Meseta? Schmeseta! Today was actually a very excellent walk. We left at 5:30 AM, in jackets and headlamps, of course, and made excellent time. 12.7 miles. This is what greeted us – shade trees!
The little Pueblo is nestled into the side of a hill (on the left). There is a castle here, but we’re too tired to walk anywhere.
We came across the ruins of a Convent of Saint Anthony, which was quite amazing – out in the middle of nowhere.
We opted for a nice hotel so we could get some sleep.
I’m sharing a photo of the boot room of our albergue. Some places require you to leave your boots and poles/staffs. At our first Albergue, day one, when they asked me to leave my boots, I was incredulous! I mean, if someone was to walk off my boots, it’s over! I think the other pilgrim I was with felt the same way! But there is a spirit of trust among the pilgrims. Now I understand. To put your things under key would communicate suspicion. And when you’re all together, it’s necessary to have a feeling of community and trust.
Plus now I understand why we remove our boots. Remember that we share the path with animals! Makes perfect sense.
The dormitory sleeping is tough though. Last night, for example, we were 12 in a room – 6 bunk beds. Older folks always get the bottom bunk.
We were, of course, 3 Americans, 2 Koreans, 2 Swedes, 1 Dane, 3 Germans and 1 Brazilian. Full house last night. For the most part, everyone tries to be respectful. I mean, we are all doing the exact same thing! All walking the same path, but probably for different reasons. We all had our same tasks – showering, then laundry.
10 o’clock comes around and everyone goes to sleep. Some nights even before. I am the alarm clock for our group, do I’m always afraid we’ll disturb the others, so I find myself watching the clock. Early risers like us – we have to sneak out quietly and not wake anyone in the room.
Tomorrow we’re looking at a longer walk, but we know it will follow a good sleep tonight!