Home(?) again

 

Oh dear, I think it will be long long time until anyone can call this house 'home' again.  It was quite a shock to return to Palm Desert and see our house in person.  I had seen some photographs sent to me via email but nothing can prepare you for viewing it yourself: opening the front door and being confronted by piles of ash and roof tiles on your living room floor, by blackened soot covering all vertical and horizontal surfaces, and the insistent smell of ash invading your nostrils.  Our contractor had already accomplished quite a bit of demolition in preparation for our remodel so it was hard to discern what was fire damage and what was not but I know we did not plan for a cabriolet-roof over the laundry room!

I spent 6 hours yesterday at the house with 6 fire investigators from the 3 different insurance companies involved, watching them trying to find out what exactly happened.  They've honed in on it being an electrical fire probably caused by a bathroom exhaust fan, but they don't know for certain and they might never really know.  We're a bit unclear on what happens next and how/who/when repairs might start but they will, sometime, and eventually we'll have a home again.

For now I'm staying at my uncle & aunt's house, just one street away, and will be here to do what I can.  I have walked a little bit since I've been back.  Obviously not like the Camino, but 4-6 miles or so.  It was triple-digit temperatures last week which meant getting up at 5am in order to enjoy a modicum of cool, walking by 6:15am and finishing the last few miles in the gym.  By 9am it was 90 degrees so all chores and errands had to be done early in the morning before I melted and scurried back to hide inside in the a/c.  But it's cooler now and I've signed up for a club hike on Wednesday - when it forecast to rain! :-)

Day 18: to Salamanca, 23.3kms

It had rained during the night and it was still raining in the morning; all morning, in fact.  It made walking an obstacle course, constantly searching for high ground or patches of grass to avoid the sticky mud.  A frigid wind blew constantly and it was really just a miserable day.  I walked the whole way straight through,  5 hours long, as stopping wasn't really an option and my legs were paying for it in the afternoon.

Luckily the sun did break through as I approached Salamanca so I had a scenic, if not warm, approach to the city.  My albergue is right around the corner from the twin cathedrals and I squeaked in just in time to drop my pack off as they close between 1-4pm. 

I strolled the pedestrian street during a break in the weather, and nicely timed lunch during a deluge of rain.  I chose a restaurant with wi-fi of course, and during my meal I booked my plane ticket home.  Yup, I'm going back to California 500 kms in.  

We've had a quite devastating fire at our home in California, it's pretty much totaled but luckily no one was injured and absolutely all our possessions are safe as we had moved out a couple of weeks ago in preparation for renovations.  So although there's not much I can do but help liaise with mom & the insurance companies, I'd rather be there than trudging along in the cold and rain in Spain.  I'll spend a day in Zamora tomorrow, then 1.5 days in Madrid before flying back Wednesday.

Thanks, Allison

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Day 17: to San Pedro de Rozado, 28.3 kms

So I spent last night in the American annex with an Australian girl! She showed me the way to the hostel last night and tagged along on my tour and invited herself to stay! Can't really blame her jumping at the opportunity for a quiet night's sleep as there were only the two of us there versus 10 in the dorm room. There were torrential rains during the night so I was a bit worried about the mud situation today.  The day dawned cloudy and very cold. Luckily (for Friday the 13th!) I found another fleece in the donation box so all but my face was warm enough. The cold wind started my waterworks again, so much so that my sight was blurred for the first hour. I had to hope that the pilgrim I was following knew where she was going!   I didn't have enough tissues handy to stem the tide so I just let them free fall; can you dehydrate from too much crying? I would have taken a sip of water but I'm sure my water bladder was probably frozen.... After 75 minutes of wide open fields, the landscape changed to scrub and trees and the winding sandy/muddy road into a rocky trail that climbed sharply up Picos Duenas towards a cluster of wind turbines.  The strong wind had blown most of the clouds  away so I found a protected spot amongst some rocks and sat in the sun for a nice midway snack with a great view of everything below. What goes up, must go down, and as I've said before, on the Camino it always goes down steeply.  Down thru more leafless trees still held in winter-mode.  Or perhaps they're dead? Could they be strangled by the lichen? The path fell down to a small paved road which the Camino paralleled on a nice dirt path.  A windy way thru more dead forest and out into beautiful pasture and hedgerowed farms.  I was feeling sorry for myself this morning but my mood blew away with the clouds and I quite enjoyed the latter half of the walk. And I'm ecstatic that I've found the '2nd' albergue, El Miliario,  which no other pilgrim has yet. They all stopped at the first industrial-looking one.  I might have this cozy little bungalow all to myself tonight!! Thanks, Allison Sent from my iPhone

