I got lots of messages from Paul and my parents from people wondering if I'd broken my leg and quit the camino! Not at all... really, the best explanation is that I walked long days (too late to blog) or I was staying in small towns (no internet... sometimes not even a grocery store) and kind of just forgot about it. I had completely forgotten that I hadn't added more details after injuring my ankle, because seeing Spain was more interesting than finding a computer and holing away for an hour typing!!
So I had a wonderful end to my trip. My ankle... I won't say it's fine, because I will be going to the doctor as soon as I get home... It's still swollen like it was 2 weeks ago, and still tender if I stretch it the wrong way. But it's still fine to walk on, and I am unaware of anything being wrong with it 99 percent of the time. It felt fine the very next day, so I walked almost 30km. And then the next day I walked 35. I went up huge hills, saw beautiful vistas, met crazy and cool people, and got bitten up by bedbugs. And I'll have to fill in all the details on that later.
And on August 5th I made it to Santiago! It was so strange to have finished... there was a point a few days before the end where I felt ready to be done, but when I got to Santiago I mostly just couldn't believe it was done. I spent a day and a half there hanging out, seeing the cathedral and the crowds, and celebrating with my "camino buddies," and then took the train to Madrid overnight. It was REALLY HARD to leave the camino behind. It was partly having that purpose, that direction. It was also partly leaving behind the community of the camino, both the people I got to know and the people I would meet every day along the way, both pilgrims and small town locals who recognized you as a pilgrim, who would smile and encourage you, talk to you and share experiences. Leaving for Madrid, I began actually traveling ALONE as many people pictured when I told them I was going to Spain by myself, and it was quite different to be in a big city in a tourist/youth hostel alone than to be hiking. I didn't like being a tourist in the big city alone.
I spent two days and one night in Madrid, revisited museums and parks and cafes, saw a neighborhood procession with all the old people dressed up in traditional Madrid costumes, saw some flamenco, and got reacquainted with the city. Then I took a late flight to Prague.
Our old friend Jan met me at the airport. He was so hospitable and having someone meet me made me feel like I was home instead of a tourist. It was like visiting Minnesota or something, just a little bit! I spent one night there and then got settled in a little apartment before Paul flew in. The "apart hotel" we are in is a clean and simple Ikea-furnished room with kitchenette, quite comfortable and adequate. It's not RIGHT downtown but it's a 15 minute walk from the Charles Bridge or right on the metro and tram lines. I laughed when I got there because it was also within a block of two movie theaters, two bookstores, a mall, a grocery store, several restaurants, an Apple retailer, and even a TGI Fridays. Can you guess who chose the location? :)
It is hard to revisit a place as a tourist where we lived for 3 months before. We have seen almost everything before, but it was 6 years ago and in the winter, so we have done some of the touristy walking tours, etc. to reacquaint ourselves with the places and history. But we have also spent lots of time just walking around our old haunts and hanging around our apartment, just being on vacation and being back together. Traveling is a different kind of vacation...excitement instead of relaxation... so it was perfect to have several days in this relaxing, beautiful place before we embark on our adventures to the east.
The other night we randomly ended up going to a Madonna concert here in Prague. We were actually at the ticket office looking at tickets for Mozart - I kind of wanted to see the theater where Don Giovanni premiered back in the 1700s - but they were expensive touristy prices! $35 for a 70 minute concert with wind trio and soloist, "Best of Mozart's Arias"?? And there was the poster for Madonna's concert that very night, and the guys in front of us were getting tickets, only $50 for the cheap "standing" tickets. It was actually a choice between standing in a HUGE crowd or sitting on a grassy hillside, so we did a little of both. Great entertainment: dancers, moving video screens, lasers, lights, and enough of the 80s classics that it was really fun. Also a touching (Paul says) tribute to Michael Jackson, which the people went crazy for. They did not go so crazy for the Gypsy group that joined in for an acoustic interlude... that might go over great in Romania and in Western Europe, but the people around us were NOT excited. There is still so much racial prejudice against the Roma here. One other thing... we had to take the metro to the concert, and then walk about a kilometer to the concert, along with thousands and thousands of other people! We were ready to wait an hour for the metro to come back, since there were such crowds of people, but it was unbelievable - we just walked onto a train. They must have had them all lined up ready to go - I was very impressed with the organization.
