One...

Only one more day to go on the Camino! It hardly seems real and I don't really want it to end. I don't want to have to return to reality. Oh, well... Until I win one of those $500+ million jackpots I'm stuck actually working for a living, instead of traveling and learning and making crafts and getting new hobbies.

The first thing I did was pass through this little down (Ribadiso or Rivadiso, depending on which language you're using, so named for the rio Iso that the bridge passes over) and stop before the next, bigger, town for breakfast. And guess what! I saw Leah there. You remember Leah, right? Young Australian I met in Arre, just before Pamplona, and walked with for a day. Turns out she walked several 30-40km days to get across the Meseta and make up some time. That's the part between Burgos and León that I skipped because it's dry and flat and hot and there's no shade. Just like Kansas.

Upon leaving town, I saw another decorated corn crib. It reminds me of a face.

And in one small town I got a stamp from these fine ladies. The nuns were so sweet! I just had to get a picture. You don't see them often even here in Europe, and almost never in the States.

Remember Kathy, the Aussie lady I walked with earlier in Spain before she skipped ahead so she could finish on time? She'd told me all the thorny viney things that had pestered me were wild blackberries. Here are some (still not ripe) to prove her right.

I also saw this guy. There were others wearing the same hats so I'm sure it's some kind of group or association. It was cool until I unwittingly stepped partially in some of the fresh poo along the way. I wasn't so happy with him then.

But I also walked through the forest today. It was a pretty forest, full of tall, straight eucalyptus trees. Yes, I said eucalyptus. In Spain. No, there are no koalas. The cuddly bear things stayed in Australia. The trees here are just for making paper because they grow rather quickly so the plantation owners can make a quicker profit than with hardwoods like oak, which take 75 years or more to mature enough to be useful.

I finally met Mom again in O Pedrouzo, our last stop before Santiago. It was another long day and I was tired. I limped into town on my sore feet after yet another day of about 24km. I did still insist on going to dinner, though. I did not feel like ordering pizza. And good thing, too, because otherwise we wouldn't have seen this guy.

Can't tell what I'm taking a picture of? It's this guy! Look at the above picture again and you'll see that almost the entire rear end of the cute donkey is covered in the biker dude's stuff.

Cute, isn't he? Sure would be a lighter load for me to walk but I don't think I'd want to have to feed a companion and listen to him braying at night.

And there's only one day left!

Two...

I took a rest day in Palas de Rei because I was so tired, most likely due to the Benadryl I took the night before, and the fact that the young Spaniards in the dining area just off our room were loud and didn't shut up until 11:00 at night.

But today I made it to A Portela. It's a small "town" near the normal stopping point and doesn't have an albergue, just a couple of small hotels. We stayed in one of them, which took up one of the three buildings in town. The other two appeared abandoned and the small hotel also hosted an unfrequented café and a sort of corner grocery store. It was nice and peaceful, though.

The walk was very enjoyable. I passed through several small towns peacefully. Unfortunately that was only because I had my earbuds in, listening to my phone. Otherwise other people's chatter would have annoyed me. The attitudes of "pilgrims" who started in Sarria or later seems less Camino-esque. They tend to be louder and more boisterous, traveling in small groups, instead of quiet, peaceful, friendly and contemplative. You don't always get a "buen camino" from them either, even if you're the one to say it first. I understand why so many on the forums are annoyed by these pilgrim tourists spoiling the end of the camino experience.

On a lighter note, this little church was beautiful, decorated with motifs. And the corn bin below was also nicely painted.

In one little town there was this neat statue of "dancing" pilgrims. I don't know if they're actually dancing, but I like to imagine they are.

Just one example of a group of new "pilgrims" on the Camino.

This tiny hut on a stand was right outside the church above. I have no idea what it's for, if it's a model or a small chicken coopy, but it was interesting.

I also enjoyed seeing the old well, whether it's for wishing or not, and crossing the stepping stone bridge.

I met a Brit. A lady four years older than me who had gifted herself with ten days on the Camino de Santiago for her birthday. And she was gifted back with many blisters. Sarah has been a police officer for ten years near London. Apparently they have little violent crime and most officers don't even carry guns, just night sticks and mace. Anyway, I met Sarah at the 50km mark and she's the one who took my picture. Like the 100km marker it was covered in graffiti, though I didn't bother to read any of it. We talked for a few minutes before I went into this church and she continued on her way. I did, however, catch up to her again before I reached Portela and we talked some more. One of the best things about this journey is meeting so many people even if I don't exchange contact info with them and never see them again.