Day 16: to Fuenterroble de Salvatierra, 34.8 kms

Today was an unplanned long day, but I had to take advantage of providence when staring me in the face.  I had a later start as I had only planned to only walk 22k, so it was coffee and churros at the local churreria for breakfast and on the road by 8am.

2 kms down the highway I met up with Pepe, who was just getting out of a delivery van.  Obviously he had gotten lost and begged a lift back to the Camino; I saw a way to avoid 8kms of hard road walking, so I waved to Pepe, hopped in the van and caught a lift to Banos. Now I couldn't only walk 14K in one day, so that meant doing another stage altogether and that's how I ended up walking all the way to Fuenterroble.

It was a very pretty day, very cool and cloudy which I've decided isn't a bad thing when you've many miles to cover. The news this morning showed snow at higher elevations and rain to come so hopefully I'll make it to F. in time!

The scenery was quite beautiful and I was able to enjoy most of it until the afternoon when my tired feet and sore muscles turned all my thoughts inward. 

In the beginning, however, I realized that I must be climbing in altitude as it seemed as though Spring has not quite sprung in this part of Spain.  The trees are quite barren and the broom was not yet in flower.  I walked on a nice backcountry road which overlooked a narrow valley with the sound of a small river running below, until I gained the valley floor and walked parallel to the river on one side and a rocky hill populated with grazing cows on the other.  Up a rocky roman road into Calzada de Bejar (16kms) where the need for caffeine prompted me to ask an old man for directions to the one neighborhood bar. I ended up with a smeary stamp in my pilgrim's passport and a very "Buen Camino"! The noon bells rang me out of town and I carried on to the next refreshment stop 8.6kms later in Valverde de Valdelacasa.

By this time my feet were feeling the delayed reaction to yesterday's marathon and insisted on a beer for lunch. The bar was open and had wi-fi so I was happy to oblige for half an hour's rest.

12kms to go and the first 3.5K were on paved road!  Uphill paved road!! I think there were cows, I know I saw a horse, there might even have been scenic views behind but I pretty much just saw road.  Road turned to sandy path, which turned to stoney gravel which turned into rain! I didn't make it in time.  A heavy drizzle right at the end so I walked into Fuenterroble as the Big Red Tomato :(

I'm staying at the wonderful donativo albergue here that's a complex of little buildings (a tiny one just for American pilgrims! Me!), all wood beams and hand-painted murals.  There's a wood-burning fireplace in the common room so that's where I'll be relaxing tonight!

Thanks, Allison
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Day 15: to Aldeanueva del Camino, 40 kms

Oh, I had such great notes early this morning on how lovely the walk was, and it truly was - lichen covered cork trees, bunches of yellow broom, gorgeous sun rise, etc.  Then I kept walking, and walking, and walking and my thoughts became less and less esoteric and more egocentric (my feet hurt, is that a blister?, how much further?!!).

Today was a long day.  On purpose, as I wanted to walk 3 stages in 2 days to #1. do it, and #2. get ahead of the crowds, but then you pay for it at the end of the day.  But it's nothing too serious, nothing a big meal with lots of vino tinto and a good night's sleep won't cure.

The pic was taken 1/2 way, when I was still smiling, at Arco de Caparra, a archeological site of roman ruins.

Thanks, Allison
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Day 14: to Carcaboso, 30.8 (+) kms

It was a great start this morning, walking from beautiful field to field, opening and closing gates I passed between, until I met a local walker coming in the opposite direction who convinced me to turn around and return to a gate I deliberated at 2 fields ago, and take the path arrowed to Riolobso.  This apparently would save 5 kms overall, which sounded like a good idea.  We walked together and ended up collecting an jolly entourage as we met Anna, Iris, Philomena + 3 along the way, all of whom were pleased at saving some time.