Today we are going to Karlovy Vary (in German, Carlsbad) which we've never visited and just simply have to since I grew up in Carlsbad, CA. Kind of a silly reason but it has to be done! There are mineral spas and a cute downtown, apparently. We'll be back to Prague tonight and leave for Budapest tomorrow, then Romania on Tuesday! I don't know when we'll be back online but I thought I should at least update this much before we leave "Central Europe" toward Istanbul.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Sunday, July 26, 2009
How ironic... Hospital de Orbigos
Don´t read a guidebook and walk at the same time.
There was a funny crossroad at the outside of town where one set of yellow arrows was pointing to the left along a different path, but another set led into town... I decided to check my book but didn´t stop walking, and my right foot hit an uneven pavement edge where the asphalt dropped like an inch to the side, and down I went. After the initial shock I got up okay, and limped the 1km into town, where I sat at a cafe for an hour icing my ankle, watching it swell up and contemplating my options. Stay here, take a bus to Astorga and stay there, or keep walking the rest of the 15km or so and see what happens. It doesn´t hurt much anymore when I am walking on it, but what would three more hours of walking on it do? I don´t know. So as much as I want to press on, I´m staying here. But I´m already stir crazy. I was ready to really walk today.
There was a funny crossroad at the outside of town where one set of yellow arrows was pointing to the left along a different path, but another set led into town... I decided to check my book but didn´t stop walking, and my right foot hit an uneven pavement edge where the asphalt dropped like an inch to the side, and down I went. After the initial shock I got up okay, and limped the 1km into town, where I sat at a cafe for an hour icing my ankle, watching it swell up and contemplating my options. Stay here, take a bus to Astorga and stay there, or keep walking the rest of the 15km or so and see what happens. It doesn´t hurt much anymore when I am walking on it, but what would three more hours of walking on it do? I don´t know. So as much as I want to press on, I´m staying here. But I´m already stir crazy. I was ready to really walk today.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Mansilla de las Mulas to Leon, Leon to Mazarife (?)
I walked the 20km to Leon by 10:45, so it was a good morning for walking! I felt good, it was still nice and cool, and I was ready to be back in a city and see the sights, play tourist for a day. I stayed in the Benedictine Convent hostel near the center of town, which was not spacious but was just fine, and we got to attend evening Completas combined with pilgrim blessing at night. The bad part about the camino going through big cities is that around the cities we tend to go through industrial parks, with car factories, potato processing plants, you name it, but lots of ugly warehouses and factories. Not so fun. So the road into town yesterday was very pretty leaving Mansilla at sunrise by the sunflower fields, but not so pretty after sunup nearing Leon.
Leon cathedral has fabulous stained glass windows that reach up to the sky like you wouldn´t believe. But no pictures allowed inside. I took one and got yelled at... not sneaky enough.
The basilica of San Isodoro was cool because it housed the royal Pantheon, where kings and queens were buried, and had a painted ceiling that is supposedly one of the best preserved examples of Romanesque fresco. It was actually really neat. But they did charge admission, with no pilgrim discount. Oh well, viva la tourist.
I walked around and around the city looking at different things, and man! there are a lot of shops in that town! People must like to shop there! The city is full of twists and turns and lanes and alleys that connect together, but by the evening I had my bearings and felt pretty at home. I found the outdoor store and bought thicker socks. There was this one building that I took a picture of, thinking, "it looks like disneyland!" and later found out it was designed by Gaudi. Figures!!
I was in the dorm with some very nice people, from Ireland, Germany, Spain, Brazil, etc. And even a few Americans.
Leon cathedral has fabulous stained glass windows that reach up to the sky like you wouldn´t believe. But no pictures allowed inside. I took one and got yelled at... not sneaky enough.
