It was a cold, windy and rainy morning. The alburgue rule is that everyone must be out of the alburgue by 8:00 AM. This morning the alburgue staff had to practically kick people out of their beds to get them up and out of the alburgue.

This is me with my rain cover on the pack and wearing my rain jacket and rain pants.

The rain gear worked well and I stayed relatively warm and dry. However, it takes a great deal of effort to walk into a 20 MPH wind and driving rain. It didn’t really rain hard. But it rained hard enough to make the 15 kilometer moderately uphill and into the wind hike to Astorga a put your head down and take one step at a time slog. This is a picture of the trail. It is not a great picture because it is so cloudy.

This is another picture from the trail.

We stoped at this roadside bible verse and said a prayer for Anna.

The yellow arrow is a Camino trail marker. The Bible verse, Mark, Chapter 12 verses 28-34 reads generally as follows: ” Of all the Commandments which is the most important? Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your strength. The second is love your neighbor as yourself.”

A very good friend of mine, Tom Bissell, pointed out to me that the stones engraved with the references to verses from the Bible and the pictures of these engraved stones are almost meaningless unless I understand the Bible verses engraved on the stones. Tom is one of the most generous and wise men I know and he is absolutely correct. Knowing what the Bible verse says and contemplating how to incorporate the Bible verse as we proceed along the Way really makes the walk that much more meaningful. I can attest to the fact that I feel God’s presence along the Way and I have witnessed and have been on the receiving end of countless random magical acts of kindness. In that sense this verse from Mark’s gospel is especially meaningful to me.

As we were walking along the Way there was a roadside rest area where this pilgrim stands at attention, welcoming all weary pilgrims to sit, take off their boots and give their feet a rest.

There was a roadside donativo rest and refreshment stand that had its own labyrinth.

I grabbed a banana and left a buck in the donation box/mini labyrinth.

This is the cross at the top of the hill overlooking Astorga. We stopped and said a prayer for Anna.

We finally got to Astorga at about 2:00 PM and checked into the municipal alburgue, Servias de Maria. Tonight it will be a full house at this alburgue with 160 people in 20 rooms and no blankets. It is going to be cold tonight so I will be wearing all my clothes as I try to get some sleep. Brrr!

There is some kind of battle re-enactment going on in Astorga. Everyone is running around in period costumes with muskets and cartridge boxes.

I think this monument in the town square commemorates the battle they are re-enacting.

I hope everyone is having a restful Sunday.

Good evening from Astorga, Spain.

We got up at about 7:00 AM, packed, had breakfast and got out on the Way by about 8:00.

This is sunrise from the Way just a little west of Villar De Mazarife.

We spent the morning walking on roads and paths with cornfields 🌽 on either side.

Nothing runs like a Deere, even in Spain.

Even in Spain Dekalb seeds are king.

As we walked into Hospital De Orbigo, we had to cross the Orbigo River on this bridge.

As I was crossing the river I saw this guy fly fishing.

There is an old church in Hospital De Orbigo with three huge stork nests in top of the steeple.

I also saw this cat on a roof in town. I call this shot Cat On A Hot Tin Roof, on the Camino.

As we were walking through Hospital De Orbigo we spotted this beautiful church that was open for visitors. This is the altarpiece in the church.

After we visited this church we decided to stay at the alburgue next door. This is the courtyard of the alburgue.

This is a group of Japanese tourists who are going to start their Camino tomorrow in Sarria. Their guides wanted to show them what a typical alburgue looked like. I spent 10 minutes lining up everyone’s camera and taking pictures so that every member of the group had a group photo on their own camera. They were so grateful that they wanted to make me an honorary Samurai. I explained to them that I was already an honorary member of the Roman Legion and that I was walking with a couple of Italians who might get upset if I turned in my toga and donned a kimono, or whatever it is that Samurai wear. They understood and we hugged and exchanged Buen Caminos and I sent them on their way.

Marco went to the grocery store and got the fixings for an authentic Italian feast.

This is the group for dinner. We had three people from Denmark, Kim, Tina and their son Oliver, Meg from Australia, Marco from Italy and Giorgio from Italy, who now he lives in Canada.