Well, in the end we didn't exactly save kilometers but we avoided adding any extra as further down the Camino was blocked and a long detour added.  But this we did not find out till the end of the day when we met someone who walked straight on, and by mid-morning we were cursing the helpful pilgrim as after Riolobso there was nothing but miles and miles of road walking!  Anna and I (walking separately) each decided not to stop in the walled hilltop town of Galisteo, pictured above, but continue on to Carcaboso to 'get ahead', 16kms of road in total! Luckily it was a cool cloudy day...

Thanks, Allison
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Day 13: to Grimaldo, 19.8 kms

Breakfast was included with our stay at Embalse del Alcantara.  Self-serve, the hospitalera left out carafes of coffee and juice, and there was bread to toast, croissants and little cakes to eat. A little like home, having a refill of coffee as you wish and helping yourself to what you like.  It passed the time until it was light enough to leave. 

It was another special morning as I was able to see the setting moon's reflection over the lake, then once I topped the hill I was climbing, to see the sun broach the distant peaks and in just an instant it was Day.  Then I could see nothing for the next hour and a half as the sun was directly in my eyes!

I chose to bypass the intermediary town, Canaveral, but just after there was a lovely picnic area where Anna caught up with me and shared her energy-giving chocolate covered peanuts with me.  Luckily too as we were immediately faced with a very steep climb in the now hot sun only to be rewarded with the lovely cooling shade of a pine forest at the top.  It's amazing how sound is deafened by trees, how the nearby highway noise can be muffled so one hears only the occasional bird chirping, the wind through the branches,  and my gasping for breath!

We descended into a lovely cork forest, (I was following Anna at this point) and after 30mins or so followed the signs off the route for the next albergue and our stop for the night.

We arrived in the one bar town of Grimaldo at about 12:30pm = a very long 20 kilometer day even though I was doing a fairly good pace.  There were a couple of detours for new roadworks in the morning, perhaps there was some hidden somewhere there? Anyway, who should we meet waiting at the albergue but Limping Christian! Now renamed as he hasn't walked in 3 days due to tendonitis. He's been taking the bus each day to rest his foot but why stop in this less-than-a-hamlet? 

The albergue is very ....basic.  Three tiny bunkrooms with saggy mattresses and a bathroom so narrow you have to sidle thru sideways.  It's also donativo (donation) but has plenty of hot water, a free washing machine, and a bar next door.  The bar was closed when we arrived with a sign saying they'd be back in hour; according to Christian, the sign was there when he arrived 2.5 hrs ago!  I was already starving, and had eaten all my little cakes and had just consumed my emergency packet of airline pretzels when the owner arrived.  Sustenence was to be delayed, however, and we all had to be sated with beer and olives until the Menu del Dia would be ready at 2:30pm.

During our wait and subsequent meal 6 additional pilgrims arrived, only to find the albergue full! There's only place for 12 so they were forced to take a taxi to the next town.  Such is the Camino at Easter time.

Anna and I have been discussing the next couple of days and have decided to play it by ear but tentatively plan to walk two long days to stay in less popular towns and perhaps stay ahead of the crowds. We'll see how it goes.  For now we have a bed for tonight, a beer in hand, and clean clothes drying in the sun!  

Thanks, Allison

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Day 12: to Embalse de Alcántara, 33.1 kms

futuristic albergue at Embalse de Alcantara

 
It was a pretty good day's walk today.  The morning was...dark. I left at 6:45am as I knew I had a long day ahead and the start out of town would be lit by streetlights; then it was a straight shot on the highway for several kms so it'd be daylight by the time I had to start looking for arrows.

It was a balmy 6 degrees celsius this morning but I was still glad for my new knit cap I bought at the €2 Shop in Caceres (I regret not getting the leggings as well as mornings temps are forecast to be zero degrees further north!).  Although the sun was shining in clear skies, I still had my fleece on till noon; it warmed up rapidly from there.

