Spain
Villafranca Montes de Oca

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    • Day 14–15

      D13- Granon to Belorado 15.6km

      May 26 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

      We left Granon about 8 o’clock after a little sleep in as we had a slightly shorter day, only 15.6km. We had some apricots, banana and cherries that we had bought the day before in Santo Domingo. We had these for breakfast along with some nice cookies and chocolate pastry from the bakery at Granon. Clear sky today and we saw many aeroplanes flying in all directions as we are nearer to Madrid now. The poppies still separate the crops of barley and wheat from the gravel road we walked on. We left the region of Rioja today and entered Castilla and Lyon, no more vineyards for a few weeks but lots of beautiful farmland. We stopped at Redecilla del Camino for our second breakfast. The next town we passed through was Viloria del Rioja but didn’t stop. We carried on for another 7.1km until we came to Villamayor and we stopped at the albergue for our lunch and saw that our New Zealand friends, Chris,Kate and Amy were there so we chatted with them for a while. Belorado was only another 4.8km mostly on gravel road. The albergue we were staying was really nice, power points at all beds, 3 floors and also had a garden area with a covered pool. I got in but only up to my waist but it was refreshing for the feet and legs. We had a lovely pilgrims meal in the restaurant, 3 courses and bread, wine and water included for 17 euros. We went for a walk around town but only bars and cafes open as it was a Sunday.Read more

    • Day 17 - Belorado to Villafranca Montes

      September 15, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

      I love my bed today! It is a single bed, with a short wall between the next bed and right beside the window. Luxury in terms of albergue living. I have arrived in Villafranca Montes de Oca. It was a very short hike so I really took my time. I tried to make it like a day off as tomorrow will be longer (I think). Shhh ... don’t tell anyone but I am not going to take a shower or wash my clothes. I am enjoying the break from those mundane tasks.

      It is an overcast day today. We actually got a little bit of drizzle this morning. I believe there is supposed to be more tonight, but should be gone by the morning.

      Really, nothing spectacular to write about today. A bit boring, which is exactly how I am liking it. In fact, I have been thinking of how I can just stay in my bed for the day until dinner, but I should get out and get a few groceries for lunch tomorrow.

      But, instead of rambling about nothing, I will end this post now.

      TTYL
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    • Day 11

      Damn flies

      August 2, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

      I didn't enjoy the second half of the walk. The scenery was nice, all bush, but there were millions of annoying little flies that kept coming to my face.
      I had a similar experience on the way to Lúquin last week. I didn't mention it because I didn't want to sound negative and didn't want to let that little annoyance ruin my mood.
      But today, despite trying again to keep calm and ignore them, they were so persistent that a couple of times I even swore out loud. The worst was going on the steep uphill, not being able to breathe through my mouth!
      So, I am just acknowledging the reality that the relentless flies did stop me from enjoying what was otherwise a great walk.
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    • Day 20

      12k over Alto da la Pedraja

      October 7, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

      Today's big climb started right out the back door of our hotel. About 5k climbing to the top of a ridge list as 1100 meters above sea level (about 3600 feet I think!)

      We got to walk through a forest for the first time in over a week. Taking a late morning coffee break in San Juan de Ortega.Read more

    • Day 19

      Chilling at Hotel San Anton Abad

      October 6, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

      We have walked around the tiny village of Villafranca Montes de Oca ( The Rio Oca flows down from the mountains through town) . Everything is closed for Siesta. At 5PM, the super mercado opens, and we will get a bottle of local wine.

      Update: Villafranca has a Jai Alai Fronton!

      Meanwhile we have found a small terrace with shade and sun to chill out. Two members of the staff just just us some walnuts, right out of the trees out back, to snack on.
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    • Day 23

      Day 15-Villfranca Montes de Oca

      September 19, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F

      I can't say enough about our stay last night at La Aldea Encantada. It was one kilometer off the Camino and had a few nice houses, alot of crumbling houses, no church bells and no services. I slept great since it was so quiet there. Apparently, the original Camino ran through there and our hostess showed us the original trail to take back to meet the new trail. Dinner last night was made by the hostess's mother with alot of it coming from their garden. It was delicious.

      Today's walk was on rolling hills and through three towns. One has a hermitage built into the mountain. We snacked on some salchichón, cheese and bread on the way. Alot of the walk was on a gravel path next to the highway. Many semi trucks were driving by and back when I was in my 20's, drivers would honk at me. Well, fast forward a few decades, I have to work a little harder to get them to honk. You'll see my efforts in the video.

