On my way home

It’s been nearly forty days since I got on an Iberian flight to Madrid. A lot has happened in that time. Speaking of time I have been on this flight less than two hours and have traveled more than the 500 miles it took me 34 days to walk to Santiago ... perspective. I have been asked by a number of people about comparing the three Camino’s. Seems like a very logical question. I have asked myself the same question a number of times. The question came up at the final dinner and focused on which of the three I enjoyed the most, which was more difficult and so on. 

All three were different for a number of reasons. The first was the most exciting and the most fun. On the first Camino everything was new ... I mean everything. Around every corner was a surprise of some kind ... often the realization that I made a wrong turn, some good and some not so good. I had snow on my first and that will always standout among the three. I met interesting people on all three and yes on all three I met a few people I would prefer not to spend anymore time with. On the first Camino I was more connected to a group than the other two with the third being next in that category. In the first I was with a really great and diverse group. Rainer a Camino veteran, Michele an Italian chef with a restaurant in Germany, Nellie and Fernando from Brazil, Emma and Emily among a group of as I called them “the children”, Irish Ann, Big Billy, Bono , The Priest, LILO, the newly weds, Dose Jose’s, two Cops from Los Arcos, the Serrano Family at their restaurant, the Weather girl, Margaret who left because of a serious injury, Brayden the young girl who said I was like her Dad, I carried stones, buried crosses and much more. Tough to top the first Camino.

In the second Camino I was less connected. I really didn’t get attached to any group until well into the walk. Nice people, interesting but not nearly as close as the first. That brings me to the third Camino which was really enjoyable, much more interesting than the second. I met some really nice people I would really look forward to seeing at dinner and on the Camino each day even if briefly. Really interesting people, really smart people who were fun to be around particularly Margot and Gary who I felt I had more in common with while at the same time being so different. I also met a number of people I would prefer not to be around. The Bores, the Sacramento Bores, Suitcase Gary and unfortunately a lot of American’s, especially the younger people who it appeared to me to have become so addicted to their phones that they have almost zero communication skills. Why people travel so far and go out of their way not to meet other people is a complete mystery to me. I also continue to have an opinion about luggage, taxis and transfers which I am sure sounds like I’m being a Camino snob. I’m not because I do believe that if you cannot carry all of things you need and then use a transfer service it’s completely understandable and to those in that category I raise a glass to you for making the journey ... walking 500 miles is tough, backpack or no backpack. My problem is with those who clearly can but just take the easy choice. I don’t think that is what the Pope had in mind more than 1100 years ago when he decreed that if you made the journey, obviously walking, you would be absolved of your sins, he did not have a taxi in mind.

Camino number three also had the best weather by far. Zero rain. It did get hot but you can always find a way to deal with the heat. Snow and rain are far more difficult, I have been in both with the rain in Camino 2 being the worst. As for accommodations they were all similar, weather playing a bigger role in making one more memorable than another. I really struggle with a warm room while trying to sleep. Maria Cruz, her mother and her two aunts was the best little hostel among all three Caminos. I regret that I did not take a photo and was unable to the next morning. Being able to secure the Compostela for Dan made number three special. Number three also had the added advantage of walking into Santiago with Pat which was also the first time I was able to share that moment with someone who also is a great friend ... that will always be special.

No doubt that the Camino is much more commercial than it was five years ago. The number of people walking from Sarria alone with the transfer crews and buses clearly demonstrates the commercial growth of the Camino. The number of new places to stay has grown a great deal especially on the final 72 miles. There are a number of things that have not changed. The Spanish people are just as nice as they were five years ago, the monument’s and countless churches are the same, carrying stones and other items important to me and others is and I believe will always be a part of the Camino. The opportunity to meet interesting people, the difficulties which must be dealt with, the realization that you don’t really need all that you have and that simplicity just might be a better way to live will always be a part of the Camino. The laundry, the solitude and the quiet I hope will always be there but both are under attack from the growth.

Golf Fore Africa. I will always be grateful to all of the many people who were able to help in our efforts to fund a mechanized well. I came up short but feel really blessed that so many wanted to help. The funds donated will have a life changing effect on an incredible number of people for years to come. Your willingness to help those who have so much less will never be forgotten by me. A special thank you to Ashley and Despina for all of your help in getting the blog and the photos posted. I know you must be thrilled to have this daily chore behind you. I could not have done any of it without your help.

