Today was a fantastic day! I encountered every one of my favorite aspects of the Camino. Prayer time in the morning, good talks with friends, authentic and unique Camino moments, and beautiful scenery. I couldn't have had a better day!
I wake up at 6:15, with the plan to get walking early, around 7:15. My clothes didn't fully dry, so I decide to throw them in the dryer for half an hour and then eat breakfast and get ready. The hospitalero had set out toast, jam, fruit, and yogurt for breakfast. I eat some of each and then start packing my bag as everyone is waking up. I check my clothes in the dryer, which aren't any more dry than they were before. So I throw them back In and continue getting ready.
It dawns on me that I should probably ask the hospitalero about the dryer. Turns out that I'm not supposed to be operating the washer and dryer in the first place, and also, I've thrown my clothes in the washer and have been running it on the drain cycle. Great. With the spanish machines, I really couldn't tell what I was doing anyways. No wonder they don't allow pilgrims to operate them. By this point, it's nearing 8:00, so I just take my still damp clothes out and put them in a bag to dry later. And at 8:00, we're all finally ready to go. Eva, Dan, and Aya have all already headed out in that order. Margaret, Sam, and I follow next.
The sun is just rising over the town, which is a beautiful first sight for today's walk. The weather is absolutely beautiful. It's a nice clear sunny day, with only a few Today was a fantastic day! I encountered every one of my favorite aspects of the Camino. Prayer time in the morning, good talks with friends, authentic and unique Camino moments, and beautiful scenery. I couldn't have had a better day!
I wake up at 6:15, with the plan to get walking early, around 7:15. My clothes didn't fully dry, so I decide to throw them in the dryer for half an hour and then eat breakfast and get ready. The hospitalero had set out toast, jam, fruit, and yogurt for breakfast. I eat some of each and then start packing my bag as everyone is waking up. I check my clothes in the dryer, which aren't any more dry than they were before. So I throw them back In and continue getting ready.
It dawns on me that I should probably ask the hospitalero about the dryer. Turns out that I'm not supposed to be operating the washer and dryer in the first place, and also, I've thrown my clothes in the washer and have been running it on the drain cycle. Great. With the spanish machines, I really couldn't tell what I was doing anyways. No wonder they don't tallow pilgrims to operate them. By this point, it's nearing 8:00, so I just take my still damp clothes out and put them in a bag to dry later. And at 8:00, we're all finally ready to go. Eva, Dan, and Aya have all already headed out in that order. Margaret, Sam, and I follow next.
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The sun is just rising over the town, which is a beautiful first sight for today's walk. The weather is absolutely perfect. It's a nice clear sunny day, with only a few clouds in the sky. No rain in sight! As we walk through town, we see the same cats as yesterday. One is sleeping in a little box. How cute!
We gradually spread out and do our own thing for the first few hours of the day. I take the time to pray. It's a beautiful morning and that always helps me get in the prayer mood. I reflect on the Trinity and the importance of God's role in my life. I also think more about the good things I have in life, and how I would feel if they were taken away. I hope that I would be able to act as Job did. The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord!
The morning is gorgeous and it spurs on my prayer. I listen to a few worship songs, and after an hour of prayer, I pray the rosary. The walk deviates from the freeway thankfully, and the sound of the cars fades. I'm left with my thoughts in the peaceful quiet of the morning, as I walk with no one in sight. Fields stretch out into the distance on my left and right, and snow white mountains run parallel to the path on my right and in front of me. We will be heading into those mountains tomorrow! Snow is certainly in the forecast.
Around 10:30, I come upon the 12 kilometer mark, a city called Hospital de Órbigo. It's a very pretty midsized town with nice streets and well kept buildings. The coolest feature is the long stone bridge that crosses a river into the city!
I've caught up to Sam, and we cross the bridge into town and find Margaret and Aya at a cafe. I get a cafe con leche and run to the bakery quickly to get some pastries. Dan then shows up and we all enjoy refreshments while talking. We discuss what we thought about on our morning walks alone. I ask Dan for some lessons on the English accent. We enjoy a good time laughing and joking around, then set off again.
With Aya and Sam ahead, Margaret, Dan, and I continue on. We stop in at the local church to check it out. It's open because it's Sunday! But hopefully more churches will be open anyways since it's March now, and the Camino season has officially begun. The church is colorful and very beautiful. After a few minutes of admiring the artwork and beauty of the church, we continue on.
We gradually leave Hospital de Órbigo and Dan, Margaret, and I discuss British terms and slang and their meanings. I just love learning other culture's slang and the history behind the words. That occupies us for a while, as we walk through some wide open fields between towns, until we come upon a small hill. As we hike up it, we find Sam again. He's tending to his feet. We sit around and take a small water break, and continue discussing slang.