The scenery improved with the temperature: from the blah-thank-goodness-its-dark roadway, to quite striking: barren moor-like grazing fields populated with cows, sheep, huge boulders and the occasional farm building.  The dry stone hedgerows that separated the farms also lined my country dirt road but it was accented with by raggedy bushes of lavender and white & yellow broom. Then, as I came over a rise,  it magically changed to sparse scrubby forest with more of these lichen-covered boulders.  I also walked past 2 clusters of roman miliarios - large ancient stonecolumns about 4-5' high that marked off distance for those ancient marching soldiers, as well as a short section where the actual paving stones of the old roman road were still visible (the Via Plata actually dates back to the 3-4th C., the pilgrimage route just followed the same way).

What caused that?

"Let me out!"  Not!!

Just as the day got hot I reached the highway and had 6kms of hard tarmac left to walk around the edge of the shrunken lake Alcántara before reaching the futuristic albergue, pictured at top. 
 

I was thankful to arrive, more so when I saw Anna (young Swedish girl and part of the Group of Seven who I last saw in Aljucen), then Iris & Philomena showed up about an hour later! And best of all, the hospitalera washed all my laundry in a MACHINE, for free!! I threw everything in!!! 

 This albergue is fantastic: clean, modern with split level bedrooms so one accesses the top bunks by stairs up to a 2nd floor; sheets, duvets & blankets(!); there's no kitchen available to us but there's a bar that sells all liquids + lasagna/pizza/tortillas(Spanish style omelets), snacks, etc.; and, best of all, a gorgeous view where we can watch the sun set over the lake and see nothing but trees and water and hear nothing but birds. Very relaxing after a hard day's work.

Anna, me and Pepe enjoying the sun and lake view

 

Thanks, Allison 

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Day 11: to Caceres, 11.7kms

The early birds were chomping at the bit this morning, having gotten up just after 6am but forced to cool their heels until the monastery's front doors were unlocked at 7:30am.  A big rush when the appointed time came, then a quietness descended as the rest of us slowly prepared to leave.  Iris, Philomena and I met half of them having breakfast across the way before they rushed out again to start their day's walk.  We sipped our coffees and munched our toast until it was time to leave for the 9:10am bus to Caceres.

The bus riders! LOL!!  No, we took the real bus...

 I had meant to go to Caceres, the plan was to take a rest day and spend it in Caceres but somehow I found myself off the bus in Valdesalor, suiting up to walk the 11.7kms into Caceres.  I guess I just had that urge...

It was a fine 2.5 hour walk through open country, the smattering of suburbs, then steeply up the cobbled streets and through the city walls into the old town.  All honey-colored ancient stone buildings in a warren of narrow streets filled with jostling tourists. I found it all quite overwhelming so I passed quickly thru and down into the Plaza Mayor where there was a host of sidewalk cafes and different lodging options.  
 

The first pension I tried gave me €10 off the price of a little garret room, so I ended up paying the same price as those pilgrims in the local albergue! I'll be thankful for the peace and quiet tonight as my upper bunk mate yesterday evening played a mattress spring concerto all night long, tossing and turning as he did. I think a private room every now and again is restorative to my nerves... :)

Thanks, Allison

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Day 10: to Alcuéscar, 20.8kms

Good Friday!

This morning dawned absolutely freezing - frost on the plants and icicles on my cheeks from the stream of water running from my eyes & nose (well, not quite but you get the idea).  Iris, Philomena and I soon left the village and roadway and started a lovely walk through cork forests and patches of wild lavender.  A fairly short day today - I would have gone further, on to Aldea del Cano, but there's reputed to be only 9 beds there and the local pension is booked thru the weekend.  The lack of accommodation and the large number of pilgrims is making planning ahead essential.  So Alcuescar it is!

rudolph-red nosed from the cold!

 The albergue is on the 3rd floor of an active monastery.  We stay by virtue of making a donation and in return we get a bunk in a large room for 16, a mass at 5pm, and a communal dinner for all at 7:30pm.  The building is closed between 2:30-4:30pm, and again locked down at 9pm, with the doors not reopening until the next morning at 7:30am.  This will be a trial for the 3 pilgrims who normally leave at 5:30am and with all the pilgrims starting at the same time, it will create a rush for Aldea del Cano!  There's far more pilgrims than normal - the dorm room is full, as are the 'special' 4-5 smaller rooms of 2-3 beds, and some pilgrims are even staying upstairs in the Juvenile dorm!  We'll have some planning to do for tomorrow's walk.

