the mass. I was going to play solitaire by myself but could not for the life of me remember the set up! I seriously couldn’t remember how to set up solitaire for myself. It’s been that long since I have played it, apparently. Who knew I could forget that. My grandmother would be ashamed. Karma I suppose, for being so surprised about New York and Go Fish.

Eventually, I headed up for bed.

Day mileage: 13.8
Total mileage: 144.3
Personal mileage: 16.8

CDS9: Logroño to Nájera

June 12, 2018June 12, 20182 Comments

Today was a long day. We knew we would be throwing another 18 miles day under our belt. We were plesently surprised to find that it was not as tough of an incline up in some spots, like we thought it would be.

We headed out this morning, viewing the remnants of yesterday’s festivities as we headed out of town. Hopefully someone will be out there doing some more cleaning!

The first 12 miles of today were pretty uneventful. We saw a fair amount of wildlife today, actually, which was pretty sweet. We saw a Magpie bird, a pair of Swans and their babies (where Papa Swan was literally getting his feathers ruffled at anyone who LOOKED at his babies and baby mama for too long), the first and only squirrel I have seen this entire time walking through trees, a little cotton tail, huge catfish, and Debbie saw a snake that slithered right across the path in front of her at her feet!

I was thinking that for this blog post I would just post photos for the day and not any words. That was until we hit our 12 mile break.

At 12 miles we stumbled into a little town outside of Ventosa to take a break. We go into the first cafe and put our bags down. Debbie got a huge mango smoothie, chocolate chip muffin, and had her feet up relaxing, living the dream. I am standing near the near the door, reading the menu backwards through the door because someone was on the outside on the other side reading it. I was not paying attention to them, only trying to read backwards in Spanish. Whoever was outside looking walks in past me and I continue to debate which salad I want (they has so many options! 😍) when whoever it was walks in, drops their bag, turns to walk back out and yells something to another person.

That’s when we heard it. Heard the voice. Both of us, SO quickly, at the same time shot looks at each other to confirm what we heard. We knew that voice. You can’t forget that voice.

New York.

It was New York. He found us. 500 freaking miles to cross Spain, we took a rest day, tons of cafes and this guy walks into ours. He sees us and so enthusiastically says hi. He immediately hugs Debbie, not me 😂, asks if she’s okay, offers to buy her food, asks if she needs Advil. He was excited to see, I would say us, but I think he was excited to see just Debbie. He ends up sitting near us and we talk.

Turns out, New York is a pretty nice guy. I mean, we knew that, but he’s not so bad. He also has a name! It’s Kevin. But I still will call him New York. He works for NYPD (yeah- definitely didn’t see that one coming- us either). He was super awkward too about telling us what he does, because of the political climate regarding police. When I asked what he did, cause he has to go back to work and can’t go to the end, he said he wasn’t sure if he wanted to say. So of course Debbie and I are thinking “what the heck does this guy do?!” I was thinking fbi, national security, some secret weird something. I dunno, it was odd. Turns out it’s just a specialized unit in NYPD. I mean, I guess not just. My point is- I don’t know what I was expecting, but I can tell you NYPD was not it.

Our talk was really wonderful, actually. I’m glad we got to talk to him more and get to know him better. Talked a lot of politics and policies going on in the U.S. which was nice. So, maybe he’s not so bad. I guess I can understand why he’s having a hard time finding love. The job requires (I believe) a certain kind of person to be your partner. So okay okay okay, I was mean! But he’s still a lot. I stand by that. Really nice guy, he wanted a photo with us, so I also took one for me, so everyone could put a face to New York.

After that, we just walked some more. Ha. Ha. It was really cold and windy today, actually. And it’s the first day really that needing the bathroom in the middle of nowhere was a big thing. So, that was fun.

We got to Nájera and stopped at the first albergue. Definitely not the best one we have stayed in so far. But it’s next door to a Chinese restaurant and I’m SO HAPPY! Food that isn’t a sandwich. And we can sit up in the bunks without hitting our heads so a win in my book. We ate some delicious food, found Debbie new headphones, got fruit for breakfast, and headed in for the night. It’s only 5:30pm and I am so sleepy.

Day mileage: 18.2
Total mileage: 130.5
Personal mileage: 18.64

CDS8: Sonsol to Logroño

June 11, 2018June 12, 2018Leave a comment

The sunrise this morning was SO beautiful!!

