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Cress on the Camino Francés 24Cress on the Camino Francés 24
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Cress on the Camino Francés 24

May 2024 - July 2025
  • Cressida Borrett
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I'm taking time out to do something I have always wanted to do as part of celebrating turning 60. Read more
  • Cressida Borrett
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  • Cressida BorrettTravelerCress on the Camino Francés 24
    4

    Long straight path

    June 10, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C

    We woke up today to 12c and a biting cold wind. Just as well as the sun was out again and most of the 23km was in full sun along a very straight roman road, raised up between crops of mostly wheat.
    The highlight of the morning was the food truck after 2 hours walking, where we had a really ni e breakfast. Nowhere to pee for the next 7km though as there were lots of walkers and no way of getting
    down from the roman road! I distracted myself taking g photos of fennel and the Picos de Europa mountains in the distance.
    The last section was a bit less flat, we saw a linet and a cat marched past carrying a dead mouse and looking very pleased with itself.
    It was a relief to arrive as .y feet are feeling very pounded, for want of a better word, after about 15km each day.
    The hostel is in the second semi abandoned village of the day, and is very nice. I spent the afternoon drawing.
    Early start for a long day tomorrow so early night, as I didn't sleep well last night.    Read more

  • Cressida BorrettTravelerCress on the Camino Francés 24

    Carrion de los condes

    June 9, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    We started later (7am) today as it was grey skies and about 10c cooler which suits me fine. Fiona's hands turned white though and she has spent most of the day cold.
    The walk was flat and took us along an ancient canal with lots of birdsong, which you can identify with an app called Merlin. Then across more wheat fields through a couple of dead villages, one with an amazing church with knights templar tombs and 15th century carvings.
    My feet and knees decided that today they would ache and the last few kilometers were hard. The changing insole trick didn't fool them. However, most people are far worse off and a couple of our camino 'friends' are giving up or taking rest days because of blisters. Thank you Hoka trainers, and Michael my nhs podiatrist!
    Carrion is a nice town and we have a private room tonight which means sheets, towels and a bathroom instead of a hostel bed. We had a nice lunch in the busiest restaurant, and then at 6 went to see the singing nuns. A thing where people share where they are from, why they are walking and sing non religious songs with nuns. It reminded me of school in Cádiz, as the nuns were just as lovely. Anyway, a bit special and hard to explain. I went for a walk afterwards on my own and ended up having beers with a bunch of people we have met over the last few days.
    The photo of the man on the bike with an umbrella is my picture for my drawing project today. Day 370 of daily drawing.    Read more

  • Cressida BorrettTravelerCress on the Camino Francés 24
    1

    5 Goat Town

    June 8, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    Last night was very different. Only three of us staying, us and a guy from Barcelona. The host, a very intense alternative-lifestyle-with-money woman had done amazing things with the derelict house. It was very peaceful and relaxing, and the dinner was really good. Lentil and tomato salad with dill, and veggie couscous. I managed to sleep through a big thunderstorm. Today started with a hill, and then more rolling countryside for 20km to Bobadilla, a mostly abandoned town where the most interesting thing is a lovely church, with a bad smell of pee, and 6 storks nests on top. There are 5 goats grazing and 2 hostels, one of which we are staying in. The people who run it are Dutch, and serve pancakes and Thai curry among other things. Very quiet and about to rain by the look of the skyRead more

  • Cressida BorrettTravelerCress on the Camino Francés 24
    1

    Yet more poppies and big skies

    June 7, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    After the heat yesterday we got up really early and walked 19km to the first cup of coffee through beautiful fields of wheat and poppies. We found a place with carrot cake for breakfast and kept on walking down to a ruined abbey that Fiona wanted to stay the night in. Except that we saw a sign in the middle of nowhere for a veggie, alternative lifestyle place in Castrojeriz so here I am sitting in a beautiful peaceful garden under a tree. There are only four beds, which are in a huge yoga studio, and only three of us staying so far. It's a very lovely place which promises some variation on the pilgrim diet, which being meat heavy is not really my thing.
    Walked past a poppy and purple flower field. The attached photo doesn't do it justice.    Read more