The basilica of San Isodoro was cool because it housed the royal Pantheon, where kings and queens were buried, and had a painted ceiling that is supposedly one of the best preserved examples of Romanesque fresco. It was actually really neat. But they did charge admission, with no pilgrim discount. Oh well, viva la tourist.
I walked around and around the city looking at different things, and man! there are a lot of shops in that town! People must like to shop there! The city is full of twists and turns and lanes and alleys that connect together, but by the evening I had my bearings and felt pretty at home. I found the outdoor store and bought thicker socks. There was this one building that I took a picture of, thinking, "it looks like disneyland!" and later found out it was designed by Gaudi. Figures!!
I was in the dorm with some very nice people, from Ireland, Germany, Spain, Brazil, etc. And even a few Americans.
Bercianos to Mansilla de las Mulas
WINDY again. I thought I´d have a funny crick in my neck or back from leaning to my left and forward against the wind all day. But I think the wind was so energizing! And this was the only day I left long sleeves on the whole time, because it was so nice and cool! Again, I thought about going farther, but my guidebook was unclear about the albergues closer to Leon, so I decided not to chance it.
Mansilla de las Mulas is just outside Leon, and has some nice old city walls and stuff, which I enjoyed wandering around in the afternoon. But the hostel was crowded and institutional in feel, not so welcoming. I thought about staying a day later because they were having a medieval fair in the middle of town the next day! But I don´t think I have tons of time to stop without having to take a bus or walk a lot farther in future days. As long as I´m healthy, I want to keep walking. So no medieval fair in the old city.
Mansilla de las Mulas is just outside Leon, and has some nice old city walls and stuff, which I enjoyed wandering around in the afternoon. But the hostel was crowded and institutional in feel, not so welcoming. I thought about staying a day later because they were having a medieval fair in the middle of town the next day! But I don´t think I have tons of time to stop without having to take a bus or walk a lot farther in future days. As long as I´m healthy, I want to keep walking. So no medieval fair in the old city.
Ledigos to Bercianos del Real Camino
Wow, it´s easy to get behind. I think it was about 25km from Ledigos to Bercianos, in a windstorm!!! I loved the wind so much more than the sun, though it occasionally threw dust in the air. I have been having mixed feelings about how far to go, because usually my feet are ready to stop but the rest of me could keep going, when it is not hot. I could go 32 or so instead... but for the sake of my feet I´ve been stopping around the 25km mark when I can.
Bercianos was another little dying town in the middle of nowhere. The two hospitaleros were volunteers from La Rioja who had walked the camino before, both men about 60 or so. They talked to us and made paella (free/donation) for dinner, which turned out to be just seasoned rice with a few chunks of beef. What exactly is the definition for paella? I am confused. But it was in about a 3 foot diameter paella pan and served 30 people, which was pretty impressive, and it was a good thing for getting to talk to people. I met a pro soccer player from Rome, several German girls, and some nice Spanish guys over dinner, and we sat and talked over the bad table wine quite a while afterward, fortunately in English!!
The second good thing about this hostel was that the hospitaleros had brought one of their dogs from home, a big dog with a big square head and I have no idea what kind it was but one of you will tell me when you see the pictures. His name was Attila and he was super sweet, and he kept following around this Hungarian girl (who got a kick out of his name... Attila the Hun, of course, being Hungarian) because she would let him come up on her lap and snuggle against her head. Me, not so much, at least not after I´d showered. But it gave the place such a homey feeling to have a dog. He kept picking up adobe bricks and rocks in his mouth and ignoring his rope toy. The third good thing was the communal prayer time/chapel service led by the local priest after dinner. He had different groups of people read different parts of the service in their own language, and then passed around a candle and had us each share a comment about our day or our camino, in our own language. And then we sang a Taize song while he went around and made a cross on each of our foreheads with water and blessed us. It was very sweet and meaningful. So I have concluded that every good hostel, in addition to clean facilities, plentiful showers, and few beds per room, should have a dog, communal dinner, and evening prayers.