When I woke up this morning, I wasn’t even sure what time it was or where I was. The room was SO dark and it felt like there was not even the smallest amount of light getting in! I could have easily slept all day! But choosing to get up and not sleep any longer allowed me to fully appreciate and watch that beautiful sunrise. We got ready, had a coffee at our albergue and headed out and up. Literally, just up.

I could tell it was going to be another beautiful day and planned accordingly this time. Yesterday I wore my pants thinking it it was going to rain and it was so hot. I did not make that mistake today! We went straight up… Then straight down. At the highest peak for today, there was a man with a stand of snacks for donation. He was the last pit stop for 7.8km, which is quite a while from what we are use to. He had this beautiful display he had done with the rocks. Debbie and I each had a banana and split a cup of orange juice. On our way out there was a tree with with tons of ribbon tied to it and a few flags. Debbie saw this and immediately asked me to take off a piece of fabric she had tied to her bag from Cambodia. I was confused for a second and then realized what she wanted me to do. I have her the piece and asked if she was going to tie it to the tree and she said yes. Yes because she made it through the first week of the Camino. She survived. It was an emotional moment but a beautiful one. And now a little piece of Cambodia is on that tree now too.

Today was filled with a lot more ups and downs than yesterday, plus more sun. But as always, the views don’t disappoint. We met a family from Washington and I walked with their daughter Diana for a while. She’s 33 and works for a local Non-profit in her local community. We talked a lot about the world, climbing, hiking, feminism. It was pretty great. She recommended a book called The Power by…Naomi……yep. all I can remember, but I’ll look it up.

We passed TONS of graffiti and art along the way and it’s always just as beautiful. I had to take some photos today because I loved them too much!

We FINALLY made it to Logroño and to an albergue. Debbie wants new headphones because she lost hers unfortunately along the way. We decided to head out and into town to find that and food. Little did we know what we were walking in to.

Today is Festivities of San Bernabé. It’s on June 11th each year. The town honours their patron saint, Saint Barnabas who is believed to be part of the Victory of Logroño’s resistance to French invasion under Francis 1 in 1521.

The city was popping.

And entirely overwhelming. It is a large city that makes Pamplona look like a cute little town (which it’s not) coupled with the fact that it is the most people we have seen in a town or in general in a week. It was a lot! But so cool! It rained too- which we weren’t ready for. We had to double back for our rain coats. We passed Neil twice during this process and once or twice walking today.

After a while of exploring the various vendors and ALL THE CANDY, we decided we needed real food. Which was a mess. Being downtown, during this festival, everything was packed. Alot of these places we’ve stopped have the exact same kind of food and I’m so over it. It’s super Western and none of it is what I want to eat, so between nothing looking good to me, Debbie being vegetarian, or cost- we were a mess wandering around looking for food. But eventually, we found a loud bar where I got a Mediterranean salad (yum!) And Debbie had a sandwich that she enjoyed as well. It was so loud, we were over it, that we hardly spoke a word. We finally came back, showered, did some laundry, and mentally prepared for tomorrow.

There’s three older gentlemen next to us from Ohio. One of them warned us that their friend snores loudly and played a recording. It’s so loud. So. So. Loud. And I feel bad, cause I know he can’t help it. But… I don’t think tonight will be good sleep and tomorrow’s going to be a long day. Looking like 18 miles of mostly uphill.

Day mileage: 13.7
Total mileage: 112.3
Personal mileage: 15.61

CDS7: Estella to Sonsol

June 11, 2018June 12, 2018Leave a comment

This morning was beautiful! We went back to the same cafe we went to the night before for breakfast and so I took some photos of it!

Ummm so the beggining of today’s journey began with a wine fountain!

We are just beggining to passed through wine country and there is a famous winery (which I didn’t know of course until we were there) that has a free fountain, one spicket of wine, one of water. Whaaaaat! So cool. Naturally, we had to stop and check it out ourselves. We had no cups, because everything we have is holding water. BUT luckily I heard the family from Colorado talking and apparently people often use their scallop shells to drink from it. So, we did! Well, I did. Debbie just went for it because she is way cooler than I am.

Some people were filling up bottles or parts of bottles but dang! It’s free, be nice. Also, we hiking! Wine and hiking sounds like a mess to me, haha.

