Today was the shortest hike I’ve done, I think, and I took the day off. I walked, but all I did was listen to Rose Code, look at the fields when I remembered and spent most of my head time in England at Blechley Park where they did code-breaking. It was great and a nice time out of my focused thinking. 2.5 hours left, I’ll finish it tomorrow after I do most of my usual things.
No church sightings, no sightings of much of anything but fields and it was wonderful. Got hot again today, down to shirtsleeves for the first time in days and the flies were very busy. Didn’t have my bug spray, but I’ll carry it tomorrow.
We compared at breakfast how many flies we had. I only had one and named him Fred the Fly because he liked to be VERY close to me at all times. Happily, he was tricked by light so I managed to get him into the bathroom when it was time to sleep. Sue said she killed all she could, swooping around the room. I asked if she sang a little song for their happy passing and she said she wasn’t that nice.
The only place to stop today was a food truck and bless his heart. It was perfect timing and very few walked by. That group of 4 at the first table are who I’ve been spending most of my time with at meals over the past few days. 3 from Texas and Sue from England. We had dinner at the monastery last night and were giddy because it was such good food. I had a full vegetarian meal!
Here’s where we came from, the mountains near Burgos. Such a clear day.
And this video is from my room/hotel. Big change from last night and I love it. Every day brings something new. This hotel is the only hotel, the only bar, the only restaurant. Very small town, says population of 50, hard to imagine. There is a church, but it’s been rebuilt and rebuilt from the medieval times. The main thing to see are the “best Roman ruins on the entire Camino.” But – 3.5 k from the town. The owner pointed out the grove of trees where it is and if I had a bike, I’d definitely go. But really don’t want to add on 7 more k in the heat. So – enjoying an afternoon in my room, listening to all the community action happening downstairs. And in the room next door, can hear every word, but it’s in Spanish so not a problem.
Here are a few overall things I’ve noticed.
I’ve eaten more tuna that I’ve eaten in my entire adult life since I learned about mercury in tuna and swordfish. They put it on almost all the salads. There was tuna soup the other night. I don’t know why, but put me down for mercury by the time I get home.
They are super conservative with light, hit the switch, go in the bathroom and you’re lucky if you’re out before the light goes off, same with corridors, stairs, etc. But – night time every town, every hotel but a few has a gazillion very large bright lights on all night long.
They don’t seem to have a water shortage, or at least even the smallest hotels have great shower pressure and hot water.
Hard surfaces are everywhere, all through towns with cobble/cement streets, hard surfaced houses, small lanes, no grass or trees to soften and very little regard for how sound carries. And it carries! Outside if anyone is outside, you know it. Inside, even the nicest hotels have thin walls, so snoring, talking, etc. a shared experience. No one complains, maybe hearing each other is a comfort?
Sue and I have marveled at the amount of beer and wine that is drunk, but we’ve never seen sloppy behavior at all as people gather outside for tapas and drinks. And they gather a lot! Very social culture, so nice to see. COVID? Must have been even harder for these communities since they clearly spend a lot of time gathering with friends and family. She also noted that because of the lack of behavior, no police. In England, she said they’re constant because the behavior of groups of people drinking is so challenging.
Just love getting to learn, wish my Spanish was growing, mostly I’m cementing some basic words and I pull them out repeatedly!
Reb's Walks! 