I hope everyone is having a restful Saturday.

Good evening from Hospital de Orbigo, Spain.

Today was a rest day in Leon.

I sacked in and had a late breakfast, a chocolate croissant and fresh squeezed orange juice.

After breakfast we toured the Leon Cathedral and the adjacent museum. This is a shot of the front of the Cathedral. They are doing a restoration project on the entrance to the Cathedral.

This is a view from the front door, through the choir enclosure that is in the middle of the church, to the main altar.

This is the altarpiece for the main altar.

This is the altarpiece for the main altar, with the stained glass windows above it.

This particular Cathedral rivals Chartres for the amount and quality of the stained glass windows. They are amazing.

There were a number of side chapels with beautifully painted altarpieces.

This is a stone carving of the crucifixion. Mary Magdalene, the woman to your left of Jesus, is carved so that she seems to be looking right at you. It was spooky.

This is a shot of part of the Cathedral museum.

This is a statute of St. James, or Santiago. Notice the big stick. The representatives of the Catholic Church that I have encountered on this pilgrimage all seem to be holding big sticks in a very threatening way. I am starting to feel very intimidated by the nuns and their yardsticks and now St. James.

This is Our Lady of Justice. Notice she has the scales of justice in one hand and a sword in the other hand. If she weighs you in her scales of justice and finds that you are wanting, she takes off your head with a whack of her sword. That is one tough broad!

This is a flea market that was set up in the town square.

Right next to the flea market was a farmers market.

I wanted to buy a lemon 🍋 to squeeze the juice into my water bladder. The guy who was running the citrus stall gave me a lemon and refused my money and wished me Buen Camino. Wasn’t that nice.

So we were walking around town when we spotted this Burger King. 🍔

On the side of this Burger King was a window. The guy on the motorcycle would go the window and grab bags of Burger King food and deliver it on his motorcycle.

This is a shot of pigeons taking a bath in a fountain before they make their transition to chickens for tonight’s pilgrim dinner.

This is a beautiful fountain in the middle of the town’s main roundabout.

I think this is an attorney’s sign trying to hustle business from people involved in auto accidents.

Texas Boots in Spain. Who would have ever thought of that?

This is my mid afternoon treat. It was sooo good.

It was a very relaxing day in Leon. I am planning on spending another relaxing day in Leon and then on Friday it is back on the Way to Santiago.

I hope everyone is having a great Wednesday.

Good evening from Leon, Spain.

My good friend Jake Flesher is in Italy. He was visiting the Sistine Chapel and said a prayer for Anna. He then visited the Church of Santa Marie del Popolo and lit a candle and said a prayer for Anna. What a good man! I want to thank everyone who is praying for Anna. Every prayer counts. She is in a battle for her life so every prayer is greatly appreciated.

Last night I felt like death warmed over when I finally stumbled into Reliegos. I was hurting all over and was in a mental fog. I figured out today that I got severely dehydrated walking the 18 kilometers on the Trajan Way. I drank over two liters of water, but that wasn’t enough. Lesson learned. When you take the remote routes where there are no cafes or other rest stops you’d better bring a lot, and I mean a lot, of water. I did not sleep well last night. I was a hurting cowboy and the springs on my World War Two Army surplus mattress were way beyond sprung. The beds in some of these alburgues seem like they are purposefully uncomfortable. I sacked in and hit the trail with Marco at 8:00 AM.

This is a Pilgrim statue just outside Reliegos.

This is sunrise as we walked the Way just west of Reliegos. Notice the mountains. As you can see, we are on the western edge of the Meseta and heading into Galicia.

This is another plaque set along the Way reminding everyone why we are waking the Camino.

After we walked about 5 kilometers, we stopped in this village, Mansilla de las Mulas. This was our first stop of the day.

This is breakfast at Mansilla de las Mulas. Bacon and eggs, and a croissant and freshly squeezed orange juice. Yum!

This is Serano jamon. These hams are hanging in every little cafe. That’s a lot of jamon.

This is a roadside cross and Pilgrim statue across the street from the cafe where we ate breakfast. We stopped and said a prayer for Anna.

This is a farmers market they were setting up in the town square in Mansilla de los Mulas.