Active monastery + albergue

Iris checking out our room

We showered then did our laundry at the outside washing area.  We had doubts if our clothes would actually dry as it was still quite cold outside and dark clouds were looming on the horizon.  The clotheslines were covered, but still....  At 1pm we three went on a futile search to find an open supermarket for some supplies but everything in this drab little town but for a few bars was shut for the holiday.  We shivered our way back to the restaurant by the monastery and had a very nice Menu del Dia for lunch, then nursed a coffee and watch tennis on TV for 2 hours until we could return 'home' to the monastery.

7pm - the hospitalero has just informed me that there are only six beds in the albergue in Aldea!  Iris, Philomena and I therefore have decided to take a bus in the morning on to Caceres as the only other accommodation is 9kms past Aldea in Valdesalor and that is sleeping on the gym floor (no mattresses!).  The bus isn't a bad choice:  Philomena needs to cover some distance in order to make her flight out of Santiago on May 4th, and Caceres is supposed to be a beautiful tourist town so we can make a rest day out of it!

We went down for the monastery's communal dinner, which was actually quite good - "hearty walking food" was one report.  Soup, salad, bread, fish sticks, and an orange for dessert.  It was topped off by a raging thunderstorm complete with hail!  (luckily I got my laundry in before!!)

Philomena (R) at dinner

Thanks, Allison

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Day 9: to Aljucen, 32.7 kms

Day 9 dawned with Roberto The Italian rustling his bags at 6:05 am.  I figured that since I was thus awake, I'd might as well arise too - better for the others to make one round of noise than separately (our Group of Seven had our own room).  I had a  nagging urge to walk two stages today, to skip Merida & all the Semana Santa hubabalu and continue to on to Aljucen, 32.7 kms total, so an early start was providential.

I set out by 6:30am, and tramped along a quiet highway where there was sure footing for the first hour rather than stumble along the dirt path in the dark; then I met up with the Camino and daylight at the exact same moment! A couple more kms on the road (7kms altogether) then 9 more in open fields and cultivated land before reaching the outskirts of Merida about 9:45am.  I saw bright orange rays breaking thru the clouds just above the east horizon, might I see the sun today?

The pilgrim arrives in Merida's old town via 800m of a long arched roman bridge.  I settled down in the nearest bar for a nice breakfast of coffee & toast; found a tiny store open for some lunch supplies, then returned to the route only to meet up with Roberto + 4. They stopped 300m further at the local albergue, while I continued on past the ancient roman aqueduct and out of town up and down miles and miles of paved bike path to a huge lake formed by a dam built in  1st-2nd C. AD to bring water down to town. 

I was circling the lake but started to doubt my path as the arrows had morphed into two horizontal stripes and so I started to backtrack and there saw Iris & Philomena on the road! They said the albergue in Merida was in poor condition: 24 beds one big room, so they decided to press on as well. I was happy for the company but became more concerned about finding a bed in Aljucen as the albergue there was very small.  

As we carried on the road the sun finally came out, our jackets came off, and smiles came on.  We eventually went off-road into hills of chaparral forests with lovely broom and small patches of lavender which made all the long long kilometers of pavement earlier disappear from memory. 

We arrived in Aljucen just before 3pm.  We turned in circles in the center of the tiny hamlet, looking for the albergue when a lady came rushing out of a bar - it was Analena, the hospitalera. Success! She had just 3 beds left!! She took us to the Refugio, gave us a quick tour and said she'd be back at 5 to stamp the credentials, and that Mass and the holiday procession were at 6pm.  She then disappeared back to the bar to continue enjoying her fiesta.

I fell upon my bread and cheese while the other two freshened up; then it was the usual routine of shower, laundry, tend feet (so far just one tiny blister on the sole of one foot that was an only an annoyance for just one day), coffee and rest.  Iris has introduced me to these wonderful packets of Nescafé instant cappuccinos, I don't know how, but they foam up just like they came from a machine and the milk and sugar is all in!  Perfect for thirsty pilgrims and they hardly weigh a thing!

Some of us went to Mass (Maundy Thursday) in the beautiful little 16th C. church in the middle of town but I bowed out in the middle.  I think the squirming 3-year old twins two rows ahead of me wished they could have done the same! Afterwards, the churchgoers formed a procession carrying both a cross and an elaborately draped Madonna statue. They quickly whipped thru the two blocks of the village, then poured into the local bars to warm up from the cold!

