Not a bad walk today.
Started out in a light rain, but not as cold as it has been. Walked with Edith (Swiss lady) and Julian, a young law student graduate from Quebec.
Everyone uses a walking stick here - or trekking poles - and I noticed Julian had adapted a hockey stick for himself - how Canadian. Some people use sticks they have dragged from the bush, others carved ones, or special in some way
Or some, like myself, have one or two trekking poles. I brought two, but it is more comfortable to just use one.
20 K seemed pretty easy today after two 27 k days. My shin was staring to hurt yesterday so I'm glad that it wasn't so long.
I'm really annoyed with myself, and I don't understand how it happened, but I have managed to lose my knife, fork and spoon (they were attached together). Not the end of the world, but a little inconvenient.
Lost my gloves as well, which I had to replace because it's way too cold to walk barehanded. With so few worldly goods, you'd think I could manage things better. I'm sure I'll have the organization thing nailed down by the time I have to come home.
I'm here in León, and Edith and I decided to share a room in a monastery converted to a hotel . It is not too expensive and has a bath tub and heat, so quite luxurious from our point of view.
I'm just sending this off from an Internet cafe, as there was no Internet at the hotel, and then I plan on looking around the town, checking out the cathedral and then, maybe a tapas bar tonight for dinner, rather than a pilgrim's menu.
Re: recent posts.
Sandra, Roger and Owen; Thanks so much for your note and congratulations on the new cafe. I can't wait to be there with you.
Lucia; Yes I have thought of California weather a lot these days. The thing is; it would be way too hot to do this walk in the Summer. September is probably ideal.
Andrea; Loved your picture on the blog. How's school going?
Dee; I'm pretty sure the missing underwear is drying on a clothesline somewhere.
By the way, if any of you are reading my blog, but can't figure out how to post a comment and would like to, just send me a personal email, as I check my email as well each day.
I would love to hear from you.
lynne.guthrie@rogers.com
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Ledigos to Bercianos -27K- to Mansilla de las Mulas
The Albergue in Ledigros was very old and set around a courtyard, so you had to go outside to access any of the other buildings - the bar/restaurant/store, the dorm, the washrooms and the kitchen - and let me tell you people, it was cold, cold, cold.
The kitchen was ancient and had some type of huge clay oven, along with an old gas range. Some of the Pilgrims make their own dinner every night, so it is useful to have these facilities, regardless of how ancient.
An Australian family who are doing the Camino - Dad, Mom and teenage daughter - are vegetarians. So they are pretty well forced to prepare their own meals, as the Spanish ones are so heavy on meat. I notice they always cook pasta.
The pilgrim meal at this Albergue was bread, wine, soup and 2 huge pork chops with fries.
Dessert is an offer of a piece of fruit - orange, apple or banana - or an individual container of yogurt.
The meals are often pretty late - 8.30 pm this night - so imagine how hungry we are.
Everyone at the table was German, so I just dozed off into my wine. This Albergue actually had a bathtub, but no one wanted to take their clothes off, even for a quick shower, let alone a bath. The dorm had a few ancient radiators, which they turned on after we all went to bed. I still wear most of my clothes to bed these days and there is not a lot of hand washing going on, so it's not pretty.
Long walk on the Mesata the next day.
It had turned super cold, with a strong North wind coming from the Pyrenees. It blew at us from the side, rather than from behind, where we would have been glad for a little push.
As we passed through Sahagún towards the edge of town, I encountered a shepherd with a huge flock of sheep and 2 herding dogs waiting for a red light to turn green. Then, he carried on down the street with his flock - his dogs keeping everything in line. Amazing to watch, but they all behaved like they had done this before.
The Albergue in Bercianos is a very old exterior of straw and mud, but with stucco on the inside. I'm so cold I thought I'd DIE.
The thing is, after 27 k, you feel cold anyways, so this was not good.
The host, however, of this Albergue - Isadoro - was very sweet and laid out the evening for us.
We would all prepare dinner together (food supplied by the Albergure), and later, the Padre (Father) would drop by, and there would be a little service for us. There were only 3 pilgrims - Edith from Switzerland, William from Venezuela and Moi.
We had a good meal of salad, potato and chorizo soup, and boiled eggs and - do I need to mention - always bread and wine.
Dessert was a big bowl of walnuts and apples.
Just as we started to eat, the Padre showed up - a young man in jeans and hoodie - and he joined us for dinner. The villages have so few inhabitants now that he looks after 9 villages, mostly older people I think, judging by the few people we see.
