Hornillos to CastroJeriz

We left the Meeting Point albergue around 6:30am and walked for an hour under a half moon bright enough to illuminate our path without using the flashlight. Two breakfasts later and a beautiful walk into Castrojeriz gave us an hour to wait for our lodging to open up at 1pm.

We had a drink at a bar on the main plaza and we’re treated poorly by the staff and overheard locals complaining about pilgrims. 99% of everyone we meet on the Camino is so kind and friendly and when they are not, the contrast is significant.

The hotel manager treated us superbly and her suggestion for lunch at the Meson turned out to be exceptional as we sat down we saw our Brazilian friend the Career-changing from advertising artist to tattoo artist who is doing a year’s worth of travel including Caminos doing tattoos. We invited him to join us. He will eventually set up in Barcelona in his new business. We ate dinner with him at the communal dinner in Roncevalles and we had seen him one other time on the way since then. He has held up here in CastroJeriz a few days to heal blisters.

We climbed up to the castle as part of our routine of checking out the Pueblo we are staying in. And on the way back to the hotel we stopped by the church for a guided tour and it turns out it is Santo Domingo de Guzman, the patron of the Dominican Order and namesake for Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

Lastly, had a light dinner at our hotel, which sadly will close after this season due to lack of people to employ.Read more