  • Cressida BorrettTravelerCress on the Camino Francés 24
    1

    First day on the meseta

    June 6, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 30 °C

    Which for those of you who don't know, is the enormous plateau that covers most of central Spain, from La Mancha south of Madrid to the mountains just north of us here. In my experience it is either baking hot like today or very cold in Winter.
    As there has been so much rain the poppies, thistles and other wild flowers are stunning.
    We are staying in a hostel Fiona knows from last year in a sleepy village that has the good fortune to sit on the path to Santiago, and is making the most of it by catering to pilgrims. There's a man in a small shop across the road selling tiny shampoos, suncreams, blister stuff, and food in small packets as well as making nice sandwiches.    Read more

  • Cressida BorrettTravelerCress on the Camino Francés 24
    11

    Not walking day

    June 5, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Rest day in Burgos, and a lie in.
    Then a lovely veggie cafe breakfast. We spent the morning in the cathedral and I'm off to the musuem shortly, via the ice cream shop.
    There are plenty of pictures of Burgos cathedral out there as its a spectaculrly oppulent gothic pile, monument to rich families as much as a place of worship.
    Here are a few of the patterns I noticed.    Read more

  • Cressida BorrettTravelerCress on the Camino Francés 24
    3

    Burgos

    June 4, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    We are in Burgos, 12 days and about 250km walked. Today's walk from the lovely village of Atapuerca, one of many being revived by camino tourism, was 20km. Over a misty hill and down as the sun burnt off the mist, for a lovely breakfast stop. The walk from there to Burgos along a river seemed interminable as my head had already arrived. Fiona knew of a spectacular approach through the arch to the cathedral square which is very beautiful. We had a properly veggie lunch at last, and found some supplies for my 5 a day attempts. It is nice being able to eat loads of food without thinking about calories as we burn so much e nergy walking. We are staying in a 1903 hotel, faded grandeur, still beautiful with a lobby that looks frozen in time.
    I have been relaxing this afternoon, and we met up with Bernie, Linda and David for supper as they are going on tomorrow so we may not see them again. It's sad saying goodbye to lovely people.    Read more

  • Cressida BorrettTravelerCress on the Camino Francés 24
    111

    Beautiful 31km walk

    June 3, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Today was one of the prettiest so far. We left Belorado before dawn and walked up through the forest stopping at a place called Espinosa for coffee, fresh juice and some cake to take away. It was a lovely place, where they tried to serve something other than the usual. I will stay there next time.
    At the top of the hill there was a monument to 300 people killed by Franco at the begining of the civil war, and a man with mental health issues painting shells very badly and telling everyone his problems. Nobody was buying his shells.
    After more coffee and food stops with our Irish Canadian friends and two of Fiona's friends from last year who we bumped in to, we walked through the most amazing wild flower meadows to Atapuerca where we are staying tonight. The hostel is newly opened in a beautiful old house, and we are in a dorm with a girl I nicknamed The Cool Korean, back when we started, because she dresses very cooly, in coolie style hat and colour coordinated everything with gloves and face cover for the sun. Turns out she is Japanese not Korean so I need a nickname to rhyme with that....
    Quite a few people are getting secret nicknames.
    Flowers in the pictures are for Portia to identify please    Read more

  • Cressida BorrettTravelerCress on the Camino Francés 24

    Belorado

    June 2, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Today we crossed over into Castilla León, still rolling wheat fields but no more Rioja grapes. We are staying in another pretty medieval town where there's a festival going on. There's a veggie menu on offer so Fiona is excited at the prospect of real food.Read more

  • Cressida BorrettTravelerCress on the Camino Francés 24
    21

    Jesus for sale

    June 1, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    A lovely short 20km walk today through ondulating countryside to Santo Domingo de la Calzada, a town founded by the saint of the same name who spent his life helping pilgrims and performing miracles with chickens and dead people. The cathedral is beautiful and features some live chickens and cockrells in a box, as well as Jesus for sale. See picture. We wa dered around, had some nice wine, less nice wine, chips and met up with people including one of Fiona's friends from last year.Read more

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