But today was an absolutely beautiful day! There was a long trek ahead of us and we were planning on pushing an extra 6.8km to make the next day easier. The sun was freaking OUT today. I got some pretty sweet tan lines and my freckles are definitely back. We were sweating. But luckily this stretch was flat. But so much flat, I felt like I could feel all the things that hurt even more! My shoulders were giving me a hard time today. It did not feel good. We made it to Los Arcos which is where our map had us stop, rested and pushed forward. It was a long day, which is what made the day hard. Long in mileage. But these amazing sights never get old to me, day after day.

We pushed forward all the way to Sansol and literally stopped at the first albergue we could find. It was a nice quiet little place and there were only three other people in our room for twenty! We all had our own corners, it was so nice. We showered before and Debbie went to go examine her feet, they’ve got all kinds of things happening. But two of her toes were black on the ends! Bruised! They were so bruised, it looked so painful I felt so bad. She also developed a new blister- on the bottom of her foot. Absolutely not fun.

We ate at the restaurant that was part of the albergue, having a yummy meal! All of their standard mixed salads I have learned come with tuna on them. Reallllllly need to start asking for that to not be included. Dinner was delicious and I caved and had some ice cream! It was yummy.

Day mileage: 18.1
Total mileage: 98.6
Personal mileage: 18.3

CDS6: Puente la Reina to Estella

June 11, 2018June 12, 2018Leave a comment

We headed out this morning with our usual selfie and a little rain. We crossed over some beautiful bridges on our way. We’ve walked over SO many bridges this trip and some of them are just absolutely beautiful. I loved this one that was bright red and had these yellow flowers all around it. I couldn’t believe how vibrant it all looked with the green in the background. It was just SO beautiful.

I was waiting for everyone toToday’s walk was said to be easy, and I do think it has been the easiest day we have had on the Camino so far. Easiest in that it had been the flattest and most consistently solid terrain so far, which helps.

{Photos}

It rained quite often today but not as much as the first day or so. Rain jackets and shorts were enough to handle this weather. Today we meet a family from Colorado who did party of the trail last year and is continuing it on this year, but not going all the way. Their two children are just about to start high school in the fall.

We got to Estella and the weather completely changed. It was a beautiful day! The sun seems to be coming out in the afternoon here. We walked just down the road from our albergue the most beautiful little restaurant! They had loads of vegetarian options and Debbie was in heaven! She got a mango smoothie and this there cheese spinach tofu pizza and OH MY GOD it was soooo good! I originally wasnt going to eat just yet but I tasted hey pizzas and it was so delicious! We ended up splitting it. The woman working was just so dang sweet. She made fun of me for not wanting good and then eating the pizza. In the back of her cafe, there’s a giant open room where there is free yoga in the evenings for those walking the Camino! So cool! We loved this place and decided we had to go back in the morning.

We got back to the albergue. We sat outside for a while together and then Debbie say out front and eventually went upstairs to bed. I called my parents and talked to them for about an hour and a half which was really nice. After that, bed!

Day mileage: 15
Total mileage: 80.5
Personal mileage: 15.73

CDS5: Pamplona to Puente la Reina

June 10, 2018June 12, 2018Leave a comment

Today was a success! And by success I mean that we didn’t loop around, get stuck, lost, or ANYTHING. We did the exact route we intended with plenty of time.

We left Pamplona and walked through some beautiful sights of the town. These buildings are unreal. The architecture is beautiful. You can just feel the history in it all.

We walked for a ways, along the road, and ultimately through these beautiful beautiful fields. It’s nice to be in a place where people don’t feel the need to build on every small inch of land.

Before we got to the top, just on the outskirts of the last town before the biggest part of today, we walked passed a family with two daughters who have been the youngest we have seen on the Camino so far. They begin walking near us, me ahead of Debbie and the youngest comes next to me looking at me. I could not help myself. She was so stinking cute! And her pack (that her Dad now was carrying) was the size of the bag I use to hold my rock climbing things. It was freaking adorable.

Me: How old are you?
Cassie: Six.
Me: Oh! That’s awesome. Are you having fun walking?
Cassie: Yes, but it’s a lot of ups and downs.
Me: Yes, but lucky you it looks like your Dad is carrying your pack for you!
Cassie: Yes. I had to BEG him.

😂

At this point, Cassie’s sister joins us.

