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To the End of the World
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To the End of the World

Pamplona to the end of the world. Lue lisää
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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Carrion de los Condes

    29. heinäkuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ 🌙 20 °C

    For 500 years, pilgrims stayed and healed at the Monastery of San Zoilo in Carrion de los Condes. Today, the Monastery is a high class hotel with Michelin priced (and Truck Stop inspired) restaurant.

    The monastery features a “Camino de Santiago” theme, which stands in stark contrast to the treatment of pilgrims. And, yes, I stayed here. Paid more than what I’d paid for the past week in accommodation, including a €50 dinner that could have come from the bowels of an East London greasy spoon (and would probably have tasted better).

    I wanted to see the Monastery, and the only way to do so is to stay here. Not my proudest and most pilgrim moment, I admit.

    Tomorrow, I’ll be back to being Just A Pilgrim, but tonight I am grumpy Mikka, angry at myself for spending so much money to, essentially, just witness the Church (again) strut its riches while asking for more.    Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Fields

    30. heinäkuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    I don’t post very many pictures from the road lately. This is my view. It’s always the same, corn and sunflower fields, for miles.

    That is shit for a picture journal, but I love it. My body is used to the walking by now, and my mind gets to soar.

    Ten more kilometers, one more break in the middle of that, and I’ll be in Terradillos de Los Templarios.

    The weather is amazing, a light wind drives me forward, and the road is light on the feet. I can’t seem to be able to wipe the smile off my dumb face, and I don’t want to. 350 down, 590 to go… and I intend to enjoy the shit out of every single one of them.    Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Compostela

    30. heinäkuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ 🌙 20 °C

    Santiago de Compostela derives its name from the myth that, all the way along the Way of St James, the Milky Way will lead you towards it.

    This is obviously incorrect, but for about two weeks in summer and in the Meseta it is as close to true as it can be.

    Last night I went outside to see the stars and let them guide me. Cell phone pictures do, of course, not do this justice, but with a magnificent sky above me, the galaxies of the Milky Way pointing West toward my goal, even I could and wanted to believe it.    Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    One third

    31. heinäkuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    It occurred to me that as of today, one third of this magnificent adventure already lies behind me.

    Over 350 kilometer of dust and sun I have met amazing people, shared laughs, patched smaller ailments, talked, and sometimes just sat silent and listened to the Babylonian mix of languages and voices.

    Some of those I’ve met have found their calling in pushing each other to new distances, others hurt themselves in that process and had to slow down or drop out.

    Everyone’s Camino is different, each walking their own, and so I do not judge. But to me, the Camino is not about proving my manhood or fitness as a pilgrim but about slowing down for the things along the way. An old woman showing us the 80cm long key to her bodega (bodegas are heaps of dirt and rocks under which wine and food is stored), a man telling me about his donkey, or a friendly stranger buying me a coffee and explaining her thoughts on art.

    When I arrive in Muxia, the angry sea bashing the darkened rocks underneath me, a red sun setting into a vast ocean, until only the light of the lighthouse remains underneath the stars, the universe won’t ask how long it took me to Leon, but how many new memories, friends, and decisions I have made.    Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Late Start and „cheating“ a bit

    1. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ 🌙 15 °C

    Today I am giving my tortured legs a bit of a rest. I’ll be taking a bus past the industrial outskirts of Leon, which is essentially just a cat and mouse game against trucks and speeding cars on the freeway, and I pre-booked my bunk bed in an albergue to have a little more time to get there and see the town.

    Yesterday’s 25 kilometers along the freeway, my boots pounding asphalt more than any other surface, led to slightly more discomfort than I am willing to admit (Mikka is getting old). If I want to make it to Astorga on the 4th and Foncebaddon on the 6th, it’s maybe not a bad idea to start fresher tomorrow.

    With Leon I am slowly leaving the Meseta for the hilly final 250 kilometers towards Sarria. O Cebreiro and the Cruz de Ferro lie ahead, both nice day-long inclines to the highest and second highest point of my journey respectively, The landscape will turn green again, oak trees at first, followed by eucalyptus forests as the climate goes from desert to mountainous and then ocean.

    I’ll certainly miss the gruff landscape and its equally gruff inhabitants. On the other hand, I can do with a little more shade, temperatures are forecast to soar again.    Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Leaving León

    2. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ 🌙 17 °C

    It will be a hot day and though I’ll have only 26 kilometers ahead of me, most of it will be pounding asphalt on my way out of León and along N-120.

    After last nights‘ discovery of vino de verano (wine with Kas lemon) I slept a little too long, but the feet are happy and the pack feels light, so I have high hopes to arrive with a smile.Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Mind

    3. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    I didn’t write much yesterday. I was done. Not physically, I feel absolutely fine, and not emotionally, I am happy as can be, but mentally.

    The Meseta ends tomorrow, first over lightly rolling hills, then steeply up and down into Ponferrada. The past week from Burgos, through endless wheat and sunflower fields, has given me a chance to think and clear my mind, just as Navarra and La Rioja shaped my body. Those final 300 to Santiago will be in service of the soul, and yes, there will very likely be tears.

