Madrid

Hey, well we made it to Spain. Got to our hotel in Madrid, staggered around the city for a while trying to stay awake until bedtime (9 hr time difference), and then slept for 14 hours. Today, we had breakfast in the neighborhood and then went to the train station to buy tickets to Pamplona. Our idea was to go to a cool city and get some intel from other pilgrims on how difficult it is to get accommodations on the trail. Then we would decide which Camino route we would take… even though we already have semi-decided we want to go the Del Norte route along the northern coast of Spain.

As we bought our tickets, the agent said “Oh, this is great, there is a great festival there starting tomorrow”. It turns out, the Running of the Bulls festival will be going on for the next week. This will certainly have some impact on the availability of lodging, though maybe not as much due to COVID. So we’re off tomorrow for Pamplona, and may or may not have a place to stay, and may or may not keep going out of town if necessary to get a roof over our heads. And hell no, I’m not going to run with the bulls!

I’ve been using my hard studied Spanish and of course it’s pretty rough communicating. Me: has a great question all framed out, asks the question. They: reply in not classroom Spanish, Me: dazed look, embarrassed shoulder shrug, shuffle off with lowered head. Yes, this trip will definitely be a learning experience.

Good Night,

PhilЧитать далее