Exactly the kind of day I had expected to encounter on the Meseta!
Yesterday worked out well. I had planned to walk about 10 miles, talk to my wife, watch the Indy 500 and get some rest. Check, check, check and check! I also had a brief Video Chat with my daughter Lisa who, with Jimmy, went to dinner with Alicia (and they threw in a tour of Chicago architecture)!
So when the alarm went off (I thought when I retired I wouldn't have to deal with those anymore) I woke up, packed and squeeked my way down the hall to the "lift", then went straight to the cafeteria for desayuna (breakfast). Apparently they were still trying to finalize the schedule: front desk said 7 a.m., kitchen staff said 7:30. They did allow me a double Cafe Americana longo, which still looks to me like a half full cup of coffee!
I grabbed a banana, downed the coffee and an orange juice, and was on the road by 7:30.
After retracing many of my steps from yesterday I reached the bridge at the edge of town.
The first week, coming out of the Pyrenees, we had been treated to fields of poppies. They either had become less frequent or I had become immune to their beauty. But today, Memorial Day "back home", I was treated to numerous displays of the flower that is synonymous with Veterans who sacrifice of their life in service to their country.
Today we marched on and on under threatening skies, but had only about ten minutes of light precipitation this a.m.
Most of the time today was spent following rows of trees alongside a highway.
I reached the first small town at a distance upward of 10 miles around noon. A decision had to be made. There was a large section of the map that showed nothing as far as towns or services available. Once I headed down the road I was committed to a long walk and, in this case, I opted for a long afternoon that covered an additional 13 km.
A short distance outside of El Burgo Ranero I caught up with a man that looked like the "most interesting man in the world" from the beer commercials. His name was Alex (or maybe Alej, as it was short for Alejandro) and he was from Madrid. He had two daughters attending college near Seattle and was therefore familiar with the Pacific Northwest. He was hiking the Camino in sections because he could only get two weeks at a time off from work. His goal for this outing was Leon, which is now my goal for tomorrow. I have succeeded in cutting almost two days off of the time I thought I would require to cross the Meseta.
I have had several people urge me to begin making reservations ahead of time as I move west. The closer to Santiago de Compostela I get, the more pilgrims will be encountered. My wife, the queen of on-line shopping, will be assisting me. With Leon being a large city, we may wish to start tomorrow!
Bonus pictures:
Ok, who can identify this beauty?
Something strange in this picture
Saw this on a showroom floor in Sahagun. I think my Dad sold this originally!
My current location
Keep your left elbow bent my dear Gracie. We're getting closer by the day!
I have never seen a poppy field. Really pretty. The purple flower? Not a clue!
ReplyDeleteOkay, I spent a good amount of time Googling “purple field flowers of the Camino de Santiago” and other similar phrases and came up with only two possibilities and nothing conclusive. That beauty is either Spanish Lavender or a very pretty lavender colored weed. And, yes I am the concierge of on line shopping and other related searches such as “What is that pretty purple flower.”
ReplyDeleteChuckled at the morning breakfast. So much like the Camino. What you get is very different from what you thought. One of our favorite sayings..."We plan and God laughs"!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your service in the avy Jerry. You are going strong.
Scott