My favorite Mexican restaurant in Denver is Las Delicias.

What a colorful pumpkin patch. 🎃

This is the Elsa River, just outside Mansilla de las Mulas.

This is the trail heading up a hill just outside Leon.

This is a view of Leon from the top of the hill. Now we will need to climb down the hill to get to Leon. I hate climbing down hills at the end of the day.

This is a sign in Leon. A little more than 300 kilometers to go to get to Santiago.

This is the infamous Colonel Sander’s Kentucky Fried Chicken 🐓 on the outskirts of Leon. As American Pilgrims walk on the Camino leading to Leon they talk about this KFC like it is the Emerald City. As I walked by this KFC, I could smell the chicken frying and the biscuits baking. My mouth started to water like an old hound dog in a butcher shop. With Santiago’s help, I stiffened my backbone and resisted the almost inexorable temptation to eat here as I am going to gorge on tapas tonight.

This is the sleeping quarters at the Alburgue Globetroter. What a great place. Brand new, 12 bucks a night with towels, sheets and a comfortable lower bunk just a block off the Cathedral Square.

We will be staying three nights and two full days in Leon. There is plenty to see and do here and I am sure the two days will fly by quickly.

I hope everyone is having a great Tuesday.

Good evening from Leon, Spain.

This is the map of part our route today.

We got up at 6:30 AM, packed, had breakfast at the alburgue and hit the road at 8:00. Andrea and Marco were enjoying their second cup of coffee and it didn’t look like they were in any hurry to get out and start walking, so I decided to walk solo today.

This is sunrise a little west of Sahagun.

It was a cool morning, just above freezing. Great walking weather. I am taking the alternate route today, the Trajan Way.

This is Calzada del Coto the fork in the road on this part of the Camino. To the left is a long stretch of senda, or gravel path next to a road. To the right is the more remote Trajan Way. This road was built by the Romans during the reign of Emperor Trajan. I am sure it comes as no surprise to anyone reading this blog that I turned to the right and walked the Trajan Way. As an honorary member of the Roman Legion I had no choice, especially on Columbus Day.

This is a sign indicating that we have a little more than 300 kilometers to go to reach Santiago. I think this sign is a little lite on the remaining mileage. I think it is more like 360 kilometers to Santiago.

This is the electrified railroad track running between Sahagun and León.

The landscape is getting more wooded. I think we are approaching the western edge of the Meseta.

This is the first time that I have seen round hay bales instead of square hay bales.

This is the second village on the alternate route, Calzadilla de los Hermanillos.

This is another one of those buildings with a pigeon coop in the attic.

I think I’ve figured out why these Spanish sharpies have pigeons coops in their attics. Last night we went out to dinner and ate off the pilgrim menu. Marco from Italy, Andrea from Sweden and Giorgio who is originally from Italy but now lives in British Columbia and runs the Ruby Lake Lodge with his family, and your humble correspondent, made up the diner party. I ordered the chicken off the pilgrim menu. I got a drumstick and a thigh and it appeared that they had come from a really scrawny chicken. I complained to the waiter that I would prefer my chicken be one of those genetically modified monsters whose breasts are so big that the chickens fall forward every time they try to stand up. He acted like he didn’t understand me but I think he knew full well what I was saying.

Not only was the “chicken” on the scrawny side, it also tasted funny. And I don’t mean ha ha funny. I mean the kind of funny where you need a grande cervesa, or really big beer, to choke it down, and then another grande cervesa to wash the taste out of your mouth.

Then it dawned on me. I think they are clearing out those pigeon coops periodically and serving the pigeons as chicken on the pilgrim menu. Now I am wondering what the ham really is. Who knows what shenanigans these devious Spaniards are pulling when it comes to the other items on the pilgrim menu. I believe that the Spaniards, behind my back, are doing everything they can to put as much “grim” in the pilgrim menu as possible.

This is a roadside cross in Calzadilla de los Hermanillos. We stopped and said a prayer for Anna.

This is the path leading away from Calzadilla. Notice the corn. This corn would be laughed out of the Illinois State Fair. I was out on this section of the trail by myself. The wind rustling the corn was a little spooky.