The blog ... thanks to all those who took the time to follow me on this walk. Your encouragement and support where a very important part of getting to Santiago. Thank you for coming along with me.

Finally to Robin ... always there encouraging me when I was training, never complained about the time it required or the other things it kept me from taking care of and constantly telling me that I would be prepared and that all would be good on my third Camino. Never could have completed this journey without you. ️U.

Good night. Buen Camino.

Santiago arrival Day 34 and Santiago plus 1 day

Dinner is at the restaurant but Brooklyn is off tonight. I spoke with him before he left and I’m coming in on my last night, tomorrow for dinner. Pat, Margot, Gary, Candy and me for dinner. Gary and I have both had dinner here and we both have had good food and wine. It’s a quiet dinner ... seems as though the air has been let out of the balloon. I know I am tired and Gary and Margot have another sixty miles ahead of them on their walk to Muxia and Finisterre. Only a small number of the pilgrims who reach Santiago walk to these two destinations. It was thought at one time, hundreds of years ago, to be the end of the earth and obviously the western most piece of land in Europe. The additional journey attracts many pilgrims who take a taxi or a bus and simply make it a day trip.

Pat has his car so we are going to drive out and have lunch before he heads back to Porto. I have not been to either location because I just didn’t have an interest and most definitely would never add four more days of walking! It’s now Friday morning ... I step out of my hotel wearing the shower shoes, giving the limos a break and guess what? It’s raining! A light rain but non the less I return to my room, change shoes and grab a jacket. Thirty four days of walking and no rain and now it starts ... how lucky am I ? I walk toward the center of the plaza to meet Pat. From there we will take a taxi to where he left the car two nights ago and then we will drive first to Muxia. It’s a route which is less than straight but Pat has GPS so we are good to go.

The weather turns quickly into a very nice day. Gary and Margot will be walking in good weather. Pat did send them a text offering to drive them with us but Gary wants to walk the entire route. Candy was also thinking about walking but was not certain. She needs to get her Compestella after trying yesterday unsuccessfully. Gary and Margot did get theirs after waiting in line for more than two hours. We really dodged a bullet yesterday.

We take a few pictures where the kilometer markers are marked 0 KM. After a great lunch at a seafood restaurant we will head back to Santiago where Pat and I say our goodbyes for now. Pat will be in Southern California soon just before the Thanksgiving holiday. Pat and Dulce will then fly to Idaho to visit with the kids for Thanksgiving and then head back to Porto. It was really a great deal of fun walking with Pat over that last stretch of the Camino from Sarria. We had lots of laughs and an equal number of serious conversations while walking together. I don’t think this will be Pat’s last Camino. He is a great friend and he helped make my third Camino special. Thanks Pat.

Before I get set to discard nearly everything, I do need to get some things for the trip home. I just looked at my phone and today I walked 4.2 miles, 10,486 steps and 24 flights. The final post will be written on the flight to Boston from Madrid, a layover for four hours and then the final flight to Los Angeles. It will be a long day but I’m looking forward to it.

Good night. Buen Camino.

Day 34 ... Today I will complete my third Camino de Santiago, tired a bit sore but it was great

Never thought this day would come because after the second Camino, I could not imagine doing this again but here I am. The final walk will be thirteen miles with a few hills, the last being up to the Monte de Gozo also known as The Hill of Happiness. It has that name because many years ago before the city grew as large as it is now the pilgrims would get their first look at Santiago from this hill and of course they would be happy knowing that their pilgrimage would soon be complete. The monument at Monte de Gozo was built for the visit here by Pope John Paul II. Nearby is the Francis of Assisi monument. I have placed two stones at the monument. One for a friend who just passed away in the last week and a second stone for Robin’s mom Mary, who is having a few age related challenges.

Once past the Monte de Gozo, it’s downhill into the city with the final three miles walking through the city and ultimately into the plaza at the Cathedral. The plaza is where most pilgrims gather to celebrate the achievement of completing the Camino. There is a pilgrim’s mass at 11:00 in the morning and another at 7:00 pm. Both are always standing room only. The retrieval of the Compestella is one last chore. I will most likely delay going to the pilgrims office until Friday morning because the line in the afternoon is always long ... as in up to two hours long.