Towards the end of the meal a local couple showed up with their homemade liqueurs and pastries. We managed to have a great evening, despite the fact that I am handicapped by my inability to communicate with them the way I would like to.
The Padre never got around to having the service for us.
Isadoro took pity on us and moved us to a smallest room, away from the main dorm.
Still no heat of course, but with the usual amount of clothing and extra blankets, it was fine. Isadoro also served us some breakfast, next morning, of coffee, bread and Jam. This Albergue does not charge, but runs on donations, so this was especially nice of him.
He closes this one up Nov 1, which is a good thing, as there would be no surviving this place in the winter!
Bercianos to Mansilla de la Mulas
Another long walk today - cold, cold - and the Albergue here is just as cold - and again, all facilities are outside, surrounding a court yard. It's like having a shower outside in November.
One of the Pilgrims who is ahead of us, called to say he ran into snow on the Camino.
I'm not looking forward to that.
The kitchen was ancient and had some type of huge clay oven, along with an old gas range. Some of the Pilgrims make their own dinner every night, so it is useful to have these facilities, regardless of how ancient.
An Australian family who are doing the Camino - Dad, Mom and teenage daughter - are vegetarians. So they are pretty well forced to prepare their own meals, as the Spanish ones are so heavy on meat. I notice they always cook pasta.
The pilgrim meal at this Albergue was bread, wine, soup and 2 huge pork chops with fries.
Dessert is an offer of a piece of fruit - orange, apple or banana - or an individual container of yogurt.
The meals are often pretty late - 8.30 pm this night - so imagine how hungry we are.
Everyone at the table was German, so I just dozed off into my wine. This Albergue actually had a bathtub, but no one wanted to take their clothes off, even for a quick shower, let alone a bath. The dorm had a few ancient radiators, which they turned on after we all went to bed. I still wear most of my clothes to bed these days and there is not a lot of hand washing going on, so it's not pretty.
Long walk on the Mesata the next day.
It had turned super cold, with a strong North wind coming from the Pyrenees. It blew at us from the side, rather than from behind, where we would have been glad for a little push.
As we passed through Sahagún towards the edge of town, I encountered a shepherd with a huge flock of sheep and 2 herding dogs waiting for a red light to turn green. Then, he carried on down the street with his flock - his dogs keeping everything in line. Amazing to watch, but they all behaved like they had done this before.
The Albergue in Bercianos is a very old exterior of straw and mud, but with stucco on the inside. I'm so cold I thought I'd DIE.
The thing is, after 27 k, you feel cold anyways, so this was not good.
The host, however, of this Albergue - Isadoro - was very sweet and laid out the evening for us.
We would all prepare dinner together (food supplied by the Albergure), and later, the Padre (Father) would drop by, and there would be a little service for us. There were only 3 pilgrims - Edith from Switzerland, William from Venezuela and Moi.
We had a good meal of salad, potato and chorizo soup, and boiled eggs and - do I need to mention - always bread and wine.
Dessert was a big bowl of walnuts and apples.
Just as we started to eat, the Padre showed up - a young man in jeans and hoodie - and he joined us for dinner. The villages have so few inhabitants now that he looks after 9 villages, mostly older people I think, judging by the few people we see.
Towards the end of the meal a local couple showed up with their homemade liqueurs and pastries. We managed to have a great evening, despite the fact that I am handicapped by my inability to communicate with them the way I would like to.
The Padre never got around to having the service for us.
Isadoro took pity on us and moved us to a smallest room, away from the main dorm.
Still no heat of course, but with the usual amount of clothing and extra blankets, it was fine. Isadoro also served us some breakfast, next morning, of coffee, bread and Jam. This Albergue does not charge, but runs on donations, so this was especially nice of him.
He closes this one up Nov 1, which is a good thing, as there would be no surviving this place in the winter!
Bercianos to Mansilla de la Mulas
Another long walk today - cold, cold - and the Albergue here is just as cold - and again, all facilities are outside, surrounding a court yard. It's like having a shower outside in November.
One of the Pilgrims who is ahead of us, called to say he ran into snow on the Camino.
I'm not looking forward to that.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Carrionde los Condes to Ledigos - 23.5K
We wrapped up the evening last night in the monastery with the nuns serving us a pasta dinner they had prepared for us. It was really good and, after we had more songs, and they blessed each one of us for our continued journey to Santiago, I went to the evening mass - and the grandeur of the church was amazing (sorry, think I might have mentioned this already).