And here is the cross of St. James. I'm thinking about adding it and a quote to my tattoo.

Three...

Mom made it to the next stop okay by taxi. She glared at me when I arrived four hours after heading out, having walked 16.5 km, something that would have taken her two days to do. We stayed at a very small albergue run by Agape, a Christian organization. All the hospitaleros are volunteers, mostly American but there was one Spanish girl and a guy from Nigeria.

It was nice, very communal. We had a sharing time, when we each read a note that a previous pilgrim had left, then had the opportunity to leave our own. Afterwards we watched the Jesus movie. It's a film that missionaries apparently use to show the life of Jesus. And then came dinner, where we all sat down together and chatted during the meal, then introduced ourselves and shared whatever experiences we wanted at the end. It was a very welcoming atmosphere and it was a good stay.

Mom decided to walk again the next day, but we sent our packs ahead so we wouldn't have to carry the weight. It was much easier on her but at the end of the 8+ km she was still tired and stiff and sore. So she won't be walking with me the rest of the time.

So now I'm three days out from Santiago de Compostela. And I'm glad and not glad at the same time. Not glad, because I don't want to have to go home and go back to work. I just want to keep traveling. And I'm glad because hopefully these will go away:

Yes, you can see my lovely tan line on my oh-so-beautiful legs. But that's not the point. About a week ago, I started getting bug bites. And I've just gotten more. And more.

For two months I didn't have a problem, but now at the end I suddenly have at least twenty of them. Mom thinks some kind of flea or something got into my socks, since most of the bites are on my feet, especially the right foot. I'm not convinced. I'm pretty sure I don't have fleas. But something sure likes me. The pictures don't even do it justice. Though they do look pretty bad. I'm just miserable, itchy all over. And now I've given myself another sore from rubbing the itchy bit on my toe.

Anyway, that's about all I have to report for now. Nothing happened today because I took a rest day. I think I ended up so tired because of the Benadryl I've been taking before bed. But the results are the same: I slept half the day today after having taken a long nap yesterday and sleeping all night.

I will be back to soldiering on tomorrow, and I suppose that's enough for now.

Turbo time!

The day after I passed the Cruz de Ferro, I came into Ponferrada. The city is famous along the Camino for its Templar castle, though most of it actually dates to after when the Templars left. It's very impressive walking up to it, with the Disney-esque towers and crenelated wall.

However, it is rather less than impressive on the inside. Basically there's a welcome room where it explains a little about the time period and the different jobs people might have, showing their costume. Much of the explanations are only in Spanish, as is the video, so I basically just looked at how they dressed and read a little about stone workers and carpenters. Then you walk around a bit and this is what you see:

Not much there. There is an exhibition of illuminated manuscripts, which the English teachers I know might appreciate even though none of the manuscripts are actually in English. But they're books. Incredible books. Most of them are larger than books made today, but the decoration on the pages is magnificent! And some are impressive for their size, whether giant or tiny. A few others were impressive for the colors.

This last is a copy of an illustrated edition of The Divine Comedy. You know, Dante...? The Inferno... Anyway, the collection was really cool! Yes, yes, we already know I'm a nerd.

I passed a cliché the next day.

A cat stuck in a tree. How original, right? The swimming hole at the next town was original. I didn't get to go in because I didn't pack a swimsuit (which didn't stop other pilgrims). It would have been nice after the long hot day during which I accidentally took a detour and ended up off the main Camino path, thereby not getting to the town I wanted to arrive in to keep up my walking schedule. And I did have a schedule because I met my mom in Sarria so we could walk together. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

I knew I couldn't walk the thirty kilometers required the next day to get up the mountain, especially since it would have been more like forty kilometers for me from where I ended up. So I took a bus with my québécoise roomie, Marie Ève, and then we split the cost of a cab with a young Danish couple. We all agreed it was well worth it to avoid that hike. But here' she little hamlet, O Cebreiro. It has a beautiful view off both sides.

A couple of uneventful days later and I was in Sarria. That's the last easily accessible place you can start walking and get a Compostela, the certificate saying you completed the Camino. It's 112 kilometers from Santiago. I met Mom at the train station in the morning and we started walking, though we didn't go very far the first day. Or the second. Or the third. It was plenty for Mom, though, who has gotten impatient and decided I was slowing her down too much. Tomorrow she wants to go the speed of a taxi.

We did pass the 100km marker and kept seeing these interesting structures. Let's have a contest and see who can guess what they are. The winner gets a million dollar bill!

Nature's beauty wins out over all in the end!

Wait, where's Ferdinand?