Pat and I made very good time. We left the hotel at 8:00 am and only stopped once for a Coke Zero. The weather was once again terrific. A bit warmer than the last two or three days. We were only about one mile in when I decided to take off a layer and that was a good decision because there was a hill which just quietly kept going up for about a mile and it came early and was an attention getter. Lots of shade made the temperature very manageable. We did see a few familiar faces today and we walked with Candy for about a mile until she needed a break. We will see her for dinner. The plan is to go to a restaurant I have been to four times, most recently a year ago with Robin and two friends, Debbie and Gunther. It was not a Camino related visit. Our waiter Gus who I met a year ago is a guy born in Santiago but was raised in Brooklyn. A great guy and lots of fun. In spite of having been to the restaurant three other times I could not remember it's name but I could walk there without hesitating. 

Pat and I have taken photos at the Hill of Happiness and now we are in the Plaza of the Cathedral doing the same. This is the first time that I have seen the Cathedral since the clean up project has been completed. Quite a difference. Pat and I decide to walk down to the Pilgrim office to see how long the line will be to receive our Compostela's. On the way we will walk directly past the restaurant and yes, I was correct ... there it is. I walk inside, it’s packed for lunch and I see Gus. He actually stopped, looked at me as I call out “Brooklyn” and he came right to me and gave me hug. I think I was a good customer last year and I have a great photo with him from that visit. We chat and I introduce him to Pat. I ask about a table for six and he tells me I can have the table even if I’m alone because if I’m alone he says he will join me. We are in and I know it will be good and lots of fun. This final day is really shaping up to be a good one. It’s about to get really good.

After getting the restaurant taken care of we walk a short distance to the Pilgrim office to see just how long the line is to get our Compostela. We run into Candy who is going to try tomorrow because the line is too long ... perhaps two hours long. We press on and when we get there it appears that there are two lines. Pat gets in the line while I go to try and figure out why there are two lines.  I see Cesar in a line and stop to talk with him. He has been in the line for nearly two hours. I ask him why there are two lines and he quickly points out that there is only one line but that’s because the line Pat is in disappears in the building and continue unseen until you reach where Cesar is now. That has to be at least two hours. I head back to where Pat is at the back of the line. I suggest that we come back in the morning because I don’t want to stand in line for two plus hours. 

At that moment a large bald guy wearing a Pilgrim Office vest shows up at the back of the line and asks if there are any groups of five in the line. There are three women just in front of Pat who we have never seen before and Pat gently grabs this women’s arm and tells her “hi I’m Pat” we now have five and he calls out to the official that he has five in his group and suddenly we are being lead around the entire line... Pat continues to remind the three women that his name is Pat. In all the confusion when we get to the office with the official we get separated from the completely unknown three women. No problem. Pat grabs this other women standing there with another women and tells her we have a group of four and of course ... my “name is Pat.” I don’t have a clue as to what is going on. The official returns and Pat gently grabs him and introduces us as a group of four. The guy looks at Pat and the three of us and gives Pat a document and tells him to fill it out on each of the four. We are in! 

Here is the best part. I have been having a credential stamped everyday with Dan Daly’s name on it. Debbie sent me her fathers US Passport info and I have it on the credential so Pat just adds it to the list and we are now a group of five! Mission accomplished .. I will now return with a Compestella showing Dan walking with me on the Camino de Santiago. I can’t tell you just how terrific this feels. I will bring back Dan’s Camino de Santiago Compestella and the stone I have been carrying with his name on it. 

To celebrate we leave the office and stop at the Paradore hotel to sit on their covered patio next to the Cathedral and have a glass of wine. While there we meet a very nice guy who plops down next to us as he has just completed his Camino also from St Jean. Carlos is from Argentina. We have a nice visit with him and get up to leave when the three people sitting next to us stop Pat and ask him if he is a “Penguin”, that’s pretty funny and yes they meant pilgrim. 

We are now both on our way back to separate hotels and will meet for dinner with Gary, Margot and Candy. Time to clean up and get a little rest before dinner. More tomorrow. Good night. Buen Camino. SANTIAGO is now complete. It’s been a really great day!

