Wednesday, April 17, 2024
Today’s hike was ... interesting. After really struggling with her health over the past few weeks, but she’s feeling better now. I could not keep up with her, so I stayed back and walked with the kids, and she got to Burgos about 90 min ahead of us.
For our part, the walk was pretty good. We had breakfast at this little bar with a very grumpy barkeep. But the food was good. We also met some really nice Portuguese guys named Manuel, Jose, and Joao. I’ve loved using my French and Portuguese and even Catalan on the Camino. People always appreciate it when Americans can speak their language. Manuel was super nice and must have taken 20 pictures of us. We get lots of people taking pictures of us. Some stick around to talk, or ask for permission. Others just snap away. Either way, it’s funny.
The walk through the industrial park into Burgos is really long and boring. I’d been warned to take the river route, but I missed the turn.
Burgos feels like a big deal. It’s the first big-(ish) city we’ve seen since Logroño, and on the Camino cities are few and far between. We’re also well over a third of the way done. It kind of feels like halfway, although we won’t hit that point officially for another week or so.
Burgos is also a city I’ve long wanted to visit. Historically, it’s really important. The Cid is from around here. He is buried with his wife in the Cathedral. I’m just really happy to be here.
I’m also happy to be here because our dear friend Nidia Corzo is here starting the Camino. We met with her and her husband Carlos at Marybeth’s house in February. Nidia and her friend Joycelyn are starting their Camino here. When we spoke in February I thought it would be impossible for us to meet up with them in Burgos, I thought there was no way we would be that far along. But here we are. It truly feels like a miracle. Betty actually ran into them when she was waiting in line at the albergue for us.
So yeah, Burgos feels like a new chapter.
Next up for us is the meseta. It’s the middle third of the Camino -- famous for being flat and a bit boring. Many people just take a bus and skip it. But not us.
This evening we went out with Nidia and Joycelyn, and we visited the Cathedral. It’s pretty amazing, but I was happiest to see the tomb of the Cid. He’s one of the great figures in Iberian history. I’m not sure I would ever have wanted to have dinner with him, but he’s an important part of literary history (and historical history ;) )
After the Cathedral I tried to get to the Museo de Burgos, but I got there too late, and it was closed.
Then we all went out for churros and chocolate. It’s one of the great Spanish treats. The churros are not sweet, and the hot chocolate is dark and thick. The best stuff is like hot pudding. This stuff was a bit thinner, but the kids all still really liked it.
In the later evening I went out with Betty. We got some patatas bravas and had a really nice visit. Betty asked me about what I’ve learned on the Camino so far, and I told her that one thing that pilgrimage has taught me is to value the blessing that I have to be able to fill my life with sacred time and space without having to walk 500 miles to do it. When you pay a high price for something, you value it more. The danger in the convenience of having temples that dot the Earth is that we come to forget what a sacred privilege it is to have them to close. We get some of that living 2 hours from our closest temple, but when you walk 500 miles to get to a sacred place, you really appreciate it when you get there. I hope that I can get the lesson to stick with me. It was a good talk.
After our snack, I took some pictures of the Cathedral in the blue hour. It was a nice night.
We are all really tired. It’s amazing the difference between walking 15 km and 20km. 15 feels like nothing. 20 feels like a lot. Tomorrow we are going to do the same.
Oh, and I have to mention our hospitalero, Francisco. Some hospitaleros are pretty forgettable. Some are memorable for the wrong reasons. Then you meet someone like Francisco who is unforgettable for all the right reasons. This man is 70, but he looks like he’s 50. He’s done the Camino 8 or 9 times, and he does it with the kind of reverence and love and respect that inspires. Tonight we asked him why he keeps going back. He had a hard time answering. Finally, he told us that when we get to Santiago, he thinks we will cry. He says he always does. And then with tears in his own eyes, he told us that even though he doesn’t know why when he starts, he always finds a reason to be there and to ask Santiago for help. He said that his prayers are simple and practical. He just looks up at Santiago and says “Échame una mano.” (Give me a hand).
He’s been so kind to us, and he really seems to love the kids.
Oh, and he put us in a giant room all by ourselves. That’s awesome.
