Day 11 — September 19

Burgos to Hontanas | 19.5 Miles

Today was one of those Camino days that felt like several days wrapped into one. I knew I had a long day ahead of me, almost 20 miles, so I left Burgos at 7:15 while it was still dark. I absolutely loved Burgos. Every bit of the city was stunning , river running thru it , a huge bustling square near the cathedral , the CATHERDRAL , the restaurants, the shopping, the people. It is definitely a city I want to return to because there is so much more I would love to see and experience.

But I had a similar feeling like when I was in Logronos. As much as I love a city, being a “pilgrim” in a city just feels odd, despite seeing others I knew along the way. For the past several days, my world has become incredibly simple. I wake up, put on my hiking clothes, lace up my shoes, grab my poles and backpack, and walk. Then suddenly I was in Burgos, surrounded by stores and restaurants and music and people dressed beautifully.

I bought a pair of jeans and a sweater and for a few hours, I went from “Pilgrim Allison” to me. Shopping from store to store, almost immediately falling back into a version of my normal life. I love shopping. I love cities. I loved the energy of Burgos..I couldn’t quite put my finger on it but something felt different. Maybe that is part of what this journey is doing to me.

Early this morning I walked out of Burgos with a couple who spoke little English but took my picture at this cool statue , Carmen was her name. As I thanked her I laughed , as this morning when I woke up I had just gotten a picture from my new friend Carmen in Charlestown and was so happy she sent me , nothing happens by mistake

Getting out of Burgos was a little tricky, hard to find the yellow arrows. Carmen and her husband became my “ guide “ through the twists and turns of the city, and at one point I deviated from them and they pulled me back on the path . Definitely something comforted about the buddy system out here. I don’t necessarily need to be walking with someonee, sometimes just seeing another backpack in the distance lets me know I’m heading in the right direction.

Eventually the city disappeared behind me and I entered a new phase of the camino that people talk about called the Meseta. The landscape changed dramatically. Wide-open spaces.Long stretches of trail. Fields in every direction. And a lot of time twists and turns on the path with absolutely no one in sight . On the blogs and in some books it is not uncommon to taxi ahead in this part, I decided to stick it out . It was beautiful and peaceful, but I have to admit that there were also moments when being completely alone out there made me a little nervous.

I walked along John from New Zealand leaving the city . John commented on how much he liked Burgos as well, but also how wonderful it was to see Spanish families out together on a Friday night, dressed up and enjoying one another. I had noticed the same thing, but I loved that he put it into words for me.There is something about Spanish culture that really resonates with me. People seem to slow down. They spend time together. They enjoy their meals and their families. They seem to take the time to smell the roses.

John also went on to tell me he was an artist and a controlled remote viewer , their are only 1500 in teh world and they help find missing people. WHO KNEW ?? I had so many questions and in no time a few miles had gone by.

About 2 km before the 2nd village , Rabe I heard “ Allison “ , it was anne from Ireland . I had met her two days before , she is with a group of 8 ladies from Ireland, but today she was walking by herself herself as her group gets up later and she likes the morning energy so walks and waits for the group in whatever village . Anne was awesome , she walks FAST so I picked up my pace and decided to stop with her for coffee.

In our short walk she told me she had a “roundy” birthday this year .I had absolutely no idea what she meant. Then I realized she was talking about turning 50 or 60.I loved it. Forget milestone birthdays. From now on, I’m calling them roundy birthdays. Anne then told me she also retired this year from being a teacher for 35 years on a Monday and Wedensay she had a heartattack with a full blockage. She mentioned she had no health conditions , a runner and now is better a year later and is grateful to be able to be out here walking. Another humbling moment

On the way out of Rabé, I noticed a beautiful little church so walked in .Inside was a nun who energetically welcomed every pilgrim who walked through the door. She stamped our pilgrim passports, but she did so much more than that, she talked to every single person who came into that church. She spoke only Spanish, and fortunately there was a woman in front of me who was translating into English what the nun was saying I stood there listening and actually video taped her 3 minutes message to the woman in front of me as well as the few of in line