As you can see, it is getting more wooded as we approach the western edge of the Meseta and the beginning of Galicia.

This is a shot of the approach to the valley of the river Arcos.

Down in the river valley I came across this ranch. This is the first time I have seen cows in the open since the beginning of my Camino.

After a 30 kilometer hike I am now in Reliegos at the alburgue La Posada. I have my own room so I am very happy. Thirty kilometers was probably too much. I will try to limit my hikes to between 20 and 25 kilometers in the future.

I hope everyone had a good Columbus Day. As an honorary member of the Roman Legion this is a special holiday for me.

Good evening from Reliegos, Spain.

We got up at about 7:00 AM, had breakfast, and were out on the Way by 8:00 AM.

This is a map of our route from Terradillos de los Templarios to Sahagun This will be a short 12 kilometer day.

Our first stop for second breakfast was Moratinos. At Moratinos we saw these bodegas.

This plaque explains what a bodega is and how it is used.

This is a vineyard. We haven’t seen many vineyards in the Meseta. Notice all the scarecrows. There must have been a hundred of them in this vineyard.

Apparently you can do the Camino by car 🚗! Why didn’t I think of that?

This is the view coming down into Sahagun.

This is an old church on the outskirts of Sahagun.

This is one of a pair of columns that stand on either side of the Way on the outskirts of Sahagun. I think the guy with the sword is warning people that they had better behave while in Sahagun or they will have to answer to him. I plan on behaving.

These are my two new BFFs. They are standing outside the Church of Saint Lorenz in Sahagun.

This is a gate in the old wall at the west end of the Way as it leaves Sahagun.

This is where we are staying tonight, the alburgue at the Monasterio de Santa Cruz.

I got a single room for $20. What a deal.

This is me in my rain pants and rain jacket and nothing else. Why am I wearing my rain pants and my rain jacket and nothing else on a bright sunny day, you ask?

It’s laundry day!!

I threw every stitch of clothing I have in the alburgue washing machine and I have been spending the afternoon in my rain pants and jacket while my clothes dry.

We had a group session from 5:00 PM to 6:00 PM at the monastery where everybody talked about why they were walking the Camino and the experiences they have had along the Way. This is the group.

From left to right, a guy from Hungary, the Marist priest from Italy who is in charge of the monastery, a guy from Brazil, Andrea from Sweden, a Marist brother from England and Marco is standing.

At 6:30 we walked over to the church where the Marist priest officiated at a Pilgrim mass. After mass the priest had all the Pilgrims in attendance come up to the altar for an individual laying of hands on the head and a holy oil cross on the forehead blessing. This is old hat to St. Christopher but Abe was so moved by the sincerity of the blessing from this Marist priest that he wept. Abe is having the time of his life on our Camino. I almost forgive him for giving away my M&Ms.

I hope everyone had a restful Sunday.

Good evening from Sahagun, Spain.

Camino Karma

In yesterday’s blog post I reported that I was in the lower berth of a bunk bed in a small room with 8 bunk beds. As Paul Harvey used to say, here’s the rest of the story. As I was checking in, the guy behind the desk said that I could have a bed in the alburgue for $6 or a single room with WC, in the convent, for $25. I asked the guy if I could get the single room in the convent and get a no whacking guarantee from the Mother Superior. He said that I could have the last coveted single room for $25 and for an extra five dollars I could purchase a no whacking guarantee. I jumped for joy and enthusiastically told him to start the paperwork por favor. For those of you who don’t speak Spanish that means please. As he was starting the paperwork Andrea, from Stockholm, my walking compatriot for the day, stepped up to the counter and, with tears in her eyes, informed the volunteer behind the check in desk that she has not slept for days, is hallucinating from lack of sleep, and she desperately needs a single room. The guy behind the counter told Andrea that I got the last single room and she would have to sleep in the alburgue with the smelly, farting, snoring mass of pilgrims. I told the guy to hold his horses. I don’t think he understood that evocative American phrase, but I made sure he stopped the paperwork for my coveted single room and gave it to Andrea instead. After he showed Andrea to her luxurious single room he came back down to the reception area to check me into this particularity dreary alburgue. After he checked me into the careworn alburgue, he gave me a hug and a kiss on both cheeks, and said that giving my single room to Andrea was an old school chivalrous act that would not go unrewarded. I was thinking that my reward would be points from the Mother Superior that would lessen, by five minutes or so, my roasting time in Hell when judgement day comes. No, he said that giving Andrea the single room wasn’t enough to buy me any judgement day points, but if a cancellation on a single room comes in, I will be first in line for an upgrade. I started to dance around the alburgue singing 🎤 a horribly off key version of “We Are The Champions” by Queen. As you can imagine this drew the ire of my fellow inmates in the alburgue who had been sentenced to spend the night in the alburgue with no chance for a parole or pardon. A few hours later the front desk guy tracked me down and gave me the keys to my very own single room in the convent. He also told the Mother Superior about me giving up my room to Andrea and she said that I wasn’t all bad and that she would give me a 12 hour no whacking guarantee, gratis. Another example of Camino Magic.