I also investigated the little ermita that is the only church for the town now that the cathedral tower fell in on the church 10 years ago, due to lack of upkeep. So sad. There was a little old lady who was the attendant at the ermita, and she let me and three other people hide in there while it poured rain for about 10 minutes!!! First rain since the first day, and that was France, so first rain in Spain. It was wild. But the wind blew it past quickly, and that was the last of it. And if the rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain, perhaps this will be the last rain I see.
So it was a little nothing town, but good community, which is exactly what I wanted.
Bercianos was another little dying town in the middle of nowhere. The two hospitaleros were volunteers from La Rioja who had walked the camino before, both men about 60 or so. They talked to us and made paella (free/donation) for dinner, which turned out to be just seasoned rice with a few chunks of beef. What exactly is the definition for paella? I am confused. But it was in about a 3 foot diameter paella pan and served 30 people, which was pretty impressive, and it was a good thing for getting to talk to people. I met a pro soccer player from Rome, several German girls, and some nice Spanish guys over dinner, and we sat and talked over the bad table wine quite a while afterward, fortunately in English!!
The second good thing about this hostel was that the hospitaleros had brought one of their dogs from home, a big dog with a big square head and I have no idea what kind it was but one of you will tell me when you see the pictures. His name was Attila and he was super sweet, and he kept following around this Hungarian girl (who got a kick out of his name... Attila the Hun, of course, being Hungarian) because she would let him come up on her lap and snuggle against her head. Me, not so much, at least not after I´d showered. But it gave the place such a homey feeling to have a dog. He kept picking up adobe bricks and rocks in his mouth and ignoring his rope toy. The third good thing was the communal prayer time/chapel service led by the local priest after dinner. He had different groups of people read different parts of the service in their own language, and then passed around a candle and had us each share a comment about our day or our camino, in our own language. And then we sang a Taize song while he went around and made a cross on each of our foreheads with water and blessed us. It was very sweet and meaningful. So I have concluded that every good hostel, in addition to clean facilities, plentiful showers, and few beds per room, should have a dog, communal dinner, and evening prayers.
I also investigated the little ermita that is the only church for the town now that the cathedral tower fell in on the church 10 years ago, due to lack of upkeep. So sad. There was a little old lady who was the attendant at the ermita, and she let me and three other people hide in there while it poured rain for about 10 minutes!!! First rain since the first day, and that was France, so first rain in Spain. It was wild. But the wind blew it past quickly, and that was the last of it. And if the rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain, perhaps this will be the last rain I see.
So it was a little nothing town, but good community, which is exactly what I wanted.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Carrion de los Condes to Ledigos
Terrain - Kansas
Road - straight and endless
Weather - hot and still in the morning, hot and windy in the afternoon
Highlights - stopping
Photos - maybe one or two all day.
Towns I went through - Calzadilla de la Cueza, pop 75 (but 80 beds in the hostel); Ledigos, pop 100
Albergue - Quiet, which is a relief after yesterday. Roomy, old building with adobe walls and old adobe oven in the kitchen. No one here I know, so I was talking to some Spanish walkers in the bar until the smoke got too bad.
Road - straight and endless
Weather - hot and still in the morning, hot and windy in the afternoon
Highlights - stopping
Photos - maybe one or two all day.
Towns I went through - Calzadilla de la Cueza, pop 75 (but 80 beds in the hostel); Ledigos, pop 100
Albergue - Quiet, which is a relief after yesterday. Roomy, old building with adobe walls and old adobe oven in the kitchen. No one here I know, so I was talking to some Spanish walkers in the bar until the smoke got too bad.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Itero de la Vega to Carrion de las Condes
Today was kind of a long, hard, crazy walk. To start out with, when I left Itero de la Vega just before dawn it took me a while to figure out which direction to start out. Had to backtrack to find a yellow arrow, and there were no hordes for me to follow today. It was really strange not to have people in crowds ahead of me and people passing me. I think I just hit a low spot by starting early and walking pretty fast.
