Choking Out of Leon and on to Villar de Marzarife

We began our walk this morning passing the gorgeous Parador hotel. This is he luxury hotel shown in the movie The Way.  Some friends did stay there and for a very good price.  We decided against it ourselves since it was about 2k from the city center. Who needs all that extra walking?

Walking out of Leon I understood why people will typically bus this section.  The exhaust from the busy morning streets where the canyon like buildings lock in the poisonous fumes, was cloying.  No foliage anywhere and just concrete everywhere.  This went on for what seemed like miles.  Your motivation really does begin to be to just to get past some places.

We would finally get out into the country but it's clear that we are still in the flat meseta.  Hot and dry and flat.  We stopped for snacks with the Ozzie twins and Greg and Melody.  We also met up with a guy named Paul who the twins had told us was also a comrade from the night at Orrison and who we didn't really remember from then.  We asked if he remembered us and he said no. When we looked at our pictures from that night so long ago, there he was. Evidence! The twins were right!

We all ended up for the evening at the albergue, San Antonio De Padua.  We'd heard they served a vegetarian pilgrims dinner and were excited to try it.  We wouldn't be disappointed.  The meal was one of the most delicious so far on the Camino! We started with a salad that was more than just iceberg lettuce and tomatoes and the typical atun (tuna).   Varied greens with a lovely poppyseed dressing, followed by a wonderful pumpkin soup. Then for the main course we had a veggie paella. We ate every bite.  Dessert was a beautifully plated crepe with kiwi fruit.  Of course the unlimited wine where they don't blink an eye if you order another bottle!  All for about 10 euro each!  Nice!

All of us being in the same albergue is a real bonding experience for sure.  The thought has come to me that the albergues are the great equalizer.  When you are there, there is no one who is more special than the next.  We are all in bunk beds for Gods sake!  It is so sweet looking over and your friend is giving you a goodnight just before lights out.  Part of Camino magic.......

Super Meatballs into Leon. A Two Day Respite

When I was a young girl, my parents used to take my brothers and I on backpacking trips in the Smokey Mountains of Tennessee.  My memory is that when we came to the end of one of these slogs, my father would treat us to a night in a hotel and a dinner out of hamburgers and milkshakes.  My reasoning for telling you this is that my two nights in Leon were definitely that very conditioned reward for walking 25 miles in one day.

We started the morning not anticipating walking that far at all.  Our first stop for coffee was really needed as I had been meditating on the fact that the bugs on the path, snails and slugs, had given way to millipedes or centipedes. I didn't know which because I didn't have time to count their legs. I only have two and I was wondering what the Camino would be like for me had I had thousands. Anyway, I guess when you are walking across Spain, you get up close and personal with the ground you are covering. And you really miss coffee first thing before trying to think.

The place we stopped had some tapas heating in chafing dishes and I spied one I hadn't seen before now, that looked quite good after the same offerings over and over in the past weeks. John thought so too even though it was probably only about 9 in the morning. The meatballs were served on a plate piping hot with fries and a gravy and the ever present slices of baguette. They sure were good. Then we walked and walked and continued walking...... We both felt revived somehow from the morning of aching backs and sore muscles. Before we knew it we were entering the beautiful Spanish city of Leon 25 miles later.  Well I admit I wasn't feeling so well at that point, exhaustion with the ever present painful feet.  I had to sit down more than a few times.

We managed to grab a room in the hotel Paris and only booked one night, even though we had planned for two, in case we didn't really like it. It was in a prime location and after hot showers we were ready to explore. I know! After walking twenty five miles. Even hard for me to believe. If I could package up those meatballs and sell them, I'd be a millionaire.

As is typical when we come to a big city, we meet up with fellow pilgrims that have become friends that we have lost touch with along the way. Leon was no different and I'm sure this added to my renewed energy. When we saw Pat and Sue, the Ozzie twins we had known since the beginning at Orrison, it was like meeting once again, with long lost relatives! The kind you like!  Met up with kiwi friends John and Debbie too and were so glad to see our comrades on the way.

We had wine and tapas with our Australian friends, Greg and Melody, before finding a little restaurant that served their specialty, trout stuffed with bacon and John had a breast of chicken all of which was delicious.  The first breast of chicken we'd seen since arriving in Spain! It's always a leg and thigh.  When we left the restaurant it was pouring down rain.  Made our way back to the Paris for the night.