    I can’t believe how fast the past 200 went by, deep in thought, plodding along the roads and over dirt tracks. I hope the next 200 will feel longer, I don’t want this to end.    Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Astorga

    4. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    I have left the Meseta and am entering the hills that will take me to Galicia, the last province on my walk.

    Bigger city also means better food. No more wilted leaves on oil, a vegetarian burger and good patatas bravas are waiting for me. Yay!Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Gaudí

    4. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    As Spain lay in the throes of one of the worst poverty driven famines and health disasters, as churches and hospitals had to turn away the sick and ailing, the Bishop of Astorga commissioned this palace from his friend Gaudí. It looks a bit like Disneyland, I guess.Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    I hosed myself hard

    4. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    This morning, leaving the albergue of horrors (that’s for a blog post after the trip), I pulled my charger from the communal charging station and the US-EU converter slipped off.

    You’d think that a town like Astorga has a shop selling a US/EU converter or a new charger. Nope to both. I have to make do with what I could get, the worlds shittest 18W charger that managed to get my phone from 55 to 75 percent in two hours, not even mentioning the time it took to get my watch charged.

    Until Ponferrada I’ll thus be without reliable phone, watch, or tablet charge. I might be able to find an albergue where charging overnight is an option, but most places have communal charging areas and I’d rather not leave my hardware there unattended. Damn, I really need that 100W monster to work again, let’s hope…    Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Up the hill

    5. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    Today’s leg takes me onto the highest point of the Camino. Once an abandoned town with wild dogs and dangerous paths, Foncebadón has become a bit of a hippie pilgrim haven with vegan bars (and a steak house) a mere hours walk from the Cruz de Ferro.

    This is me leaving the second part of the Camino, getting used to the new pilgrim numbers that doubled in Leon and Astorga, and returning to steep inclines and descending rocky paths. The landscape already has turned greener and the winds are less harsh in the morning. I’ll be a good day, see you at the Cowboy Bar 🤠    Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    The Cowboy Bar

    5. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    A Camino staple and legend, the owner is a man of few words but a heart of gold. It has a foosball table, cold beers, and a Spaniard’s idea of what a Texan bar would look like. There’s no way I’d skip this stop.Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    (Ascending) to Foncebadón

    5. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    After a few kilometers of uphill and somewhat hasty uses of shade, I am in Foncebadón. My bed feels soft and the mountain air wafts smells of a nearby campfire into the room.

    The best part is the shower. It’s a normal shower, all right, but positioned under a large ceiling window that turns the whole experience into an outdoor event without the exposure. I really didn’t want to leave the lukewarm water and cold mountain wind combination.

    Now I am headed across the street to take an early (7:30 is very early in this part of the country) dinner at the vegetarian place and maybe suck down a glass of tinto di verano for dessert.

    Tomorrow morning it’s an early rise again to see the sun come up at the Cruz de Ferro.    Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Cruz de Ferro

    6. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    The Cruz was moved in the 80s to get it closer to the tour bus stop, but the original has been here since before the Camino (and, as a heap of rocks since before Christianity).

    The following 9 kilometer are steeply downhill until El Acebo, where I am posting this from, drinking Cola Zero and eating way too much.Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Molinaseca

    6. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    Ran into the lady from the vegan place up on the mountain and had some more great vegan food, this time tempura vegetables in a spicy sesame sauce.

    Today took everything I had, my poor ACL screaming at me at every step down this steep, rocky, hill. There is no denying it, I am getting older, but put into relation of having walked 500 kilometers to find a place that shows me my limits, I am happy.

    I generally just walk head down in thought, but allowed myself some Stanford lectures on neuroscience today, parts of which might make it into a paper on the neuropsychology of the Camino, and some that will probably change how I approach my post-Camino life.

    Despite eating a lot I am losing weight and feel better than I have in years. Early exposure to sunlight sets my circadian rhythm perfectly, the exercise combined with success markers at every stop helps modulate my mood.

    The only minor speck on the otherwise great day is out albergue which is hot, sticky, and loud. But I have a hunch that I’ll be sleeping very well tonight 😀    Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Alberge Camponaraya

    7. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    Of course there was no such luck. The albergue is mediocre but nothing to complain about. But it is in the attic of a local bar, which has a party or something like that and we’re not welcome. So our choice is being in bed in a sweltering room at 3pm or wandering the empty Siesta streets of a Sunday in rural Spain with nothing to do and no where to sit.Lue lisää

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  • MikkaTo the End of the WorldMikka

    Leon … done

    9. elokuuta 2022, Espanja ⋅ 🌙 23 °C

    The sun is setting over my last day in the province of Leon. Tomorrow, somewhere up the hill, I’ll be entring Galicia.

    The landscape has changed drastically, from a flat, barren, and dusty scenery to lush greens and steep inclines and declines. It rained a bit today, and did yesterday as well, which feels good on the skin and for the soul.

    Updates will be more frequent now, including videos, since I have crushed my time goal to O Cebreiro, leaving me space for a more casual and leisurely stroll over the final 320 kilometer.    Lue lisää

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