My pace went from more than 5km an hour this morning, when it was cool out and I was fresh, to slooooowww this afternoon when my NEW blister was killing my left foot and it was hot. I was ready to stop at 28km but the hostel there was closed for the day for repairs, the (German) volunteer told me! I could have stayed in the private hotel there, but who knows the cost, so I went another 5km. I also wanted to keep going because this town has a pharmacy and a supermarket, which the last did not. I needed sunscreen and bandaids and snacks.
I´m in the albergue Santo Espiritu, which is run by a convent, as are two of the other albergues in town. The first one, Santa Clara, just didn´t have a good feel to it, and the guy was kind of rude. The second was full, but the helpful nun directed me here. It was only after I´d paid that I found the courtyard filled with kids, maybe 40 kids ages 9 to 15, who appear to be here for day camp. Except it´s overnight camp too. They were blasting Spanish pop music and playing ball in the yard, while I wanted to nap! But I do think it´s nice that they are doing something for the kids, so I´m trying not to be selfish. All I can say, though, is that it´s 9:45 and I can still hear the kids, they´re not in bed yet, and I will be very soon! So I´m hoping I get sleep tonight since I didn´t get a nap.
I went to the church service tonight and the room was, strangely, full! Usually I find about 10 to 50 people in church on a weeknight, pilgrims and old ladies, etc., but this was full of youth and there were 5 priests up front and guitars accompanying the songs. (usually it´s a capella. I haven´´t heard a piano or organ in a service yet.) I found out afterward the youth are missionaries from Madrid. Interesting. But they did a nice pilgrim blessing at the end, actually had us stay and sing and pray a little, just us, instead of just adding a benediction to the end of the service.
I was grateful today for the breeze that kicked up in the afternoon, and for the clouds that blocked the sun by the end of my walk. I felt like God was giving me help when I needed it most!
I was low on food so my lunch was bread with melted chocolate bar smeared on it. I´´m so tired of ham and cheese. Tortilla for late breakfast after 15km was perfect, though.
My pace went from more than 5km an hour this morning, when it was cool out and I was fresh, to slooooowww this afternoon when my NEW blister was killing my left foot and it was hot. I was ready to stop at 28km but the hostel there was closed for the day for repairs, the (German) volunteer told me! I could have stayed in the private hotel there, but who knows the cost, so I went another 5km. I also wanted to keep going because this town has a pharmacy and a supermarket, which the last did not. I needed sunscreen and bandaids and snacks.
I´m in the albergue Santo Espiritu, which is run by a convent, as are two of the other albergues in town. The first one, Santa Clara, just didn´t have a good feel to it, and the guy was kind of rude. The second was full, but the helpful nun directed me here. It was only after I´d paid that I found the courtyard filled with kids, maybe 40 kids ages 9 to 15, who appear to be here for day camp. Except it´s overnight camp too. They were blasting Spanish pop music and playing ball in the yard, while I wanted to nap! But I do think it´s nice that they are doing something for the kids, so I´m trying not to be selfish. All I can say, though, is that it´s 9:45 and I can still hear the kids, they´re not in bed yet, and I will be very soon! So I´m hoping I get sleep tonight since I didn´t get a nap.
I went to the church service tonight and the room was, strangely, full! Usually I find about 10 to 50 people in church on a weeknight, pilgrims and old ladies, etc., but this was full of youth and there were 5 priests up front and guitars accompanying the songs. (usually it´s a capella. I haven´´t heard a piano or organ in a service yet.) I found out afterward the youth are missionaries from Madrid. Interesting. But they did a nice pilgrim blessing at the end, actually had us stay and sing and pray a little, just us, instead of just adding a benediction to the end of the service.
I was grateful today for the breeze that kicked up in the afternoon, and for the clouds that blocked the sun by the end of my walk. I felt like God was giving me help when I needed it most!
I was low on food so my lunch was bread with melted chocolate bar smeared on it. I´´m so tired of ham and cheese. Tortilla for late breakfast after 15km was perfect, though.
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