The next morning when we checked to see if we could stay another night since it looked to be a rainy wet day, they said they were completo.  Oh well, we didn't really care for that place anyhow.  The bed was too small and you had to turn sideways to get around it.  Picture Chevy Chase in the hotel scene in the movie European Vacation.

We had plans to meet John and Debbie for lunch so we scrambled to find another place.  A Camino friend, David, suggested a hotel behind the cathedral telling us it was probably really expensive since it looked really nice.  Well, it was really nice and the same price as the Paris. How happy were we?

Met our friends for lunch and hugged them goodbye, feeling sad not knowing if we'd see them again since John was having issues with his shins. They would probably go forward.

We wandered the streets of Leon that night getting lost sampling tapas and wines in the many bars
down all the quaint little side streets and ending up at a place where we bought the most delectable treats for the next day.  John did find out that to get a dark beer in Spain, you ask for "toast". It has worked every time now!

El Burgo Ranero Dark Clouds Stopping Us...Yeah Right.

There are only two mistakes that one can make on the road to truth....not going all the way, and not starting....  A graffiti sign on an underpass on the Camino de Santiago

Left our albergue once again before dawn, ambling through the sleeping streets of Sahagun to find a small lit cafe offering the mornings manna. John now drinks his own cafe con leche instead of stealing sips of mine. We enjoyed the previous days bought pastry treats and were on our way once again passing many little churches and structures along the way.

When we made the small town of El Burgo Ranero, we stopped by a pretty lake to have our lunch of cheese,salami,chips,bread,chocolate,same,same,same.  The town was a little crazy with runners competing in some kind of race that seemed to be following the Camino. After lunch we started off down the path with another eight miles in front of us to the next town.  The clouds were looming black on the horizon.  We got a few hundred meters down the road and said the heck with it, let's stay here. I offered that I was willing to go on but secretly I was jumping up and down when John said he thought it would be better judgment not to head off into what looked like a storm on the meseta.  I will admit I felt a twinge of real sadness at the idea that this decision would mean that our friends would be long in front of us and we would never see them again.

We checked into the albergue and were the first ones in. Got our choice of bunks and were happy at the cleanliness and amenities of this place besides the nonexistent wifi.

We found one of the better little groceries we would experience so far on the Camino and thinking of our awesome home cooked meal of the night before decided to buy some eggs to scramble with onions, garlic, tomatos and cheese in the albergue kitchen and some to boil for the next days walk.

We walked down to the local cafe for a drink and ran into Mike our Brit friend who lives in Florida and who happens to be one of the people with his trip planned out with hotels and meals in each town.  We shared conversation, a beer and wine and tapas of fried shrimp and Jamon on bread that came with our drinks. Bid adieu and headed back to our albergue to cook dinner and saw that all the beds had been filled. We wouldn't be the only ones to stop in this place.

Dinner was delish of course, as food always is on this calorie burning trek. The ubiquitous bottle of Spanish wine. There is no bad wine in Spain. John has become an expert at opening wine bottles with no cork screw. They don't seem to be available in the stores here. Amazing what you can do when you are desperate. We did get a cuchillo (knife) in a small store to replace the one British Airways lost on our way here.

We turned in early at about 7:30, it being nice for John who has been a bit under the weather with a head cold that in no way slows him down.

To Sahagun..Misery is in the Eye of the Beholder

After no food the night before, I felt surprisingly light on my feet.  The albergue had a cafe so we packed up and donned our rain suits and put the covers on our packs.  The rain from the night before had not relented.  A cafe con leche, a cinnamon bun and a warm smile from the guy offering up this mornings sustenance, we were out the door and on our way.  We were only planning 16k for today after yesterday's nightmare so I was feeling good about that.  We walked most of the day in a driving rain, which oddly I quite enjoyed as opposed to the oppressive heat of the day before.  Once again I wondered what the cars going by thought about the crazy pilgrims slogging through the rain.  Probably just that.  Obviously there are no pictures of our walking as the ipad was stashed safely away in Johns backpack.  When it did let up, we lingered by the beautiful little ancient hermitage of  Our Lady of the Virgin of the Bridge.

We arrived relatively early in the bustling little town of Sahagun, wondering where our friends were and feeling sure they had all motored ahead, us being so wimpy....well me being that way anyway.  Decided against the municipal albergue and were glad when we saw Howard who told us it was horrible.  We checked into a private one where we were given a private room with shared bathroom hoping no one else would check in.  No such luck, it was full by afternoon.