Today’s Walk

I got a great night’s sleep and was out of my single room in the convent at 6:30 AM. The Mother Superior met me at the front gate of the convent, opened the door for me, gave me her blessing and with a beatific smile that lit up her face, told me to try being less of a dick as I walk the Camino. I told her it is an everyday struggle but I will do my best. She rolled her eyes, shook her head and booted me out the door and whacked me on the butt with her yardstick for good measure. An auspicious start to my Nineteenth Day on the Camino.

I walked for the first hour and a half in darkness. What a treat that was. I got out of Carrion de Los Condes at 6:30 AM and walked the Via Aquitana by starlight and the light of a sickle moon. This is an old Roman road built 2000 years ago through a wetland. It has been estimated that the Romans used 100,000 tons of rock to create a roadbed that was above the winter flood levels. There is no rock in this area of the Meseta so the Romans had to quarry the rock from some distant rock quarry and haul it to the road construction site. The Roman Empire was truly amazing and helped to shape this part of Spain.

This is the pilgrim statute at the beginning of the Old Roman Road reminding everyone why we are doing this pilgrimage.

These are pictures of sunrise from the Way.

This is Emily and Tom. Last year Tom’s wife was dying of cancer and Tom hired Emily to help him care for his dying wife. On her deathbed, Tom’s wife made him promise that he would do the Camino and made Emily promise that she would accompany Tom on his Camino and look after him. I have been running into them almost every day and they have been struggling with the physical challenge of the Camino. Today was no exception.

As we were walking along the path I saw Emily laying supine in the middle of the path with Tom tending to her. I asked her if she was OK and she said that she had sprained her ankle and they had no food to get them to their lunch stop, 10 kilometers away. Last night I had the foresight to stop at a Super Mercado, in English, a supermarket, and buy some snacks. It took me forever to find just the right smacks but I finally found some honey roasted peanuts and two chocolate granola bars. Yum! When Abe and St. Christopher heard that Emily and Tom needed food they volunteered to give them the granola bars and the honey roasted peanuts. WTF!

I was starving and was really looking forward to stopping and enjoying my treats. I reluctantly handed over the honey roasted peanuts and the granola bars. Then, to add insult to injury, Abe, in a loud voice, ordered me to cough up the peanut M&Ms I was hiding in a secret compartment of my backpack.

So much for trying to keep secrets from Honest Abe. I had to unpack my bag and fork over my favorite treat, the peanut M&Ms! I then politely asked Emily and Tom if there was anything else they needed, hoping they would say: “No, you have done more than enough.” No such luck. Emily said that she needed someone to say a prayer for her ankle. At that moment an older gentleman stopped and introduced himself as Mike, a Presbyterian pastor from Parker, Arizona. We all held hands and formed a prayer circle around Emily as St. Christopher, Honest Abe, Pastor Mike, Tom and your humble correspondent said a heartfelt prayer for Emily, her ankle and her Camino. The whole thing moved me to tears, not only the fellowship and the prayer, but also losing my peanut M&Ms. Such is life on the Camino.

When I walk with Tom and Emily I am overwhelmed by their courage and devotion to make their walk a true pilgrimage. I feel so blessed to have met Tom and Emily and to have had the opportunity to walk with them and share their pilgrimage. Tom and Emily have been one of the highlights of my Camino.