Thanks, Allison 
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VdP route

Hi, here's the link to the Via de la Plata route map, I hope it works...

http://66.163.168.225/babelfish/translate_url_content?.intl=us&lp=de_en&trurl=http%3a%2f%2fwww.via-de-la-plata.de%2fkarte.html

Thanks, Allison
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Day 8: to Torremejia, 27.4kms

27 kms on a straight dirt road under grey skies with a strong cold wind blowing.  Ugh!

Edit: I'm back home now and am able to attach some pics of the municipal albergue in Torremejia.  A very modern renovation of an old monastery.  There's several rooms with lots of bunks but the building is on the edge of town and most pilgrims seemed to stop at the first albergues they came across on the main street.

 

a room for our just our Group of Seven

ground floor had huge dining room

a very basic kitchen, plus a nice lounge room

 

Thanks, Allison
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Day 7: to Villafranca, 19.5 kms

a square in Villafranca

Finally we have a little peregrino community going, we bonded last night in the tiny bar of the warm kitchen over red wine and trail notes. There's some concern over how busy the camino is due to Semana Santa (Easter Holy Week) so the 7 of us booked ahead for tonight at the brand new albergue in Villafranca (just opened on the 1st. And being privately run, we could make reservations).

This morning dawned overcast once again.  It's warmer than usual  but a fleece, windbreaker and gloves are still necessary.  It's not bad walking weather but poor for photos :(

arrows thru Los Santos

The way-marking was excellent today until I got lost!  The arrows took me right thru the village of Los Santos, up along a smelly path that locals seem to use as a convenient dumping site,  and spit me out among acres of olive groves. 






All was good so far until I came to a 3-way intersection and one indeterminate purple arrow.  Obviously I must have taken the 2nd left instead of the 1st left because that was the last arrow I saw for 1.5hrs!  The dirt road seemed well packed and to be going in the right direction but by the time I started doubting my chosen route I'd already descended a steep hill and didn't want to backtrack.  My road paralleled a rail line, which I knew I had to cross about 8kms on, so I thought I'd eventually come out right. Well, I did in the end but not before my track suddenly stopped and I was left wandering about the olive trees looking for a way out!  The trees were lovely: they looked centuries old but pruned so regularly that they were short with tender branches poking out the top and fat gnarly stumps of trunks beneath; but I wanted out!  Eventually I saw an overpass in the distance so I bushwhacked to that an Lo and Behold! The Camino!

where am I???

huh?!!

Back on safe ground I clicked right along and then Iris,  a German pilgrim and one of our Group of Seven, suddenly appeared from the left, about 4 kms from town. Apparently the arrows I followed in weren't the only ones, she must have found a different (correct!) way.  We walked on together to find the new albergue -  it's fine, if a little featureless. At least being brand new it's spanking clean!

There was talk of Roberto, our lone Italian, making a big spaghetti dinner for all tonight but I succumbed to an excellent Menu del Dia at a nice restaurant in town.  After only eating an apple and little square of cake on the road I was starving by 2:30.  A big 2-course meal will set me for the day and it's a great opportunity to have some vegetables, which are generally lacking in a pilgrims diet unless one is especially conscientious. Sandwiches & pasta are so much easier to make!

Anna, Gemma, Roberto, Henry, Iris, Philomena, Guntram

 

The restaurant I chose is on a central square and seemed warm and  inviting, as it did apparently to all the other pilgrims!  There was 4 tables full of them here so I had a coffee with 3 of my Seven before they wandered off sightseeing and I settled down to lunch.  A large first course of fresh green beans baked in some kind of egg mixture with baby shrimp on top. Then a second course of fish with salad. Yum! 

I've a table by the window and 5-6 late pilgrims have been strolling past; backpacks still attached and a homeless look in their eyes.  This means that the new albergue is already full or they missed the newly painted directional arrows and are lost.  I'd better return 'home' to make sure no one took my coveted bottom bunk cause it's time for a nap!

PS: thanks to everyone for their emails and good wishes!

Thanks, Allison

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