      The weather was great and all the body parts are working well and don't hurt. This is a very cute town with several places to eat.
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    • Day 15

      Day 15 Atapuorca

      May 20 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 50 °F

      (No wifi yesterday, so this is posted a day late.) The climb this morning was beautiful. We walked a long way through a very pretty forrest where we heard cuckcoo birds calling, just like a clock. In the small town of Ages, a local lady asked if we would like to see the local church, so we got the key to it and opened it to show us. We are staying in Atapuerca in an albergue that has a kitchen and family room. We visited Atapuerca, a Unesco World Heritage site, where one million years old human remains were found. Big news: we have walked 273 kilometers so far. That equals 163 miles completed. Or 40 miles more than from STL city to Columbia, MO.Read more

    • Day 21

      Villafranca Montes de Oca

      September 5, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 77 °F

      Shorter day today, had a leisurely walk of 10 miles today. Mom found a man last night but decided he was too young and left him behind. Belorado has some of the coolest murals I have ever seen. A couple of beautiful churches ⛪️ today and lots of sunflowers fields, even found some happy ones.Read more

    • Day 9

      9.DAY | 30 km

      May 7, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

      Mir fehlen die Worte...

      Besonders hier gibt es diese Tage wo deine Füße einfach nein sagen und du nicht weißt wo du die Kraft her bekommen sollst und dann bleibt dir nichts anderes als alles an Stärke aus deinem Inneren zu ziehen, was bei mir mit meinem Glauben echt nicht wenig ist. Es ist wirklich unglaublich, aber dass was ich mir über den Tag wünsche erreicht mich. Als ich auf der Hälfte der Strecke war und mir die Kräfte gefehlt haben kreuzten drei Italiener meinen Weg und sowie es hier Gang und Gäbe ist, fingen wir an uns zu unterhalten bis wir zusammen vor einer Bar saßen und einer von ihnen meine Füße massierte und wir den ganzen Weg entlang vor Lachen nicht mehr konnten. Dann bekam ich eine SMS meiner Camino Familie die mir sagten "Elli wir laufen gerade zurück und holen dich" hier ist mit holen aber tatsächlich nicht mit dem Auto gemeint, sondern sie liefen einfach um mich zu entlasten einige Kilometer zurück. Nun sagte ich zu meinem Engel hier auf dem Camino "Pit wie soll ich dass wieder gut machen ? Ich gebe viel lieber als zu nehmen" und er antwortete mir "Elli du hast es dir verdient und nun ist die Zeit in der dein Leben es dir zurück zahlt" Was soll ich sagen du kommst an deine Grenzen aber hast nicht die Zeit für negative Gedanken, weil du hier zuviel gutes siehst. Heute schlafe ich mit 30 Menschen in einem Zimmer, meine liebsten sind natürlich mit mir, aber mir ist durch diese verschiedenen Herbergen definitiv klar geworden, was ich eigentlich habe und was man letzten Endes braucht.

      Weiter geht's ich bleibe stark !

      Mi mancano le parole...

      Soprattutto qui, ci sono giorni in cui i piedi dicono di no e non sai da dove prendere la forza e allora non hai altra scelta che tirare tutta la forza dal tuo interiore, che non è davvero poco per me con la mia fede. È davvero incredibile, ma ciò che desidero durante la giornata mi raggiunge. Quando ero a metà strada e mi mancavano le forze, tre italiani hanno incrociato il mio cammino e, come si usa qui, abbiamo iniziato a parlare finché non ci siamo seduti insieme davanti a un bar e uno di loro mi ha massaggiato i piedi e non abbiamo smesso di ridere per tutto il percorso. Poi ho ricevuto un messaggio dalla mia famiglia del Cammino che diceva: "Elli, stiamo tornando a piedi a prenderti", ma qui non si intende prenderti in macchina, si sono fatti chilometri a piedi per darmi un sostegno. Ora ho detto al mio angelo qui sul Camino: "Pit, come farò a ricambiare questo aiuto? Io preferisco dare che ricevere" e lui mi ha risposto "Elli te lo sei guadagnato e ora è il momento che la tua vita ti ripaghi". Che dire, raggiungi i tuoi limiti ma non hai tempo per i pensieri negativi perché qui vedi troppo bene. Oggi dormo con 30 persone in una stanza, i miei tesori sono con me, mi sono resa conto di ciò che ho e di ciò che hai veramente bisogno nella vita.

      Continuo ad andare avanti, ed essere forte!
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    • Day 23

      Day 15 - Villafranca

      September 19, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F

      We started the day just off the established Camino, only to find out that we were actually staying on the original Camino path. after the stay, we walked about a mile of the super secret path of the Camino.

      Make sure to watch both videos for all the video hilarity.
      Read more

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