This is a picture of the trail leading to the first village we will encounter today, Calzadilla de la Cueza.

The first stop of the day was this little snack shack on the side of the Camino.

This is a sign at this little roadside shack.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what this sign is telling you not to do.

This is another shot from the trail.

This is a view of the first village on the trail today, Calzadilla de la Cueza.

This is a view of the rolling hillsides just a little west of Calzadilla de la Cueza.

These are shots of an old church on the outskirts of Ledigos. We stopped here and said a prayer for Anna.

This is a shot of a cattle operation next to the Camino as we approach our final resting place for the day, Terradillos de los Templarios. I can hear the cows and smell the cows but I can’t see the cows. Can you see the cow head above the door of the barn?

We are staying at the Alburgue Jaques de Molay. At the alburgue bar they were serving pork rinds as a bar snack. You just can’t get away for pigs, pork and ham around here. God help the Pilgrim who is trying to eat kosher!

The alburgue WIFI was on the fritz so this blog post is a day late.

I hope everyone had a relaxing Saturday.

Good night from Terradillos de los Templarios Spain.

We slept in until 6:30 AM. We then got dressed and packed and tried to get breakfast at the alburgue at 7:30. We were told that the cafe at the alburgue would be open at 7:30 and we would get a great pilgrim breakfast. Seven thirty rolled around and about 10 of us were standing in the cold outside the cafe and there was no sign of Javier or the cook. We gave up and walked into town and had breakfast at a very nice hostal.

Now this is what I call a good old fashioned stick to your ribs American breakfast. Ham and two eggs over easy with toast and orange juice.

After breakfast we took the alternate route to our intermediate destination, Villalcazar De Sirga. The main Camino runs alongside a busy road on a gravel path called a senda. The alternate path runs alongside the River Ucieza for about 8 kilometers. This was a very pleasant shaded path.

After a 90 minute hike we came to the outskirts of Villovieco.

This is a trail marker on the Camino on the west side of Villovieco. Another reminder that the Camino is a spiritual journey.

This is a wayside cross on the Camino. We stopped and bowed our heads and St. Christopher led us in a prayer for Anna.

The alternate route merged with the main Camino at Villalcazar De Stirga. As we were walking along the roadside senda just outside Villalcazar De Stirga I spotted this sign. Is this some sort of Spanish joke. Yield for cows?? You have got to be kidding. After the second day on the Camino I have not seen one single cow, and I have been looking. There isn’t a cow within at least 200 miles of this place and they put up a “Yield to Cows” sign just to remind me that there will be no beef for me during my entire pilgrimage. I would expect that kind of “rub your nose in it sign” from the French, but not the Spanish.

This is the view as we approached Villalcazar De Stirga. This is the Templar Church of Santa Marie.

This is the main altarpiece at the Templar Church. The Church was ancient and very foreboding.

I decided to have lunch in Villalcazar with a fellow pilgrim. He wasn’t much of a talker.

They had hot dogs at the cafe in Villalcazar De Stirga but not one single pilgrim was in any way interested in having a Spanish hotdog for lunch.

This appears to be a gym class that was bused to the Camino at Villalcazar and walked 5 kilometers to our final destination, Carrion De Los Condes. When they got to Carrion De Los Condes they had to run around a track at the local high school. These Spanish PE teachers are real taskmasters!

We arrived at our final destination for the day, Carrion De Los Condes at about 3:00 PM.

We are staying at the Convent Alburgue Espiritu Santu. It is very old and careworn but the nuns are very nice. Not a yardstick in sight. You can bet I will be on my best behavior while I am staying with these nuns.

This is the holy card tacked to the wall above my bed, which is a lower berth in a small room with 8 bunk beds. Such is alburgue life.

This is me wandering around town trying to find someplace that has working WIFI as the convent doesn’t have internet and I am not about to complain to the nuns and run the risk of getting whacked.

This is the altarpiece in the church in Carrion de los Condes where we said a prayer for Anna.

I hope everyone had a great Friday. Good evening from Carrion de Los Condes, Spain.

