The Tasty Pilgrim

This is the little village in the North of Spain where I shall be running a refugio for pìlgrims.

Got up at half past six in the morning in this refugio in Astorga. Got dressed, had a shave and packed all my belongings. It is always amazing how many things you bring along on the Camino, but you just shove them into the backpack and press down.  Incredible that everythings fits in. Paid special attention to my feet and packed the left heel in that bunch of compeed. This morning no breakfast in the refugio as the Spanish girl preparing this, was ill. As I walked out of town I knew a nice place for an excellent breakfast and sat there, enjoying the meal. Soon after I walked the road on to Rabanal. After a few kilometers there is a small monastery across the road. It is said thet it brings new health and many people visit it. Took some photos and heve a donativo and walked on.

After two hours I came to the Cowboy Bar. It is famous along the camino. The owner stands behind the bar in a cowboy outfit and offers all kinds of strange Wild West food. Never mind, he is a good businesman and earns well being a clown, as he himself explains. I walked on an entered the small village of Catalina de Samosa. To the left of the path you will meet a stickmaker. Every pilgrim needs a staff and he makes a living out of it. Then you come to the nicest place you can imagine. A bar/restaurant with a small patio and a working fountain surrounded by flowers. At the same time it is a refugio and all the rooms with only four beds in them, open up to the patio. It is done in such good taste !!!! Many people just stop there to take photos. I had a cafee con leche and a bocadillo and sat down for half an hour giving my feet a bit of a rest. Filled up the water bottle and walked on. On all the roofs of houses and churches there are stork nests ! So again everyone has his camera at the ready. The path is sometimes muddy but mostly o.k. to walk. Then the last hill that I remember well and in the distance Rabanal comes into sight. I walked up the main street and first filled the water bottle at the fountain along the path. Still keep drinking water regularly and it feels o.k. At last I came to the church and beside is the refugio Gaucelmo. It opens at 2 in the afternoon, so I first have a coke et Antonio´s and something to eat.

When I return, the first pilgrims are shown in. The place is run by a couple from Seattle in the USA in the first two weeks of May. Martha and Jim are so good at organizing this refugio !  She makes everything perfectly clear to the pilgrim and Jim then takes the person to the bedroom and hands them a clean sheet and pillow and very quickly the line of people is diminishing and everyone is inside. He is an artist and works with ceramics. Look up the painting of king Charles 1 by the painter Van Dycke. You see an elegant man with long flowing hair, a moustache and a goatee ! That is the spitting image of Jim ! And he is so cultured ! We struck up friendship and talked about medieval literature. Wow, he quoted the first few lines of the Canterbury Tales and I took over, to his surprise ! Again the Camino brings marvellous people on my path.

Martha is kindness herself and yet decisive. Thus she handles all the pilgrims very well and steers them in the right direction. As I am one day early, I decided to sleep as any other pilgrim. Next day my learning curve would start under their excellent guidance. I feel blessed to have found such new friends !

THE CONTENT PILGRIM !