Fonsagrada, A

The Primitivo is really primitivo. I was pretty spoiled on the Camino del Norte, where, for the most part, there were towns at least every 2-3 hours. You could usually stop and have a rest or a cup of coffee. But for the last few days, there has been hardly anything along the way. Even some of the towns we stay at, I think, are only surviving because of Camino tourists. In some ways, it is nice to see the very rural parts of Spain, but in other ways, I feel like I am just walking and eating with other foreigners. At least on the Camino del Norte, there was the opportunity to see some parts of authentic life in Spain. I should caveat that I think life in these small villages is authentic, but typically the only people out are the tourists.

Today it was mostly rain, and not a soft, gentle mist like the few days before, but a proper ice shower of rain. 🥶 I woke up feeling a little worse than the day before. 🤧 At least half the pilgrims in this hostel I am staying in are sick.

This morning, I was not very interested in the 16 miles in my future. I watched each pilgrim put on their pack and leave until I was one of the last few remaining. The miles were not going to walk themselves; I had to walk them.

I ran into my English friend Lez first thing in the morning and met his traveling buddy Daz. We are staying at the same albergue in A Fonsagrada, Albergue Cantábrico. One thing about this Camino is that there are no options of different towns to stay in along the way, and you are guaranteed to keep staying with the same people over and over again. 100% of the people I’ve met, I’ve enjoyed.

Today, there was only one little bar to stop in along the way, and since it was raining like mad, almost every pilgrim stopped. It was so crowded that it was hard to find a place to sit. I asked two other pilgrims if I could sit with them. One of them was from Madrid, and the other from Cordoba. We spoke about the south of Spain, and it made me really want to visit. I said goodbye to my new friends and got back on the road, knowing the rain was only going to get worse. As I was walking along, I came upon this gentleman I’d been playing leapfrog with on the trail for a few days. His name is Carlos, and he is from a small town outside of Madrid. I’d not yet been brave enough to speak to Carlos, but today I was, and I am so grateful I did.

Carlos walks a little funny. Instead of his knees pointing forward, they point to the side. He sort of swaggers down the trail like he just got done riding a horse for the whole day. We spoke about Camino things and how, when you pick up something new on the trail that you want to take with you, you have to take something else out of your backpack to make space. Similarly, when we have new things we want to bring into our lives, we have to take some of the older, less useful things out to make room. Carlos also told me that in a single year, he lost both his childhood best friend and his mother to COVID-19, and he and his wife of 38 years divorced. But he said, "It just made me realize I can keep going." He said even though he has pain as he walks down the trail, he still has the ability to keep walking, and he doesn’t let the pain stop him. ❤️‍🩹 He said he was happy every moment that he still has the ability to keep walking. He was so full of gratitude, it was amazing! It was sort of like his whole body was radiating joy to still be moving forward.

After I left Carlos, I was thinking about that, and also about Santiago in *The Alchemist.* (Always) There is a moment in the story where Santiago has all of his money stolen from him while he is on his way to the pyramids. It’s early in his journey.

> He wept because God was unfair, and because this was the way God repaid those who believed in their dreams. When I had my sheep, I was happy, and I made those around me happy. People saw me coming and welcomed me, he thought. But now I’m sad and alone. I’m going to become bitter and distrustful of people because one person betrayed me. I’m going to hate those who have found their treasure because I never found mine. And I’m going to hold on to what little I have because I’m too insignificant to conquer the world.

But Santiago doesn’t choose to stay bitter. He continued to look for the omens. He continued in pursuit of his personal legend and looked for happiness along the way. In that moment, after meeting Carlos, I felt like I had met a real-life Santiago.

Then it poured ice-cold rain on me, and I didn’t feel so romantic about the idea of following a personal legend. A bus to the beach would’ve been just fine. 🤷‍♀️

My shoes are barely hanging in there. Similar to my body. 😂 My right pinky toe is a bit inflamed. I might have the beginnings of an ingrown toenail. 🫤 Otherwise, all set for another 15 miles tomorrow. 😑 To be here is a gift. To be here is a gift. To be here is a gift. 🧘🏼‍♀️Read more