On Wednesday we got a fairly big room at the alburgue with only three bunk beds. I got a lower bunk bed so I was happy. I think there are only five people in our room. At the last minute a young man came in and hopped in the bed above me. He was as quiet as a mouse so that was OK. This alburgue was a pretty sweet deal for $6.

We got up at 6:30 AM and were going to get out the door at 7:15, but realized that an Italian guy who was in the room was having trouble. His name is Marco, a good, strong and manly name. I took an instant liking to him. He is going through a rough patch and decided 10 days ago to do the Camino. He was a Boy Scout when he was 13. He is now 38 and is using his 25 year old Boy Scout pack and hiking boots to do the Camino. He started in Burgos 4 days ago and he is struggling. He has pretty bad blisters and muscle cramps in his legs. I walked him to an alburgue at the edge of town and helped him arrange for someone to transport his backpack to Fromista, about 15 kilometers along the Way.

The trees in the following picture are in the town square in Itero de la Vega. They were full of birds who were chattering at each other and making quite a racket this morning.

This is the sign as you leave Itero de la Vega. I am walking with Marco today to make sure he is able to get to his final destination at the end of the day.

This is the view looking west as we walked out of Itero de la Vega as the sun was coming up in the east.

This is the Spanish version of farm irrigation. It is basically lawn sprinklers on ten foot poles spaced about 20 yards apart. Every once in a while you will walk by one that has not been set correctly and it will will whirl around and give you a good squirt. Not bad in the afternoon, but an unpleasant surprise in the morning when it is so cold you can see your breath. I would expect this kind of treatment from the Frenchies, not the Spaniards.

This is the view of the next town on our walk today, Boadilla del Camino.

This is Boadilla del Camino.

This is a picture of the steeple of the Church of St. Mary in Boadilla. Notice the giant stork nest at the top of the steeple.

This is another view of the church in Boadilla and in the foreground, a medieval cross inviting the villagers to prayer. We stopped here and said a prayer for Anna.

The following picture is my lunch. A Serrano ham and cheese sandwich. I think I finally have the ham versus soap thing figured out and this ham and cheese sandwich was delicious.

There were a couple of Italian guys at the cafe/alburgue where Marco and I were having lunch. When they found out that I had taken Marco under my wing they insisted on buying me lunch. After lunch they escorted me to the front steps of the church, made me kneel, and with their hiking poles lightly touched me on one shoulder and then the other shoulder, told me to rise and loudly proclaimed that I was now an honorary member of the Roman Legion. I was thrilled beyond words. They said this means that I get free beer at any Knights of Columbus hall in the United States. We will see how that works out when I get back home.

My ham and cheese sandwich.

This is a picture of a house in Boadilla. They made holes in the walls of the attic and built perches outside the holes so pigeons can land and go into the attic to roost.

This is another house in Boadilla with the same set up for the pigeons. I knocked on the door of this house and talked to the owner about his pigeons. I explained to him that if he invited pigeons into his attic they would roost there and do what pigeons do. They would crap all over his attic and he would have a heck of a smelly mess to clean up. I told him to board up the openings and get a shotgun to handle the pigeons that won’t find another attic to foul with their droppings. This Spaniard must be very attached to his pigeons. The minute I mentioned the shotgun he threatened to shoot me and ran me off his property. Who knew the Spanish were so attached to their pigeons?

This is a fish trap. We were walking down the Camino when I guy pulled up and took this fish trap out of his car. He had a package of hot dogs in this pocket that he was going to use to bait the fish trap. I tried to tell him that hot dogs are for eating at ball games or in Spain they might eat them at bull fights, but hot dogs are not an effective bait in a fish trap. He insisted on baiting the fish traps with the hot dogs and told me that as an American I know nothing about fishing. I swear, between the pigeons in the attic and the hot dogs in the fish traps, the Spaniards are as strange as the French.

This is the canal where my Spanish fishing friend was going to set his traps.

This is a boat on the canal just outside Fromista.

This is a sign by the boat. Apparently you can boat to Santiago. Why didn’t I think of that?

This is a sign at the outskirts of Fromista Almost halfway to Santiago!

