Heaven!

Or a varation on it!!  I´m in a really small farming town still out on the Meseta.  The name is El Burgo Ranero.  It´s "only" 19k from Sahagun, but a world away from yesterday.  I´m currently on the local free (YES FREE) internet.  Guess there was some kind of government grant and they literally have an entire room full of lovely coomputers...a guy to help with problems...and no charge!! Awesome.  It´s been costing me anywhere from one to two euros to write on here each time.

So...where was I...somewhere out there, beneath the pale moon light...walking and walking and walking..trying to get out of  Carrion and get out on to what I knew would be a tough stretch on the Meseta (Plains).  It was a short walk from where I´d been, Villacazar into Carrion.  I completely loved the quite, the sun coming up behind, the brisk chill in the air.

Entering Carrion, I came upon another Santa Clara Convento, so had to stop in to visit quickly before making my way thru town.  Lovely church, cloisetered nuns quietly praying as I sat there enjoying the complete peace of the place.  Then I left.  And forgot which arrows to follow.  It took me a bit of time to find my way out of town and just as I began to panic a bit, a lovely lady stopped me and managed to tell me in very simple phrases that I was going "Mal" aka...wrong way lady!!  It wasn´t long before I did find my way out of Dodge, but I´d lost my shot at a Caffee con Leche and a good breakfast now.   Kept right on walking and as I passed  truck stop, figured, oh what the hell, and in I went. The guys were nice, got my coffee, some chorizo and nuts and a cookie before I headed off...into the great unknown.

The Meseta is everything I´d heard it could be and then some.  It goes on.  And on. And on.  So does the wind.  The wind blew at easily 25 or better for most of the day, and at a slight angle, from behind.  This meant you were bracing yourself to stay upright for most of the day!  Great Ab workout.  Till you changed direction slightly and nearly fell over.

There are no villages for nearly 17km.  There are a few enterprising folk, who make a living I guess, selling drinks to pilgrims scurrying towards Santiago.  Don´t know how much was sold yesterday as it was too cool for sodas, at least  in my opinion. 

Calzadilla should have been my next port of call, but as it was actually only 1 o´clock when Jessica and I rolled into town, we decided to push on.  Next place, Ledigo was only a bit more than 4km away with about 50plus beds. Sounded good, especially when you took into account that the next place after that was only 2.5 more.  All this sounds so reasonable.  Possible.  Almost intelligent.  ´Cept for the fact that by the time I was done, I´d walked nearly 34km and didn´t have a bed.

After turning on my heels and walking away from the probably exhausted and as a result, crabby owner of the local Alburgue, tried for Templarios (?).   Also Completo.  The young man there called ahead.  San Bruno Alburge in Moritanos...Completo.  And no way to reach Rebekah who writes the most wonderful blog and lives there.  So after a few tears (yeah I was that tired), he called a taxi (13€ or approximately one euro per km) to Sahagun, booked me into one of the Red Alburges at a whopping 7€ for the night.  So 20€ I was a happy, blistered, and totally exhausted pilgrim.  So todays decision to only,"only" do 19km was easy.  My feet are learning to talk back to me.  Big time if they have to.

Once again this also lead to Camino "magic"  I´d already reconnected with most of my Camino friends and family which has been really lovely.  Just missing Spencer who was such a great help earlier.  As I trudged, blisters and all, wearing my Crocs instead of my boots today, I entered another small village after nearly 9km.  As I glanced down a side street looking for a bar, who walks out of the door at that moment.  Spencer!  Good thing he ran over to me cause running ain´t on the books today!  We had a quick breakfast, a coffee and walked on to where I am sitting at the moment.  He´s gone on, as he had more energy, to the next town, Religios which is anywhere from 11 to nearly 13km further. More than my feet should do today.  We expect to meet again in Leon on Saturday, God willing and the creek don´t rise.