Miles today: 13.3

Miles to date: 502.2

Steps today: 34,398

Steps to date: 1,208,227

Flights to date: 1,290

Donatins to date: $41,636.40

Day 33 ... SANTIAG, only one more day

Pat and I completed today’s walk with little difficulty. As usual the first mile and a half was a gradual climb which gets all of the already tired muscles attention. For me it’s my right hip. I made sure that I applied more than enough of my Ibuprofen cream on before leaving and the stretching before stepping on the Camino. There is no question that I have slowed a bit because I am in no need to hurry and because after 475 miles it’s just plain harder. 

I meet Pat for the usual carb fest and start asking myself why I even bother. The answer is the coffee and the freshly squeezed orange juice. On occasion there will be fruit but it is rare, unlike my best ever hostel where I was the “Champion” and had fleshly sliced watermelon, grapes, home made apple jelly, poached eggs and bacon along with the best bread I have ever had. Today’s “breakfast” is more like what you might see served in most third world prisons.

I told Pat this story the other night about sitting in the best ever hostel on the Camino but I did not post it. Today I was talking with Pat and we were both laughing about it so I have decided to try my best to capture what happened. Here it is:

Okay, I have checked into the “best” room as Champion and I have showered and delivered my laundry to Marie Cruz, the daughter. I am sitting in the little living room next to the table with two dozen framed family photos. In walks an American couple probably my age. It only takes a minute to decide that they must be related to the Bores. You remember the Bores ... Tom the guy who likes trains and Mrs. Bore who is painful to be near. Well you get the picture. How do I reach this conclusion so quickly? As soon as they walk into this beautiful little hostel, both of the Bores, Sacramento version, have already begun making demands and asking the most aggressive questions regarding the cost of breakfast and the time they would prefer to have it. It’s always served between 7:30 and 9:00, it’s just that simple. They have not yet seen their room and are already concerned about the windows and if they have screens. The Sacramento Bores are making the railroad Bores proud. It’s why we as Americans are so poorly looked at. Marie Cruz remains as always smiling and takes them upstairs. I am writing that day’s blog. 

Ten minutes later Mr. Sacramento Bore is back downstairs looking for Marie Cruz ... no, he does not know her name. He is looking around and I am the only other human there so he decides to tell me what he wants. He says to me in what can only be described as slow motion speak ...”I     Want,      An,     Adapter,    For,     My,    Wife” ... I respond in perfect English, “ Do you need a charger? Because I have an extra charger I can let you borrow”. Mr Bore responds ....  O,   Kay. He had assumed that I am Spanish or from some where other than the US. He just thinks that if you speak to someone who does not speak English all you need to do is just say whatever you want very, very,very,very slowly and that will turn your English automatically into the other person’s language! I go up to my room and get my extra charger and bring it back downstairs. I hand it to Sacremento Bore and he says ...” NO.....My.....Wife.... Has....A....C....Pap.... Machine ....This....Won’t..... Work. I think I’m about to be fired from the "go get what the Bores need" team.

He is still speaking to me like I don’t understand English. My response is simply .... so your wife has sleep apnea. Finally, he tells me my English is good albeit slowly. I tell him I live in California and my English is getting better. That is when he tells me that he and Mrs. Bore live in Sacramento. Marie Cruz is now on scene and he just turns away from me and starts to slow speak Marie Cruz. He never acknowledged my attempt to help him and he just throws my extra charger on one of the chairs. I am no longer needed. I do believe that their penalty for acting the way they do is that they must spend all of their time together. How do they find me? 

It’s about 2:30 when we arrive at our Hotel. The temperature has slowly moved up to nearly 90 degrees but we do have ample shade to help offset the heat. The last mile and a half are out in the open which makes it a bit difficult ... I really don’t care, I know I am within just a couple of miles of having the 33 day of the 34 I’m walking about to end. We arrive and Gary and Margot arrive shortly after we do. Pat and I check in and we go to sit in the shade and have a short beer while waiting for the taxi that will bring Pat to his car which is back where we started today. One more car transfer and Pat won’t have to deal with that daily challenge.

I take care of my laundry which may be the last time I have to do that ... I don’t think I’m going to miss this little daily chore. Once I get them hung outside I am here in the restaurant where the WiFi works. It’s not working in my room so I may post this early. Tomorrow is my last day walking my third Camino. Tomorrow is O Day ... SANTIAGO. We are all having dinner tonight here at the hotel and working on the dinner location in Santiago. 