The convent was really cold.
Even with my sleeping bag and a blanket they supplied, I had to put several sweaters on - and socks - in order to be warm enough to sleep - but eventually, I did.
No snorers in the dorm so that is always a plus.
Today dawned bright and sunny, and it looked like it might be another hot one, but it turned into a cool fall day and good for walking.
The first stretch was almost 18 K, without any villages where you could stop at a bar or cafe. The route is not always broken up the way you would like, of course, but ideally, you don't have more than 10 k to go before some civilization appears.
I managed to find a bit of shade to have a break and a bite and, as there was a mound of discarded clothing in this spot, I had a comfortable place to sit.
It's not uncommon to see clothing left on the route when people are trying to lighten their load, however this was almost an entire wardrobe. The clothing looked quite clean as well, so must have been a recent discard by some desperate and tired pilgrim.
After 18 k there was a bar where everyone had stopped for a drink and a rest.
It started raining while we were there, so many of us decided to shorten our day and just go to the next Albergue, which was only 6 k away. It's a really old place and feels cold as well, so I hope there is a supply of blankets.
By the way I have a small confession.
It seemed unPilgrim-like, so I hesitated to mention it before (I guess you could call it a sin of omission), but I think full disclosure is expected on this blog.
It has to do with my second day in Burgos.
I did spend most of the day there, but I actually started out in the morning and left the city - reluctantly. After walking about 7 K out of town, I just decided I had to go back and see the Cathedral, buy bandages and have one more bath.
I thought I could hitchhike back, but the pilgrim route often runs through fields and forests and not necessarily near a highway. I did see a hwy off in the distance and I just had to cross a field to get to it. It took some time to cross the field where, to my horror, I found that I was separated from the hwy by a barbed wire fence. Without giving it too much thought, I threw my backpack over the fence and then realized it would not be so easy for me to scale it. However after a few tries, I made it,
There were some Hwy workers I tried to communicate with re: hitchhiking back into Burgos, but they indicated I would not get picked up. So I walked to a bar on the hwy and took a taxi back into town, went to the hotel, asked for my room back, and immediately took a bath.
So there you have it!
If you consider I walked out of the city twice, I can't really call it a cheat, as I more than did the distance.
By the way, my missing pair of underwear turned up.
Everything I have is black, so it's hard to distinguish socks from underwear from a hat - until you put them on, of course. And then, if you can't tell the difference, you've definitely walked too far that day.
Thom and Patti: so great to hear from you. Thanks for checking in. Who is that picture of, Thom?
Off for a beer in the local bar/grocery store.
More Meseta tomorrow.
The convent was really cold.
Even with my sleeping bag and a blanket they supplied, I had to put several sweaters on - and socks - in order to be warm enough to sleep - but eventually, I did.
No snorers in the dorm so that is always a plus.
Today dawned bright and sunny, and it looked like it might be another hot one, but it turned into a cool fall day and good for walking.
The first stretch was almost 18 K, without any villages where you could stop at a bar or cafe. The route is not always broken up the way you would like, of course, but ideally, you don't have more than 10 k to go before some civilization appears.
I managed to find a bit of shade to have a break and a bite and, as there was a mound of discarded clothing in this spot, I had a comfortable place to sit.
It's not uncommon to see clothing left on the route when people are trying to lighten their load, however this was almost an entire wardrobe. The clothing looked quite clean as well, so must have been a recent discard by some desperate and tired pilgrim.
After 18 k there was a bar where everyone had stopped for a drink and a rest.
It started raining while we were there, so many of us decided to shorten our day and just go to the next Albergue, which was only 6 k away. It's a really old place and feels cold as well, so I hope there is a supply of blankets.
By the way I have a small confession.
It seemed unPilgrim-like, so I hesitated to mention it before (I guess you could call it a sin of omission), but I think full disclosure is expected on this blog.
It has to do with my second day in Burgos.
I did spend most of the day there, but I actually started out in the morning and left the city - reluctantly. After walking about 7 K out of town, I just decided I had to go back and see the Cathedral, buy bandages and have one more bath.