This is a fountain in the town square in Fromista that was donated by the Rotary Club of Fromista. I had no idea they have Rotary Clubs in Spain. We stopped in a church in Fromista and lit a candle and said a prayer for Anna.

This is the path from Fromista to our final stop, Poblacion de Campos. This is a four kilometer straight gravel path that has not one, not two, not three, but four Camino markers in the middle of the path every 100 yards. In my opinion that is overkill. One marker at the beginning and one marker at the end would have been more than sufficient.

This is me and my new BFF Javier, the owner of the Alburgue La Finca where we are staying in Poblacion de Campos. He says that he runs the best little alburgue on the Camino. So far it has been a pleasure to stay here.

This is Marco.

This is the room that I get all to myself at the alburgue. What a treat to have a room all to myself.

I hope everyone is having a good Thursday.

Good evening from Poblacion de Campos.

Go Rockies!

The Rockies beat the Cubs in extra innings yesterday to advance in their quest to win the World Series. I have been catching some heat from the Europeans and the Canadians about the World Series. They say the World Cup is open to everyone in the world to determine who has the best football team. They think it is American hubris for us to call it the World Series when only American baseball ⚾️ teams compete for the World Series title.

I pointed out to them that they don’t have any business giving me crap about the World Series. They make a big deal about the World Cup and call that football. They don’t play play football in the World Cup. It is soccer, not football. The Broncos play football. The Rapids play soccer. It is not that difficult. But these people can’t or won’t acknowledge the difference between soccer and football and the intrinsic superiority of American football over any other game in the world, including the weenie game they call football, that is actually soccer. Seriously, have you ever watched a soccer game? Watching paint dry is exciting compared to watching soccer. Soccer in Europe will disappear once the NFL expands to London, Paris and all the other great cities on the Continent. Can you imagine watching a football game in Paris wearing a beret, eating a croissant and drinking a nice glass of red wine while you cheer on the Denver Broncos as they kick the snot out of the Paris Frenchies. I am working on this issue with the Europeans, but it is a daily struggle for me on the Camino.

We got up at 6:15 this morning, got packed, had breakfast and left the alburgue in Hontanas at 7:30 AM.

This is a sign as you head out of Hontanas. Only 457 kilometers to go to get to Santiago! Yikes! What was I thinking?

This is what is left of an ancient flour mill about 1 kilometer outside Hontanas, looking west, as the sun rises in the east, where the sun usually rises.

This is sunrise on the road out of Hontanas.

This is the sign outside the ruins of the Convent of St. Anton.

This is what remains of the gate leading into the Convent of St. Anton.

Another picture of the ruins of the convent of St. Anton.

This is a picture of the bell tower of the convent.

This is the alburgue that volunteers operate in the ruins of the convent. Very, very basic amenities, no electricity, but very spiritual. Walking through the ruins of this ancient convent I was overwhelmed by the spirit of the millions of pilgrims that have walked past this refuge and sought and received solace and comfort here for over 1200 years.

This is an explanation of the history of the convent. And it’s even in English. Before we left this ancient holy place we said a prayer for Anna.

This is the view as we approach Castrojeriz. Notice the ruins of a Ninth Century Castle on the hill overlooking Castrojeriz. You can take a trail off the Camino that climbs up the hill to the castle ruins. No way am I climbing another hill that I do not need to climb to get to Santiago.

To the right you can see the Church of Santa Maria in Castrojeriz.

This is a wayside cross as you enter Castrojeriz. We stopped here and said a prayer for Anna.

This is the altar piece in the Church of Santa Maria in Castrojeriz. Small town but such a magnificent church. We lit a candle and said a prayer for Anna.

A view of the ruins of the castle as we leave Castrojeriz.

Another reminder of why we are walking the Camino.

This is a view from the ridge west of Castrojeriz lookin back east at Castrojeriz and the trail from Castrojeriz up to the top of the ridge.

This is a riverside park about 1 kilometer outside Itero de la Vega.

When we got to Itero de la Vega it was 4:00 PM and the next village is Boadillo del Camino, almost 9 kilometers away. I decided to stay here at the alburgue La Mochila, Spanish for backpack 🎒.

I hope everyone had a good Wednesday.

Good evening from Itero de la Vega, Spain.