Sunday, September 1, 2013

25k on El Camino de Bobiago!

Today I walked out of the a very old and charming village into a maze!  The Camino is not well marked today...and I wasted about 20 minutes trying to find my way out.  These days I am walking through farm,and.  There are many vineyards as well as other crops, and most of the walk is on a farm road.  I miss the beautiful vistas and quaint villages of the past week.  Still, there is definite energy around...lots of it seems to be depleted energy as all of us struggled today.  Fortunately, it was mostly cloudy, but the distance was at my limit.  Everyone seems to have foot pain!

Tonight I am staying at a Casa Rural.  That is an accommodation attached to someone's home, and it is several steps above the usual albergue.  I am sharing a room with two women from Australia and one woman from Ireland.  Funny how quickly sleeping with strangers and those of the opposite sex becomes so common.  Europeans love to run around in their underwear, so I guess we see a lot more of each other than I would ave guessed.  At the end of the day it is no big deal because everyone is so tired, nit much notice is given.  Last night I was in a room with 10 that included three young women from Indiana.  In order to get my belt in one set of pants ( the ones. i had on) I have to take the pants off and thread it through.  So, I said, "unfortunately, I have to take my pants off now to get my belt in. I have nice looking underwear but look away if you need to."  No one even noticed!  Privacy one the Camino is rare.

Finally, it has become clear that I am unlikely to finish El Camino in the time I have allotted.  I have significant pain in my left foot, stemming from bone fusion in my big toe.  I pretty quickly reach a point where each step is torture.  My strategy will be to limit my distance (slow down), take more pain relief, and see what happens.  I can see a bus ride in my future as well as a rest day or two..  My friends from Memphis will be leaving from Saria on Sept 11, and I'm thinking about joining them for the last 100 k.

.  No one knows where El Camino de Bobiaga goes!

2 comments:

  1. Bob, Love and encouragement from Peggy & Vic.
    We will be in Santiago on 9/22, if you are still around!

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  2. You go girl! (I've been following you, but until now unable to figure out how to post a response.) I agree, relax and enjoy the experience!

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