Tomorrow will be memorable and short. I also have two stones to deliver at the Hill of Happiness. The final walk will be about 13 miles. Most likely my final post from Spain will be on Friday. I may take tomorrow off from posting the blog but if I do I will catch up on Friday. Good Night. Buen Camino. 

Miles today: 12.4

Miles to date: 488.9

Steps today: 31,248

Steps to date: 1,173,829

Flights to date: 1,221

Donations to date: $35,450.40

Day 32...walking 15 Miles to Ribadiso

The forecast tells me that the expected temperature should be about cool as we begin and getting to the mid-80’s at the end of today’s walk while clear and sunny which would be another great weather day. I can only guess what the crew of the new pilgrims would be going through if they were facing the same weather we had three weeks ago or worse yet the nonstop rain I had on my second Camino. Today’s walk will be fairly flat with increasing elevation at the end of today’s walk which should help those with issues.

Pat and I start out today at 8:30 and immediately face a little hill. Little meaning it’s not straight uphill but it’s long and as usual it’s early so it gets your attention. We cover the first two or three miles quickly and take our first short break for coffee or a Coke Zero. The Cafe Casinova is understaffed and there are about six guys waiting to have their order’s filled. It turns out that it is the group of young military veterans with a variety of combat related issues all walking together with a Chaplain. All but one is an army veteran and one served in the Navy. We chat with them briefly and move on to the next cafe where we stop and Pat grabs a bite to eat. I just want the Cafe Conleche. We push ahead and make good time. The new pilgrims seem to be more spread out or perhaps are having a slower start than expected. Regardless it makes the walking better. The temperature is about 60 degrees and there is a breeze so we are both wearing an additional layer. It’s really another nearly perfect day to take a 15 mile walk. 

What we don’t know at that time is that with about five miles to go the temperature will have climbed to about 85 degrees. No complaints ... we all agreed that the lack of rain has been a blessing. When it’s really hot you always have the option of stopping and taking a break. That break can be as simple as just sitting on a large rock and drinking a little water or it can be socializing at an out door cafe with shade. If it were raining that all changes. On my last Camino I was wet nearly all of the time and it made everything very difficult. Pat and I stopped at a restaurant today and shared a Pimento Pedron in the same place I was in on Camino two ... the only difference is that the last time I was here I was soaked to the bone and miserable and today I’m sweating but nothing else is wet which is so much better.

Pat and I met a new Pilgrim today ... he is an Italian, he is 80 years old, has a backpack and moves like a man much younger. We walk with him for a short distance and he barks out “chow” as we walk away. Pretty impressive.

While Pat and I are there Gary, Margot and Candy arrive and join us. We take a little longer than average break. Once we all decide to get back on the Camino we head out and then walk together for the final 10 miles. The topic of the four crosses I buried five years ago comes up because the place a buried them is just a short distance away. I buried them at marker 48. I remember that I felt comfortable that the marker would be permanently part of the Camino. I was wrong. The markers have been replaced with new versions and the distance on the marker is set by a more accurate system using both the number of Kilometers with and meters from that point so that what was marker 48 is now been replaced. What was 48’s location is now somewhere  between 48.116 and 47.266. Long story short we could not find the location. Bummer.

The walk for the last three miles gets tougher as it climbs up and into the village. I can feel the effects of walking more than 475 miles setting in especially as the heat returns. I can only imagine the new comers facing this hill which ends a 15 mile day. I am booked at the same Hotel as Gary and Margot but Pat is in another location much farther away. We are checking in and Pat is going to arrange for a taxi to bring him back to his car but checks first about availability and it turns out he has a room at our place. The guy managing the hostel also helps Pat find another location for tomorrow so it’s all good. Candy and Don are searching for an accommodation well past our location. 

The four of us meet for dinner and then call it an early night. Tomorrow will be a short day but once again we will face an attention getting hill as soon as we start on our way to Rua, Day 33 also known as SANTIAG Day. I have two days remaining with a total of only 23.5 miles to go. The weather tomorrow shows early morning cool temperatures with them rising to nearly 90 degrees in late afternoon. I anticipate that we will leave early enough to avoid the hottest part of the day. At this point I’m really not concerned about it ... we will leave when we are ready. 