We were lucky enough to catch the Sunday market filled with delectable treats that I wasn't sure were so delectable.  We bought some amazing cheese and salami type meat from a friendly Spaniard who was so helpful in giving us tastes of this and that.  We also bought some delicious pastries which we would nosh on the next couple of days.

Back at he albergue we utilized the empty kitchen and feasted on our tummy warming veggie soup, delicious bread and wonderful salad of olives, tomatoes, and white asparagus.  And of course a savory bottle of Spanish Rioja.  So nice to have a no meat day and a peaceful enjoyable one too. What is that wonderful quote, 'after the suffering comes the blessing?'.

Ledigos Almost Killed Me

I don't believe in the traditional thinking that God doles out suffering upon His children. Or favors for that matter. I believe that suffering is an inevitable part of being in these bodies and in this form and in this life. I do believe that suffering will point us in the direction of where the answers to it can be found if we are open enough to lay aside our own agendas in order to see the blessings that are there that Spirit is ever willing to show us. This would be such a day for me.

Arose early as usual after a hard night of sleep on a hard mattress.  Out the door and into the cool dark Spanish morning. By the way in case you didn't know, the pictures I post are the sunrises always at our backs in the east, when we remember to turn around and look at them.

Today for some reason, my back was hurting.  We were 17k into the start on the long hot meseta.  I had started out tired and it didn't get any better as the day went on.  I am not a drama queen, yet I had a couple of internal meltdowns already. John could tell I wasn't doing so well but was helpless to do anything for me except grab whatever food he had in his pack to offer me. That or a rest.  The sun was relentless and the road stretched out for miles ahead like a desert with no end in sight.  That really plays with your mind. Or it definitely did mine.

We stopped at one of the huge hay stacks so common in this country for the bit of shade it offered.  We took off our shoes to massage our feet.  I will say that we are having absolutely no foot issues aside from aching feet at the end of the day.  John got out some nut mix which provided a nice salt replacement and some chocolate.  Howard from New York came to join us and we figured out that we had met him on our first night in St. Jean so long ago. He was so upbeat and asking if we would come back and do this again. How can you tell at this point? I wasn't having a very good day so my first thought was no but I didn't want to harsh Howard's buzz. The way I was feeling, I never wanted to see this damned Camino ever again. I hid behind my forced smile and the way I was truly feeling about that day.

Only 6k ahead to an albergue. I needed to stop. There was a place I thought might be a cafe where I could take short refuge, but it turned out to be a mirage. Another haystack with an empty barn.  As I walked along the dirt track with the road next to it, I wondered at the passing cars.  Did they notice my slight stumbles from the pain shooting through my feet? Did they notice me at all? Did they care one bit? Could they see the tears streaming down my cheeks behind my sunglasses under my hat as I looked down at my walking shadow and saw the same gait as my children, their feet in my feet, my daughters shape in my shadow.  Did they know how much I missed them? Sometimes the body makes us think we are the only ones in the world.

We finally entered the small ghost town of Ledigos and the small rustic albergue where we hoped there would be a bed. The next place was 3k further away. I knew most of our friends had bypassed this desolate place (I'll be kind and not say dump) and moved on. I could not.  We checked in, and got our bunk in a room that could not be described any more honestly than as like a barn.  I showered and wondered where we were going to find a meal.  Someone said there was a small tienda so we went off to find it.  No luck. A lot of these small rural towns in Spain have literally been abandoned by the young people who have all gone off to the cities to find work.  The only ones left are old people.  We walked up empty street after empty street going around a maze of what seemed like endless circles and approached an old woman ironically washing and shining up her mailbox. We asked about a store and were answered with no, next town.... Exhausted I gave up.

We soon figured out the store was attached to the albergue so we bought a tomato and a veggie soup mix to possibly cook in the kitchen, not having the energy to cook anything more elaborate.  There was a boisterous group of pilgrims monopolizing the place, cooking pasta, drinking wine and laughing.  I was so tired I went back to the bunk.  John checked later and they were still there, no dishes washed and ignoring anyone who came in after. By then I had already gone to sleep and don't know if I would have been able to muster the strength to get up to cook anyway.  We went to bed at 6:30 and didn't get up until the same time the next morning listening to the rain pour down on that barn roof all night long washing away the pain of the previous day.  As I could be alone that next morning, all I could think of was what I had to be thankful for instead of the previous days hardship.  A great nights sleep and a new day in front of us.