I thought I could hitchhike back, but the pilgrim route often runs through fields and forests and not necessarily near a highway. I did see a hwy off in the distance and I just had to cross a field to get to it. It took some time to cross the field where, to my horror, I found that I was separated from the hwy by a barbed wire fence. Without giving it too much thought, I threw my backpack over the fence and then realized it would not be so easy for me to scale it. However after a few tries, I made it,
There were some Hwy workers I tried to communicate with re: hitchhiking back into Burgos, but they indicated I would not get picked up. So I walked to a bar on the hwy and took a taxi back into town, went to the hotel, asked for my room back, and immediately took a bath.
So there you have it!
If you consider I walked out of the city twice, I can't really call it a cheat, as I more than did the distance.
By the way, my missing pair of underwear turned up.
Everything I have is black, so it's hard to distinguish socks from underwear from a hat - until you put them on, of course. And then, if you can't tell the difference, you've definitely walked too far that day.
Thom and Patti: so great to hear from you. Thanks for checking in. Who is that picture of, Thom?
Off for a beer in the local bar/grocery store.
More Meseta tomorrow.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Boadillo Del Camino to Carrion de los Condes - 25 K
Had a nice stay at the private Albergue in Boadillo. I think I mentioned how nice it was.
They also served dinner, which isn't that usual for an Albergue, but a few do.
All the Pilgrims sat at a large table and it was the usual international mix - Swiss, German, Korean, Japanese, Spanish - and me. Interestingly, the German and Swiss usually speak some English, but not so much the Spanish. One young Spanish guy, who has taken me under his wing, speaks English quite well. When I asked him how he learned to speak English, he said that every year at the end of school, his grandmother always bought him a gift, and one year he asked for English lessons. Commendable, I think.
Chiavi, as he is called, has helped ensure that I can always order my first meal of the day in Spanish - Cafe con leche e basso e tostada. (I have no idea how this is spelled, but I manage to get my point across.) Which means that I get a nice big tumbler of cafe au lait and toast.
The toast here is always prepared on a grill, I think, and basted with olive oil. It takes about the same length of time to prepare as it does to roast a leg of chicken. It's either pieces of baguette or one thick piece of white toast (like Wonder Bread, but much denser), and you always get butter and jam with it. In some places it is really good, and I fear I'll be making toast in the frying pan when I get home, with liberal dashes of olive oil.
Today's walk started out well.
We moved to daylight savings last night, so it was light when we left today and the sky was bright blue - the air cool. Once again I had most all of my clothes on, and by noon we were sweltering. It went up to about 27C today and it was hot hot hot for walking.
The Mesata is relentless in this regard as there is no shade anywhere. I found the afternoon very tough, and one of the German guys and I decided we would prepare a petition for the King of Spain to see if he could have more bars and cafes along this route.
On an entirely different topic, and not wanting to appear indelicate, I am now down to one pair of underwear. I can't fathom how they disappear, but while the downside is washing every night - and wearing damp, or no, underwear if they don't dry - the upside, of course, is less to carry.
Today's Albergue is a convent attached to the back of a church and run by the nuns. While it was blazing hot outside today, the Albergue is freezing on the inside. They do have blankets though, so we should be OK.
The nuns had a little sing-song at 6.00 pm tonight and handed us song sheets (in Spanish, so we could sing along, if we chose). One of the nuns played the guitar and led us in song although, in truth, her voice was so wonderful - she was so animated and beautiful - that people were just transfixed. I felt like I was in a rerun of the Sound of Music.
Even the nuns look stylish here: robes and scarves of beautiful soft material and wonderful leather, lace-up shoes. I went to the mass for the experience and to see the interior of the church. You just can't believe the magnificence of the interior -and again - in such a small hamlet.
The nuns are preparing some food for us, so gotta run.
Trying to gear myself up for tomorrow - 18 k with no villages - and more Mesata.
Wendy, thanks for catching up with my blog. So good to hear from you.
They also served dinner, which isn't that usual for an Albergue, but a few do.
All the Pilgrims sat at a large table and it was the usual international mix - Swiss, German, Korean, Japanese, Spanish - and me. Interestingly, the German and Swiss usually speak some English, but not so much the Spanish. One young Spanish guy, who has taken me under his wing, speaks English quite well. When I asked him how he learned to speak English, he said that every year at the end of school, his grandmother always bought him a gift, and one year he asked for English lessons. Commendable, I think.
Chiavi, as he is called, has helped ensure that I can always order my first meal of the day in Spanish - Cafe con leche e basso e tostada. (I have no idea how this is spelled, but I manage to get my point across.) Which means that I get a nice big tumbler of cafe au lait and toast.
