Treat Yo Self

It was cold and windy when we left this morning. I could have thrown my sun shirt over my hiking dress, but that would have required digging it out of the bottom of my pack, so being cold was the lesser of the evils. It’s going to be even colder tomorrow; I might be regretting sending that long sleeve merino shirt home with Missy since there was a heat wave. (I am. I am regretting it.)

Today was the first time we all hiked together. Normally we have staggered starts and run into each other or meet up in town. This morning Mim, Kathy, Annette, and I deliberately stayed together, and a couple of miles in Tom and Yvonne, who’d left earlier but stopped at a bakery, caught up. It wasn’t our strongest start. Just out of town we followed an arrow down a gravel road only for it to go in a large circle and send us right back to the start. We needed to be on the road 10 feet to the left.

I was pleased that I could keep up today, but I credit that to better living through pharmaceuticals. Everyone knows if I keel over it’ll probably be NSAID poisoning.

The first coffee stop had a sign proclaiming “The Best Coffee All Over The Camino!” We went in eagerly, only to discover it was a room full of vending machines. We hadn’t noticed that on the sign. Spoiler: it was not the best coffee. It was tolerable coffee at best.

Meg, who’s a day ahead of us, had let us know to take the alternate route and outlined exactly how to do it. That way took us along a lovely river path rather than the highway. Plus the trees blocked the wind a bit. When we rejoined the main route we thought we had four miles into town, not realizing there was a stop in between. That was a pleasant surprise, and we went to an albergue for more coffee and some food.

Carrión, where we are tonight, is a bustling little town. It was a short day, meaning we got in around 12:30. Our first stop before we scattered to our lodgings was the pilgrim store. I was looking for a cheap fleece or long sleeve shirt but didn’t find anything either cheap enough or that I liked enough to spend actual money on. I’ll just layer up tomorrow and hope for the best!

Tom, Yvonne, and I are all staying at a former monastery turned luxury hotel. It’s a far cry from the bunk bed I woke up in this morning! Meg had also warned us that it is all the way through town, but it’s not actually that far out, and it just means tomorrow’s walk is slightly shorter. I took a long, hot shower and went back into town.

I always forget about siesta. By the time I’m rested and ready to go out, most everything has closed down. Fortunately, today I was doing laundry, which is always open, so I threw that in then went to a bar for a snack. I also saw a 24-hour pharmacy where I got some K-tape for my shins and a stamp for my passport. As much time and money as I’ve spent in pharmacies this trip it seems right I should have a stamp.

One of the advertised highlights of Carrión is the singing nuns. Kathy, Mim, and I went to the church at 4:45, which is when the sign said it started, but it was no Sister Act. Instead, it was a 45 minute organ concert with occasional singing from the choir loft — by a man. It was all very lovely but felt a bit oversold. We stuck around outside for few minutes to see if any nuns were going to start singing, because we’d have felt very stupid for walking out only to find that was the prelude, but nope.

Tomorrow the first ten miles has no towns, which required a trip to the grocery store for supplies. Decided to come back and have dinner in tonight and watch YouTube videos on shin taping.

Today was a good day.Read more