Santo Domingo de la Calzada to Belorado

Wednesday 11 May 2016 - Day 14

Santo Domingo de la Calzada to Belorado - bus, no walking

Wow, what a night of fiesta! The music and partying went on until about 3am...the Spanish LOVE a party. Street cleaners with big hoses out in force this morning.

Another stunning day, though a little cooler again. Was keen to walk this morning, but couldn't put weight on my left foot. After a few tears, sanity prevailed and I joined many other pilgrims at the bus stop. This could have done with a clean out by the big hoses...it was putrid.

Becky headed off to walk, but Elvira hung around waiting for the pharmacy to open to tend to her blistered toe. She planned to walk only to the next small village and then rest for the afternoon. This might be my last contact with Elvira as she has a longer time schedule, walking until the end of June. We hugged for ages before I climbed onboard the bus. I was sad as she waved me off.

Once off the bus in Belorado, I shared breakfast with a lovely young Danish woman before hobbling around to explore. Writing this inside the Church of Santa Maria XIVth ...praying for a foot miracle. Still pondering on what lessons this disjointed and frustrating journey has for me.

Caught up with Lindsay, my young Canadian friend, as she walked into the church. Her lower leg problem has gone and she's walking really well now. Behind the church the limestone cliffs show evidence of where hermits lived in caves. Some of the caves have been turned into modern homes. This update caught my eye.

Had a lovely few hours sorting out future possibilities, all conjecture, of course, until I fix my blister issues. Had another limp around town, the main plaza was particularly interesting.

When Becky arrived we headed to the plaza for a drink with the gathered pilgrims.

Really happy to catch up again with our Aussie mates, Mike and Brent. They were also triathletes in another lifetime. Brent has a blister almost identical to mine...spooky!

Went to Mass at the church in the plaza. A big fuss was made of the pilgrims. Amazing acoustics.

A lovely albergue meal prepared by our delightful hosts at El Caminante. These two gorgeous Spanish ladies have pretty much no English, but we had a number of spirited conversations...amazing.

Funny story. Becky and I had a room just for us, with a shared bathroom. I went for a shower and at the last minute I decided to wash my shorts and t-shirt, inadvertently leaving myself with nothing to wear back to my room. Here I was, laughing about finding scantily clad men around and I had to do a dash with my tiny towel wrapped around me.