Meandering to Castrojeriz

This morning we arose early and started walking at about 6:20am into the clear cool Spanish darkness as the stars and moon shown brightly.  John had his headlamp on and we realized we were not alone when another couple moved in behind us.  It was an older German couple who spoke no English but who walked on with us in the silence of the morning for at least 2 hours.  When I stopped to look at the sky to see the Milky Way so clearly and the moon and the ley lines that the Camino sits on, they stopped and looked too. When I slowed down to possibly let them go ahead, they slowed down too.  At first I thought it a little strange and started to get annoyed thinking this would be such a nice  time to walk alone and quietly with just John.  But it was apparent that it wasn't happening so I just surrendered to it.  Ok I don't know what this is for but I know it is supposed to be happening or it wouldn't be, right? John's pace is usually faster so he is almost always ahead a ways.  So they were walking with me.  For hours. Saying nothing.  There seemed to be an energetic connection that made conversation unnecessary.  We eventually veered off about 100 meters for a coffee and lost the Germans who evidently had a more important agenda of making some miles in the rising sun. John surmised that they may have been appreciating the light from our headlamps since they didn't seem to have any.

The little rustic albergue where we stopped in the dark morning could handle only 12 pilgrims and was set on lovely grounds. We were there just in time for coffee with the six or so other pilgrims staying there and we met Andrew, another German who showed us his self customized desert shirt with holes cut out of his arm pits but white and long sleeved to ward off the sun. Amazing the people you meet out here.

5k later we came into Hontanas, a beautiful little oasis town on the meseta which we had to descend down into.  We stopped and were let into the little grocery store where we bought some snacks and a couple of cervesas. Yes it was only 9am but we had been walking for a few hours already and I swear you just crave replacing the carbs! Ok whatever....

6k later we get to the ancient crumbling ruins of a monestary which houses a religious refugio that sleeps 12 and I just had to check it out.  Wow is all I can say.  It has no electricity, hence cold showers but they serve you a dinner by candlelight in this magnificent place!  Wish we would have not wanted to push forward or we would have stayed just for the experience.  Next time....

As we were leaving, we saw our kiwi friends John and Debbie sitting by the side of the road having a snack.  They said to us that in the niche in the old stone wall nearby, there was a note with the names "John and Cayce" and Colorado on it.  "What are the chances that there is someone with your names from Colorado here too?"  Yea right.  Had he not alerted us to this fact we would not have seen the note in the niche where the monks in the old days used to leave bread for the passing pilgrims.  The note was from our other kiwi friends, Anna and Vicki, who we had met and walked with weeks before that said they missed us! They included their email addresses.  They were about two days ahead.  Camino magic.

We ambled into the town of Castrojeriz and after our lunch in the courtyard of the town cathedral, we stopped at a small doorway where the sign said "Hospital for the Soul". Naturally we were curious but had it not been for an English guy in the doorway who said to us "you have got to check this place out", we never would have entered. It was like an art gallery of sorts with beautiful music playing, candles lit and great cooking smells.  The photography on the walls had such beautiful sayings all relating to walking that it immediately brought tears to my eyes.  When I saw the man dressed in midevial clothing and a long pony tail down his back, stirring a pot of something in the kitchen, I had to thank him for this place.  He looked at me and said, "it is a gift to you, please go anywhere you like and help yourself to water and snacks."  He had places for reading and just sitting and contemplating, gardens in the back and caves he was digging in the stone at the edge of his property.  We told others about it.

We found a small pension at the edge of town where we had a private room and what turned out to be a private bathroom since no one else had checked in.  The proprietress was a grandmotherly woman who checked us in and gave us our stamps and some homemade doughnuts.

Had a delicious pilgrims meal with our old friends Anika and Mike. At the end we were invited by the bartender for a small glass of a Spanish liqueur and a special shot of the Spanish equivalent of Baileys for me...along with a kiss on both cheeks.  He sent us home with a big bag of a fruit that tastes like plums but is smaller and green.  John gets to carry that tomorrow. Such is the amazing hospitality along the way.