Cassie: His bag is like A THOUSAND POUNDS
Me: That sounds really heavy. Well, good thing you are so tiny so your bag and your things are tiny and lighter weight. Do you want to carry my bag for me?
Cassie: No!
Me: *laughing*
Kate: We’re suppose to carry only 10% of our body weight.
Me: That’s what everyone says to be safe.
Kate: My bag feels like a thousand pounds, but I know it’s not.
Me: How old are you, 11?
Kate: 12.
Me: Ah, 12! I was close. You looked about 11 or 12. And where are you two from?
Kate: Texas. Where are you from?
Me: California…. I’ve never been to Texas.
Kate: Well we’ve never been to California
Cassie: Yes we have!!
Kate: No we haven’t.
Cassie: *shoots the biggest glare at Kate*
Kate: Okay. When?
Cassie: *thinking about it* Oh wait, Indiana.
Kate: Indiana is where I was born! SHE’S the only true Texan.
Cassie: *grinning*

We walk.

Cassie: I like your hair.

**Now if you know me and my feelings on my hair, I almost fell over laughing**

Me: Well thank you.
Cassie: Do you dye it?
Me: Sometimes. But not this time. This is my natural hair color.
Cassie: This is my natural hair color too.

The glare Cassie shot her sister is one I know all too well. Cause I gave that glare growing up. I GIVE that glare now. So much of this little girl reminds me of me.

Their dad came up and they walked ahead a ways, I paused to look for Debbie and Cassie paused to look for her Mom. We talked some more about how excited she is to go into first grade. Later, they came and sat next to us and we talk some more. This is where I learn their names, I ask Kate if she is going into 7th grade and I tell her I teach 7th grade, talk to their Mom a bit, Cassie says I look like her friend Maggie and then asks what the trekking poles are and if she can play with them. They are literally as tall as she is, it was so cute. In exchanging names, they ask mine and I say Desiree. They both respond excitedly and say “that’s my mom’s middle name!” I look at her and we laugh. I say small world and as a joke I say, well, what’s your first name?

Nicole.

Her first name is Nicole. I practically scream at this lady that Nicole is MY middle name and we just BUST up laughing and take a photo. This was right after Debbie asked Cassie if she could take a photo with her. Debbie explained to Cassie that she had a very dear friend named Cassie that she has thought about on this trip and asked if it would be alright to take a photo with her to send to her friend Cassie. Debbie is crying happy tears and Cassie is just going with the flow and takes the photo. It was all so very sweet. I could have talked to those two all day. I REALLY hope we see them again.

Debbie told me later that when I was walking with Cassie, her father walked up to Debbie and said “She will talk to anyone.” And Debbie said “So will my friend.” 😂😂🤷🏼‍♀️

The highest peak for today was atop mountain between windmills. It had the greatest incline and highest elevation for the day and it was beautiful.

We headed back down another steep incline and to Puente la Reina. The first albergue was closed so we went to the next. Got beds, showered, rested and headed out for dinner. After find a place that doesn’t serve food until 7 and backtracking towards the first albergue, we found a restaurant and ordered. For €9.50 I got a huge salad, an entire bread basket, chicken thigh and leg, fries, and almost an entire bottle of wine. It was unreal! I definitely finished the wine.

About halfway through our meal, a man walked in and we were sort of shouting across tables to chat and he asked if he could join us. Neil from Liverpool. Neil introduced himself and when I told him my name he said “Well that’s a song, innit? Desirée…Desiree… By Neil Diamond!” He’s literally the first person I have ever met to know that song (that isn’t my Dad) without me showing it to them. We talk about that, laugh a little and the next thing you know I bet two hours went by. Neil is intense. He said that, that he’s intense, his son is intense. And he is. It was a wonderful and interesting talk we had about the Camino, the magic of it. Chomsky, NLP, social constructs, philosophy, theology, string theory. Seriously. We covered so much ground and it was a heavy. I haven’t had that type of brain stimulation in while, it was quite nice. In that time he told me I must have been raised and surrounded by strong women to make me the way I am, in a positive appreciative tone. Said I was passionate and assertive too. Once you get me started on some of these topics, I’ll keep going. It was great. I really enjoyed his company and I think he enjoyed ours too. Although Debbie was so tired, she was just mostly enjoying listening. His story is interesting and I wish I knew more, he only shared patches of it. But his wife left him, he’s got two grown children, he does telecom work, this is his third time walking the Camino and this time, it’s for him.