Day 27: Ponferrada a Villafranca

A glorious sleep. A beautiful mattress. A blissful morning. In my room last night, a woman was crying. She was 55, and very upset that she couldn’t find a room to reserve for two nights ahead. She told me that this was not the spirit of the Camino, and she couldn’t compete with the young people leaving so early to reserve beds. I feel sad, sad about her situation but also sad about the way that the Camino might be going.

I leave Ponferrada and meet John, an Australian banker who tells me he never quite figured out what he wanted to do when he grows up. He tells me that we have to accept the world we live in today, And that means accepting the experience at are having. I realise that in many ways this applies to what the woman last night was upset about. Perhaps expectations stop us from enjoying what we have today. I feel grateful that I have reserved some beds, so that I can free up cheaper ones for those that need them more than I do. I walk in alone, and write this as I enjoy a morning coffee.

I arrive in Villafranca del Bierzo. It’s beautiful here, I walk a stretch with Bernhardt from Austria. But mainly by myself. The town here is of historic significance to the Camino, because many pilgrims received their compostela here if they could go no further. I arrived feeling pretty good, although maybe a bit later. I check into a beautiful hostel with a garden and enjoy a beer and do some drawing.

I meet Alessandro, Pascuale, Simone and Giovanni (!) a group of Italians for a beer in the square. I enjoy their company and they are very funny, they are all from different parts of Italy so they tell me about how different their accents all are.

Later I have dinner with a large group of pilgrims, and realise that half the table is German and the other half is Italian! So, after I leave I head to the hostel and prepare myself for sleep.

The days are more beautiful now but getting tougher with more climbs, I have to prepare for a big day tomorrow.

Goodnight!Read more