The toast here is always prepared on a grill, I think, and basted with olive oil. It takes about the same length of time to prepare as it does to roast a leg of chicken. It's either pieces of baguette or one thick piece of white toast (like Wonder Bread, but much denser), and you always get butter and jam with it. In some places it is really good, and I fear I'll be making toast in the frying pan when I get home, with liberal dashes of olive oil.
Today's walk started out well.
We moved to daylight savings last night, so it was light when we left today and the sky was bright blue - the air cool. Once again I had most all of my clothes on, and by noon we were sweltering. It went up to about 27C today and it was hot hot hot for walking.
The Mesata is relentless in this regard as there is no shade anywhere. I found the afternoon very tough, and one of the German guys and I decided we would prepare a petition for the King of Spain to see if he could have more bars and cafes along this route.
On an entirely different topic, and not wanting to appear indelicate, I am now down to one pair of underwear. I can't fathom how they disappear, but while the downside is washing every night - and wearing damp, or no, underwear if they don't dry - the upside, of course, is less to carry.
Today's Albergue is a convent attached to the back of a church and run by the nuns. While it was blazing hot outside today, the Albergue is freezing on the inside. They do have blankets though, so we should be OK.
The nuns had a little sing-song at 6.00 pm tonight and handed us song sheets (in Spanish, so we could sing along, if we chose). One of the nuns played the guitar and led us in song although, in truth, her voice was so wonderful - she was so animated and beautiful - that people were just transfixed. I felt like I was in a rerun of the Sound of Music.
Even the nuns look stylish here: robes and scarves of beautiful soft material and wonderful leather, lace-up shoes. I went to the mass for the experience and to see the interior of the church. You just can't believe the magnificence of the interior -and again - in such a small hamlet.
The nuns are preparing some food for us, so gotta run.
Trying to gear myself up for tomorrow - 18 k with no villages - and more Mesata.
Wendy, thanks for catching up with my blog. So good to hear from you.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Hontanas to Boadilla del Camino - 29K
Great day for walking. My energy level was high and my feet are doing surprisingly well.
Who knew that continuous walking on sore feet was the cure, as opposed to resting them?
I hardly have any wrappings on them now, but always am sure to coat them well in Vaseline.
The day started out very cool again, but sunny and, again, I was able to shed several layers of clothing as the day wore on.
Passed a beautiful, but crumbling monastery today and, as always, several incredibly old and wonderful churches.
Each village, regardless of how small, has a fantastic old church at its centre.
I think the expression, "The Spanish turned their silver into stone" refers to these Christian structures.
The Meseta is very dry, but manages to look beautiful - framed by brilliant blue skies and snow capped Pyrenees off in the distance.
I walked today, on and off, with a few people I met at the Albergue last night: a few young guys - German, Japanese and American - and a lady from Switzerland who has already walked 1400 kil on the German and French Caminos, as part of her 3 month trek.
She and I decided to share a room tonight in a private Albergue for a little more comfort, rather than the municipal one. Slightly more money, but still very reasonable. The municipal ones run from 3 to 6 euro a night and the private ones around 10 euro. No bathtub or our own shower, but a nice room with twin beds in a gorgeous setting.
By the way, I'm still thinking of the bathtub in the hotel in Burgos. Gloriously deep, and sloped at the back, so your head and shoulders rest perfectly. I fell asleep each time I took a bath. Plus, the best part is the tap is on the side, as opposed to the end, so you don't even have to lean forward to add hot water. (Note to Steve: how would you feel about ripping out our tub and replacing it with ones of these?)
I noticed my pants are a little looser today, so I have discovered yet a new diet whereby you can eat and drink all you want, as long as you walk 800K. Do you think the 800k diet could be the new North American craze?
Great to see some new posts on my blog.
Gene, I'm sure you know that one of the reasons I came to Spain was because of your descriptions after your trip. Thanks for your words of encouragement.
Well James, you could have knocked me over with a feather! I thought you never did this sort of thing? I'm so glad you did - and so good to hear from you!
Vive, I'm glad to hear you bought walking poles. What trek are we going on?
Susan, I always love your comments. Thanks for sticking with me.
Jackie & Rob, thanks so much for your note on my blog. Glad to hear you are on Vac. I can almost remember what a cocktail tastes like. I'm not complaining though - great Spanish wine and lots of it, every night.
Cheryl; yes I could have used your calm and reasoned approach re: the money thing -and, in fact, I tried to think how people like yourself would handle the situation - but truthfully, I was too far gone to care.