G Day is here. 

Good night. Buen Camino.

Miles today: 14.8

Miles to date: 476.5

Steps today: 39,212

Steps to date: 1,142,581

Flights to date: 991

Donations to date: $35,450.40

Day 31

The end of Day 30 was a good one. Pat and I both made the twelve plus mile walk with only two short breaks and no physical issues. Pat has not been training but you could not tell based on his walk and speed. He breezed right through the entire day. After the car transfer was completed we met at a restaurant a short distance from our hotel. I was there first and frankly the waitress was not interested in her job. It’s rare here to find someone as disconnected from their work so we decide to walk up the hill a short distance to the center of the village where there are several other cafes.

We grab a table and then do our best to connect with the waiter. I say the waiter because there is only one ... there is never an overage of help, it’s quite the opposite. When we finally get his attention Pat orders the Pimentos Pedron, cheese and vino tinto. The Pimentos Pedrons are amazing and I will have them whenever possible. I can’t remember what they are called so Pat comes to the rescue. Don and Candy stop by to chat on their way to meet a young women they met on the Camino today. It's her first day and one of her shoes has fallen apart so Candy loaned her the extra shoes she has, so she is now on the way to get them back. One day on the Camino and your shoes fail? Obviously preparation was not a part of whatever planning she did have. 

On one of our short stops on Day 30 for a Coke Zero, we sat with a young guy from Panama. Cesar is a pilot at the Panama Canal and is here only for the five days from Sarria because he just can’t take off the time needed to go further. Interesting guy with a very big job. He is very fit and will breeze through unlike the vast majority of the people who started from Sarria who are already struggling after a very short stretch of their Camino. Lots of blisters, limping, tape and more.

So here we are walking together on Day 31 and moving quite well, passing more than our share of the new “pilgrims” who are completely oblivious to what or who is around them. We catch up and walk with a young guy recently in the Marines and about to begin his career as an attorney in Boston. We discuss the Redsox and it turns out he is a Yankee fan which I forgive him for. Pat and I stop for a Coke Zero and Billy moves on.

I have not looked at my phone for awhile and we have been keeping track of the Camino markers which tell you how many Kilometers there are between that point and the Santiago. As we enter a village, Pat believes that we have reached Palas de Rei but I think we may have another two miles to go. Fortunately Pat is correct and as we walk down the hill past the church I do recognize the village and I can see the hotel I have stayed in before. I’m at a different hotel and Pat’s is down the hill. We decide to have a bite to eat, it’s about 2:30. Pimentos Pedron, a beer and bread and we are good to go. As it turns out I have walked down the hill past my hotel which is not very far. Pat heads to his hotel and I’m back up the hill to find mine. I find it and it’s very small. I ring the doorbell and a women opens the door and proclaims “The Champion”. I am the first guest to arrive and she tells me I get the best room. A much older lady shows up and hands me a small bottle of cold water and acknowledges that I am the “Champion”. They are mother and daughter. I know without a doubt that I’m going to enjoy being here. My room is tiny but the shower is great even if small and they offer a laundry service for five Euro. After the shower I head back downstairs and deliver my laundry. As I write this I am sitting in the living room having a glass of Vino Blanco. The people who own and manage this little house are among the nicest I have met on any Camino and that is saying something because I have met a great number of very nice people.

Pat and I meet for dinner and it’s actually a bit cold, clearly the weather has changed at least for today. I believe that today was the best walking weather I have had in all of the thirty one days on the Camino. Lots of shade and when you stepped into the sun it was refreshing not punishing, as were so many of the days during the first two weeks. We grab seats outside a small cafe and have a glass of wine. Next to us is a table of three Americans who have started in Sarria. It’s their fourth day which means they are currently averaging about seven miles a day and one of the three is completely worn out. Welcome to what is the easiest part of the Camino. I’m not sure I would fly to Spain, carry no backpack and walk seven miles in a crowd ... why not just stay home and go for a walk? 

Pat is at a different location so we first walk down to his car where he can retrieve his sweater and then we walk back to my nice little hotel where I will get my jacket. While we are there we have a glass of wine and Maria Cruz greets me with “The Champion” title. 