It was beyond beautiful. There was something about the way she looked at people. She wasn’t rushing anyone through. She wasn’t simply stamping passports and moving on to the next pilgrim. She was connecting with every person who stood in front of her and putting a medialin on a thin blue pieces of string Then it was my turn.She spoke to me and then placed the medialiin on me And then she hugged me.Not a quick hug, a meaningful hig

There are moments on this Camino that are difficult to explain because nothing particularly grand happens, yet somehow you know immediately that you will remember them forever.Standing in that tiny church in Rabé, being embraced by a nun whose language I couldn’t even speak, was one of those moments.I believe you dont nee dto be catholic to have that be meaning , she spoke about how she sees the hearts of people who walk in in their eyes , we al have hearts.

It was there that I gave my intentions for Patrick and Nancy.

When I left the church, I walked in silence for a long time. I kept thinking about the beauty of what had just happened. You didn’t need to be Catholic to feel the sincerity and love of this woman. She welcomed and respected every person who walked through that door, no matter where they came from, what they looked like, their size, their shape or the color of their skin. None of it mattered. Everyone received the same warmth, the same attention and the same love- a simple reminder of how we should treat one another. After words I walked in silence, thinking about it. It was such a simple moment, but it had a pretty profound impact on me.

Today I also walked a mile for Bob, in honor of good health

When I reached th enext village of Hornillos del Camino, I stopped at this really cute private albergue Camino Del Sol with only seven rooms to see if they happened to have a room available and met the owner Melina. She is Greek, and she and her husband had just become the new owners on September 1st. Her husband came from this village, and after the two of them walked the Camino last year, they decided this could be a wonderful lifestyle for them. She was so gracious.I asked her for iced tea, and it became really important to her that I liked it. I sat there, ate my apple and enjoyed the break before continuing on.

While in the garden I met a couple from New Zealand, and we started talking about the woman at the church in Rabé. They had experienced the blesisng and nun too. They said if you were ever going to imagine what it might feel like to have someone welcoming you into heaven, she would be about as close as you could get. That made me smile because clearly I wasn’t the only person who had felt something special in that little church.

I also met two wonderful women from Cincinnati. Once again, another Camino stop turned into conversations with complete strangers who somehow don’t feel like strangers for very long.And then it was time to leave Hornillos.I still had 6.5 miles to Hontanas., those were 6.5 long miles.

It was afternoon by then, and I realized something very clearly today: I am a morning hiker. My energy is different. My mindset is different. Everything just feels better and moving forward, that’s a practice I want to continue on this walk .

As I continued across the Meseta, there were long stretches when I was completely alone.No pilgrim in front of me and No pilgrim behind me. Just me and huge white wind turbines as far as the eye could see in all directions. At one point a yellow police van came by, and strangely, just seeing it made me feel better.

Eventually, finally, Hontanas appeared. One really cool things I had read about Hontanas is that you almost don’t see it coming. You walk for miles across this enormous open landscape, and then suddenly you look down and the village is tucked into the valley. Hontanas is amazing. It’s tiny. Essentially one road with just a handful of hostels and a few resturants and a beautiful church

I lit a candle for Will and Richie at the church in this beautiful area where they had bible sin multiple languages and hheld them in my thoughts and prayers.

Tonight I went to a pilgrim dinner of 20 people and at my table I randomly sat with two German men, brothers . Somehow during our conversation we discovered that their mother’s name was REUTER. what are the chances …Another one of those funny little Camino connections.

Tonight, after over19 miles on my feet, I sat in tiny village in Spain and watched the sun set, I couldn’t help thinking about the contrast of the past 24 hours and no matter where we are it is important to See people . Respect people . Love people.

What a beautiful day.