I only check my most current blog post for comments, so if you do sign on, please comment under the most current posting. I would hate to miss any of you.
I hope to do 28 K tomorrow. It's still quite flat, so no reason why I can't.
Well, my clothes actually dried on the line today, as the sun was so warm, so no pinning them to my backpack tomorrow.
You know you're off to a good day when you don't have to do that.
Who knew that continuous walking on sore feet was the cure, as opposed to resting them?
I hardly have any wrappings on them now, but always am sure to coat them well in Vaseline.
The day started out very cool again, but sunny and, again, I was able to shed several layers of clothing as the day wore on.
Passed a beautiful, but crumbling monastery today and, as always, several incredibly old and wonderful churches.
Each village, regardless of how small, has a fantastic old church at its centre.
I think the expression, "The Spanish turned their silver into stone" refers to these Christian structures.
The Meseta is very dry, but manages to look beautiful - framed by brilliant blue skies and snow capped Pyrenees off in the distance.
I walked today, on and off, with a few people I met at the Albergue last night: a few young guys - German, Japanese and American - and a lady from Switzerland who has already walked 1400 kil on the German and French Caminos, as part of her 3 month trek.
She and I decided to share a room tonight in a private Albergue for a little more comfort, rather than the municipal one. Slightly more money, but still very reasonable. The municipal ones run from 3 to 6 euro a night and the private ones around 10 euro. No bathtub or our own shower, but a nice room with twin beds in a gorgeous setting.
By the way, I'm still thinking of the bathtub in the hotel in Burgos. Gloriously deep, and sloped at the back, so your head and shoulders rest perfectly. I fell asleep each time I took a bath. Plus, the best part is the tap is on the side, as opposed to the end, so you don't even have to lean forward to add hot water. (Note to Steve: how would you feel about ripping out our tub and replacing it with ones of these?)
I noticed my pants are a little looser today, so I have discovered yet a new diet whereby you can eat and drink all you want, as long as you walk 800K. Do you think the 800k diet could be the new North American craze?
Great to see some new posts on my blog.
Gene, I'm sure you know that one of the reasons I came to Spain was because of your descriptions after your trip. Thanks for your words of encouragement.
Well James, you could have knocked me over with a feather! I thought you never did this sort of thing? I'm so glad you did - and so good to hear from you!
Vive, I'm glad to hear you bought walking poles. What trek are we going on?
Susan, I always love your comments. Thanks for sticking with me.
Jackie & Rob, thanks so much for your note on my blog. Glad to hear you are on Vac. I can almost remember what a cocktail tastes like. I'm not complaining though - great Spanish wine and lots of it, every night.
Cheryl; yes I could have used your calm and reasoned approach re: the money thing -and, in fact, I tried to think how people like yourself would handle the situation - but truthfully, I was too far gone to care.
I only check my most current blog post for comments, so if you do sign on, please comment under the most current posting. I would hate to miss any of you.
I hope to do 28 K tomorrow. It's still quite flat, so no reason why I can't.
Well, my clothes actually dried on the line today, as the sun was so warm, so no pinning them to my backpack tomorrow.
You know you're off to a good day when you don't have to do that.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Burgos to Hontanas - 34 K
On the road again ...
I think I may have mentioned how much I loved Burgos.
I am currently in love with all things Spanish - the people, their warmth & hospitality, the food, the architecture & scenery, the clothing & shoes, the olive oil and the wine.
(Note to self: forget about the French lessons and just take Spanish.)
I love their cultural habits as well.
They all come out at night with their friends and families. The streets are absolutely jammed at 8.30 pm - babies, kids, parents, couples - all clearly enjoying themselves.
No one is sitting at home in front of the boob tube watching reruns of Law & Order.
This city is filled with monuments - the Cathedral is breathtaking - and a beautiful river runs through the city, lined with chestnut trees and parks.
(Don't panic Steve. I haven't checked out real estate yet.)
It would be great to come back some day and just be a tourist.
Right now, I'm getting back into pilgrim mode.
Very cold when I started out this morning. I wore everything I had and was wishing I had a winter hat. However, by early afternoon it had warmed up and I started shedding stuff.
Walked alone all day, but it was bright and sunny, so it was good to be alone with my thoughts.
I saw no other pilgrims until I was close to my resting spot.
The walk was flat as well, so although it was a long walk, it was OK. I felt I could go further today, but my feet have a separate identity from me and they are not happy with much beyond 27 K. Need to keep them happy.
Adios for now.
I think I may have mentioned how much I loved Burgos.
I am currently in love with all things Spanish - the people, their warmth & hospitality, the food, the architecture & scenery, the clothing & shoes, the olive oil and the wine.
(Note to self: forget about the French lessons and just take Spanish.)
I love their cultural habits as well.
They all come out at night with their friends and families. The streets are absolutely jammed at 8.30 pm - babies, kids, parents, couples - all clearly enjoying themselves.
No one is sitting at home in front of the boob tube watching reruns of Law & Order.
This city is filled with monuments - the Cathedral is breathtaking - and a beautiful river runs through the city, lined with chestnut trees and parks.
(Don't panic Steve. I haven't checked out real estate yet.)
It would be great to come back some day and just be a tourist.
Right now, I'm getting back into pilgrim mode.
Very cold when I started out this morning. I wore everything I had and was wishing I had a winter hat. However, by early afternoon it had warmed up and I started shedding stuff.
Walked alone all day, but it was bright and sunny, so it was good to be alone with my thoughts.
I saw no other pilgrims until I was close to my resting spot.
The walk was flat as well, so although it was a long walk, it was OK. I felt I could go further today, but my feet have a separate identity from me and they are not happy with much beyond 27 K. Need to keep them happy.
Adios for now.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
In Burgos
It's a very bad feeling to be in a strange country where you do not speak the language, you have no money and you are not sure how, or if, you are going to get any.
In addition, the telephones give very little instruction re: international operators, so I don't quite have them figured out.
Since it was too late in the day to do anything about the money thing, I called home through the hotel - at great expense - and Steve said that the Royal Bank had a big computer failure, and no one could access money from Interac for a portion of the day. That seemed a reasonable explanation, so I had my second luxurious bath of the day and slept reasonably well.
Early in the morning I ran out to a bank machine, but again to my horror, it was rejected, as well as my Visa. Now I'm in freak out mode! I can't even check out of my hotel as planned, as I can't pay them.
There was a small coffee shop across the street from a bank in my immediate area, so I used a few of my dwindling dineros to have a coffee and wait for the bank to open. It opened fairly early and I went right over and tried to explain my situation, although we could barely understand each other. A woman named Ana took me under her wing and let me call Visa. Visa explained that my 5 digit PIN would not work in Europe, although interestingly it had up until now.
I don't know what type of bank this was, but they had no money (no tellers, as Ana explained), so she walked me down the street to another bank where my Visa was not cleared - again rejected.
It took a long time for this bank to determine that Visa would not authorize any money, and Ana waited with me the entire time (over an hour - I don't see this ever happening at home). Ana suggested I go to the "International Bank of Spain" about 6 blocks away.
When I arrived there, I told my story, as best I could, to the 2 gentlemen that manned this bank. They started off the same way every one else did by saying, "No problemo", took my info and asked me to wait while they checked it all out. I waited well over 2 hours as they made various calls and let me use both their phone and personal computer. Finally, they said that Visa would not accept my card. As they also were a Western Union agent, I decided I had no choice but to call Steve and have him wire me some money. As it is 6 hours earlier in Canada he tried to do it online, but it was rejected, so he had to wait for a Western Union agent to open and go there in person. Because the bank I was waiting in closed at 2.00 pm I would not be able to receive my money there.
Steve figured out another Western Union agent I could go to later that day. Steve, as always, was so helpful and reassuring and went to no end of trouble to help get this resolved.
When I showed up at the Western Union office, where they opened at 4.30 pm with, I might add, no expectation that I would ever get any money, I wasn't disappointed. They said they had no money and that I would have to go the Post Office.
I really wish I could say that I saw the humour in this, but I was having a major melt down!
I finally found the Post office, and by 6.00 pm, I was solvent again.
To paraphrase Bogart in Casablanca, "We'll always have Western Union."
On the way back to the hotel, I ran into the British guys who were staying another night, so I agreed to meet them for dinner at 8.30 pm. That's early here, I might add. People have dinner much later. I had a fantastic meal - knowing that I could actually pay for it helped; a plus.
I was starved, as I hadn't eaten all day.
We had a great evening. One of the guys deals in Chinese and Japanese antiques and has travelled the world many times. They were interesting and fun dinner companions and we stayed until they closed the restaurant down at 12.30.
In the morning I made the decision to stay one more day in Burgos.
It had stopped raining, the sun was out and I wanted to check out the beautiful Cathedral and stock up on supplies - blister bandages, etc. - as it will be quite awhile until I get to a major centre again.
In addition, the telephones give very little instruction re: international operators, so I don't quite have them figured out.
Since it was too late in the day to do anything about the money thing, I called home through the hotel - at great expense - and Steve said that the Royal Bank had a big computer failure, and no one could access money from Interac for a portion of the day. That seemed a reasonable explanation, so I had my second luxurious bath of the day and slept reasonably well.
Early in the morning I ran out to a bank machine, but again to my horror, it was rejected, as well as my Visa. Now I'm in freak out mode! I can't even check out of my hotel as planned, as I can't pay them.
There was a small coffee shop across the street from a bank in my immediate area, so I used a few of my dwindling dineros to have a coffee and wait for the bank to open. It opened fairly early and I went right over and tried to explain my situation, although we could barely understand each other. A woman named Ana took me under her wing and let me call Visa. Visa explained that my 5 digit PIN would not work in Europe, although interestingly it had up until now.
I don't know what type of bank this was, but they had no money (no tellers, as Ana explained), so she walked me down the street to another bank where my Visa was not cleared - again rejected.
It took a long time for this bank to determine that Visa would not authorize any money, and Ana waited with me the entire time (over an hour - I don't see this ever happening at home). Ana suggested I go to the "International Bank of Spain" about 6 blocks away.
When I arrived there, I told my story, as best I could, to the 2 gentlemen that manned this bank. They started off the same way every one else did by saying, "No problemo", took my info and asked me to wait while they checked it all out. I waited well over 2 hours as they made various calls and let me use both their phone and personal computer. Finally, they said that Visa would not accept my card. As they also were a Western Union agent, I decided I had no choice but to call Steve and have him wire me some money. As it is 6 hours earlier in Canada he tried to do it online, but it was rejected, so he had to wait for a Western Union agent to open and go there in person. Because the bank I was waiting in closed at 2.00 pm I would not be able to receive my money there.
Steve figured out another Western Union agent I could go to later that day. Steve, as always, was so helpful and reassuring and went to no end of trouble to help get this resolved.
When I showed up at the Western Union office, where they opened at 4.30 pm with, I might add, no expectation that I would ever get any money, I wasn't disappointed. They said they had no money and that I would have to go the Post Office.
I really wish I could say that I saw the humour in this, but I was having a major melt down!
I finally found the Post office, and by 6.00 pm, I was solvent again.
To paraphrase Bogart in Casablanca, "We'll always have Western Union."
On the way back to the hotel, I ran into the British guys who were staying another night, so I agreed to meet them for dinner at 8.30 pm. That's early here, I might add. People have dinner much later. I had a fantastic meal - knowing that I could actually pay for it helped; a plus.
I was starved, as I hadn't eaten all day.
We had a great evening. One of the guys deals in Chinese and Japanese antiques and has travelled the world many times. They were interesting and fun dinner companions and we stayed until they closed the restaurant down at 12.30.
In the morning I made the decision to stay one more day in Burgos.
It had stopped raining, the sun was out and I wanted to check out the beautiful Cathedral and stock up on supplies - blister bandages, etc. - as it will be quite awhile until I get to a major centre again.
I also wanted to go back to the 2 banks that had been so kind and helpful, and thank them again. When I got to the Bank of Spain where I had spent most of the day, Manuel showed me a Thank You note Steve had written him - in Spanish, no less - thanking him for trying to help me. He was clearly bowled over by Steve's efforts and was wondering how to reply, as he could not correspond in English. Very nice, Steve!!!
Burgos is beautiful, beautiful!
Wonderful buildings, monuments and fantastic shops of all sorts. I positively drooled over the shoes and clothes in the shop windows.
The people here dress very stylishly, which I really appreciate and always love to see. I wanted so many things (most un-pilgrim like) but of of course, there is no taking on any additional weight.
One more bath tonight - then back to being a Pilgrim.
Burgos is beautiful, beautiful!
Wonderful buildings, monuments and fantastic shops of all sorts. I positively drooled over the shoes and clothes in the shop windows.
The people here dress very stylishly, which I really appreciate and always love to see. I wanted so many things (most un-pilgrim like) but of of course, there is no taking on any additional weight.
One more bath tonight - then back to being a Pilgrim.
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