October 05th, 2015

     Doug commented yesterday that, inspired by the photos of all the sweets on the Camino, he's become a regular at Panera.  That's good.  Somebody has to keep the Panera sweets department in business while I'm away.  
​     Doug also mentioned that he watched the Martin Sheen movie about the Camino, "The Way".  About "The Way" I'd just like to add that, though that movie really captures the spirit of the Camino, the grief and personal issues many pilgrims have come to the Camino to try and work out, and the way that Camino families bond, still the movie leaves out how hard the hike can be and doesn't address all the blisters, foot and knee problems and aches and pains people develop along the way  The movie also plays fast and loose with the Camino  landscape and locations.  But it's still a lovely movie.
    Yesterday we started out the day with a beautiful breakfast set out for us at the San Anton de Padua  

....of tostadas with butter, jam and cheese,  muffins and croissants, cereal, fruit, orange juice, coffee, tea, hot chocolate and warm, yummy churros.

     I thought that churros and hot chocolate was a Mexican specialty, but it's a very popular combo in Spain, as well.
      Then after breakfast we put our rain gear and still-wet from-yesterday boots back on and headed back out into the rain, being careful of all the little snail families out for a walk on the Camino.

     There are two basic pilgrim rain-gear fashion styles:
      First, there's what I call the Camino Rocket Man look,

....which consists of a rain suit and water-proof back-pack cover and is Tom's choice.
     The other basic look, christened by myself as The Camino Tortoise look.,

  ....involves  a poncho over rain pants, or, my preference, knee-high water-proof gaiters.
     We all end up with wet feet after a while, though.
     We walked 14.5 kilometers - about 8.7 miles - in the on-and-off rain and blow-you-over wind from Vilar de Mazarife to Hospital de Órbigo.  
​     Hospital de Órbigo is famous being the location of one of the longest, oldest, medieval bridges in Spain

  

   The bridge was also the site of a famous jousting match in 1434, at which time Christopher Columbus's grandpa was probably not yet knee-high to a knicker.
     We stayed at an albergue called La Encina built onto the back of a bar/restaurant where we stayed last time and really liked.
     One can get a bed in a 4-bed dorm room for 9.50€ each or there are private-room options.  We went for the dorm option,

....though we ended up having the room - and bathroom - to ourselves.  And the door even had a key, so we could lock it, just like a hotel room.  It was great., especially since  we were able to put put boots on the radiator to dry out.   
     After we settled into our quarters, took our showers, handed our gross-as-usual clothes to the hospitaliero who washed and dried them for us for 5€, and rested up for a while, we headed down to the bar in front of the albergue,

...to while away a couple of hours before dinner.
     Tom had a couple of glasses of red wine,  I had a couple of cups of hot tea, we had some snacks, and basically sat around and watched the rain fall.
     I said to Tom, "Can you imagine back home sitting around for hours with nothing to do, no work or obligations,, no entertainment, no books to read  (except our guide book), no TV?  We'd be bored and antsy like crazy."
      Here on the Camino it feels just right.