The ash clouds disappeared and the flight was able to depart! What a great beginning, and so it continues: on the airport bus I met Oonagh O´Farrell whom I had been asked to look out for, and we spent the first evening together. Bilbo is quite amazing, and the changes in the city since Frank and I were there in 1995 at the beginning of our round-the-world trip are remarkable. The Guggenheim Museum is a staggering building - poetry by the river with the titanium exterior reflecting skies and clouds and all the colours of morning and evening.
We then parted to different starting points on the Camino, and I took the once-daily bus to Leon, which stopped long enough in the royal city of Burgos for me to dash to the cathedral and get some of the morning mass. My destination was the tiny village of Mansilla las Mulas where the local padre gave me a special blessing, and from there it was an easy three-hour walk, mostly too close to the highway, to this pueblecito of Arcahueja, where the privately owned hostel offers full board for a song! A local woman en route was busy rummaging for snails by the path, saying they were delicious. I don't know what will be on the menu here this evening, but I am sure it will also be delicious and more than welcome! And even more welcome will be my upper bunk in the dorm - heaven!
And so, enough for today. I will hopefully post this updated by early next week!
Tuesday May 10th
Now cosily ensconced in the lovely local library in the Royal City of Astorga, where at the height of the Camino passion there were 21 Pilgrim Hospices; now just a handful remain but mine is at the entrance to the old city and is in a delightful old convent, with all mod cons. I am in a very cosy 4-person room with 3 Italians from near Milano, and have the honour of an upper berth. Hopefully I will be able to negotiate it OK in the middle of the night without coming to grief or worse still falling over someone!
Having at this stage successfully completed 80 km (took an afternoon walk the other day when the sun was shining and therefore made up some lost miles) there was cause to celebrate, and a first class lunch at the five star Hotel Gaudi in front of the cathedral set me back a serious 13.50 euro plus tax - scallop stuffed with prawns, delicious barbecued chops, and lemon souffle and as much wine as I liked! I find it is better to have the main meal in the middle of the day as one sleeps better with a light collation later. A visit then to the magnificent cathedral which was begun in 1471, and a different style to Leon´s French Gothic masterpiece : three major cathedrals in five days is quite something on foot and very awe-inspiring!
The weather has been pretty cold and wet - as we are at 900 m I generally I wear 6 or 7 layers which is pretty surprising for this time of year - some people experienced snow a few days ago! Last night I stayed in a small hostel in a tiny village which had neither bar nor shop, and it was the coldest I have experienced, with blankets made of a type of sacking (very penitential!) and three layers on underneath. However the path there and the 11 km from there to here was through undulating countryside with poplar groves and plenty of oak amid the fields of pasture. Up to this it had been relentlessly flat and exposed, with huge fields of young maize and sugar beet. Some sheep to be seen and very few cows until this morning when their lowing woke us all quite early (as well as the cold!). Lots of birds of prey and storks everywhere building their incredible mansions atop the church bell towers. Orchids, broom, oaks in bud and endless other wild flowers make the paths a delight.
Heading into some difficult terrain from now on and will take it easy. The highest spot will be in 6 days time when I will hopefully have reached 1,330 m. I am trying not to think too much about it! For that reason today´s walk was so short : a mere 11 kms but most of it uphill so it took me a good 4.5 hours with rests! I may have to revise my calculations quite a bit but wind and weather will decide a lot too. Lovely people cropping up en route, including Ann Coughlan who knew all about me from her parents who have a summer home on the Coast Road : it´s a pretty small world. I am very much enjoying the benefits of her sheet bag as my own had disappeared!
So far I have received two pilgrim blessings from priests in two towns and been to several masses - so am keeping you all in my prayers and thoughts. I had better not ramble on too much at this stage - but thank you all for your good wishes and hope that they get that sun shining just a little bit more - but not too much! Excuse misspells etc as spell checker doesn´t seem to work here! Hasta la proxima!
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