Also while we are there a young Norwegian, Tommy walks in. I met him by introducing myself to him a couple of hours ago while starting the blog in the little living room. He is painfully shy and describes himself to Pat and I as being out of shape and his limp gives that away. A nice young guy just trying to find his place is what I believe. We leave for dinner. Our first choice for dinner is a place I have been to before but they are sold out and only allowing pilgrims staying in their hotel to take a table so we leave. There is another restaurant next door so we go there. The food is okay but Pat orders something I’m not familiar with and tells me it’s very good. My veal is okay.

It’s now just about 9:00 and we head back to our hotels. When I arrive at my hotel the three older sisters and the niece are there and they greet me like a long lost cousin. One of the sisters makes her own brandy and they offer me a little shot of it but also instruct me to just sip it. It’s very good. The next thing I know I’m sitting in the living room as they show me all the pictures of the all of the children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. It’s not hard to see who is related to who. The oldest sister is really proud of her great grandchild, Anna who is an attorney in Madrid. I can honestly say that in all of the 102 hotels and hostels that I have stayed in on all of my Caminos this is by far the best of all of them. The nicest people and a very quaint little place that feels like the home of an old relative you wish you could visit more often. A most memorable day. Tomorrow Day 32.

Good night. Buen Camino. Today was SANTI Day.

Miles today: 13.9

Miles to date: 461.7

Steps today: 38,213

Total steps to date: 1,103,269

Flights to date:  941

Donations to date: $35,450.40

Day 30...Money Laundering

The room problem for Pat is solved before we go to dinner. Pat found a room back about ten miles and would drive there after dinner and then drive back to my hotel on Sunday morning and we would walk to Portomarin. Once we arrive at Portomarin Pat has a room at the same hotel I’m staying in so he would take a taxi back to Sarria, retrieve his car and then come back to Portomarin, clean up, handle laundry and we would then meet for dinner between 6:00 and 7:00. Got it?

We had dinner last night at a nice place that Gary found just two blocks from our hotel. It was me, Pat, Gary, Margot, Don, Candy and a new face ... Shelly from Seattle. Shelly is a therapist. The food was very good as was the wine but the service was suspect. No matter, everyone had a great time and we wrapped it up at 9:45, because Don, Candy and Shelly were staying at an Albergue which had a 10:00pm curfew. If your not back by 10:00 they simply lock you out and no one inside has the key to open the door to let late comers in. Fire codes in the US was would never allow this system. There is a short panic when they realize that they may not get there in time and call for a taxi. One call to the Albergue to beg forgiveness and to tell them they are on their way and all is good. 

Pat has to drive his car back ten miles to find and check into his hotel. Pat put the GPS data in his phone but when gets to where the system tells him to go it’s a simple house. He knocks on the door but there is no answer. Plan B kicks in. Just in case Pat cannot find a room he has in his car a sleeping bag and will just sleep in his car in a parking lot close to my hotel. On his way back to Sarria he sees a sign for the missing hotel and it’s all good and he gets his room.

So now it’s Day 30 and Pat and I step out of the hotel to walk to Portomarin and we immediately are stopped by three Americans who ask us how to get to the Camino. We give them directions and we are off. The Camino is packed with people just like the three who just asked us how to find the Camino ... it’s Sarria and the traffic jam starts from step one and continues for the entire 12.5 miles. The solitude and time without distractions are gone. In very short order we begin to see the first day people sitting on the ground dealing with blisters. They are in trouble if they have blisters after just a few miles. As the day goes on you just try to ignore the volume of people walking on the Camino. Many don’t know the basic rules of the Camino like if I’m walking at a faster pace than you move aside and let me pass easily, you don’t make me work my way around you. Most annoying are the people who are walking three abreast and don’t realize or don’t care that they are taking up all of the trail. I’m hoping that the crowd is larger than normal because it’s Sunday and there are locals just out for a walk which means they will be gone tomorrow. One thing is certain ... I have never seen so many taxis fully occupied by so many first day pilgrims. I’m getting closer just four more days on the Camino before Pat and I walk into Santiago which means that today I have completed SANT. 

I’m sending a photo of today’s laundry work ... I did not remove my cash from the shorts before I washed them so ... you’ll see.

Good night. Buen Camino.

Miles today: 13.1

Miles to date: 447.8

Steps today: 36,350

Steps to date: 1,0650,056

Total Flights to date:887

Total donations to date: $34,950.40