After Hospital de Óbrigo, we had decided to take the slightly longer but much more interesting scenic route rather than following the highway. It definitely was worth it. Once we crest the hill we had started climbing, we discover a unique gem of the Camino: a little hilltop stop with a kind Portuguese man serving anything from fresh pressed orange juice to wine on a donations basis! He also has an adorable dog named Googie.
Aya is already there, and is sitting and talking to the Portuguese man. He lives there, in the tiny house attached to an old wine cellar. There's a little area for serving refreshments, and the entrance to the underground cellar is right next to it. He lets us check it out. It's fascinating!
We talk to the man for a while. His English is great. He explains that he's had this little place open for about two years now. He serves drinks to pilgrims passing by and gets to know them. He serves us some white wine and we enjoy as we all talk to him and hear some cool stories. I also play with the dog, as does everyone else. Googie loves fetch.
After a really nice break and good conversation with the Portuguese guy, we head on while Aya stays. We soon start to ascend a mountain, the terrain changing significantly. It's a breath of fresh air after the strikingly long flat section of the Camino we've just finished. The path carves through the mountians, and hardy trees sparsely line the mountains to our left and right. The dirt is a deep yellow-orange, which is a great complement to the differing greens of the trees. We come across absolutely beautiful scenes every few minutes, my favorite being a little cove with short cliffs surrounding it. This is a heavenly portion of the Camino!
As we walk, I ask Dan for some brexit history. I know it happened, but I've never learned why. He teaches me the history behind it and what's happened since. We also talk about the relationship between Britain and the rest of Europe. It's really cool to learn this history, especially from someone who lives there!
After walking for a little longer and taking in the beautiful scenes, we come upon another little Camino gem. It's an oasis for pilgrims! There's a very friendly dog, a guitar, a whole spread of food and a drinks table, and it's all run based on donations! We said hello to the men running it, made our donations, then began to start snacking.
We take our time and enjoy the peace of the oasis. By this point, since we're on the top of the mountain, it's slightly windy, colder, and very lightly raining. The oasis was perfect to take some protection from the weather and relax. Dan played some guitar while I played with the dog and ate some food.
After a while, we set out again. Only about 5 kilometers to go! We talk about favorite colors, our nations and their quirks, and a lot else. We come across a 30 foot fall concrete pillar with a metal ladder that I climb to get a good view all around. It's a beautiful view and worth the climb. Sorry mom!
Soon, we reach the other side of the hill, and it's time to descend. Some cities are spread out before us. We continue walking and discussing whatever random topics come up. It's a good time and I thoroughly enjoy it. We cross through the towns we saw from the hill, and finally come to our destination for the night, Astorga.
We arrive just before 5:00, check in, and put our bags in our room. This albergue is very large, with beds in groups of 4 to a room. Eva has beaten us here, and is already in a room with others. Sam, Margaret, Dan, and I get our own room. We spend some time getting situated, and I eat a very late lunch and take a shower. Then, it's time for Sunday Mass!
Mass is at 7:00, and Sam has decided to join me. We walk to the church across the street from the albergue. It's very pretty inside. Mass is great as usual and is actually pretty quick, ending at 7:40. After Mass, we rejoin with Eva, Dan, and Margaret for dinner out in the town.
On our way out, we meet a Portuguese guy named Gio. He's biking the Camino backwards. Very interesting choice! He speaks perfect English and we talk as we walk into town. He doesn't join us for dinner, leaving to check out the cathedral. I call Mikayla after ordering, and she tells me how her bridal shower went. It sounds like it was a really good time! It's always so refreshing to talk to her. I tell her about my day and all my favorite parts. Then, my food has arrived and I head in to eat.
I ordered a bacon and cheese burger, and since the fellas know me well enough by now, they also get me a Coke. It's a good meal. We eat and talk about funny moments on the Camino so far. It's a nice way to end the day! I love this group. It's got a nice dynamic to it. Even simple meals like this become great fun.
After eating, we head out to find some dessert for Eva. We come upon a candy shop, and everyone gets something but me. I'm full, so I'm not too inclined to buy sweets at the moment. I know future Grant will be shaking his fists at me, but that's his problem. He's got plenty of oranges. We then walk back, making it to the albergue at 9:31. The locked doors remind us that closing time was 9:30, so we spend a few minutes outside before a slightly peeved Spanish lady finally hears our knocks and opens up for us. Then we all get ready for bed. I try to sleep and decide to blog in the morning, but realize that it's too early and my body doesn't want to sleep. So I write my blog in bed amongst the sounds of the other three sleeping. These really do take me a while. I started at 10:30 and it's now 12:30. But as always, I know it'll be well worth it in the end. Thank you God for such an amazing day. I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings!