What a nice Morning. I started my day at around 7am this morning. Still psyched about having reached half way, so strangely also a bit sad that I am now walking a bit closer to the end of this wonderful journey of mind and body experiences. Yes the pain is tough, but everyone here hurts. Some more some less. But pain makes you feel your body, which is also a part of this experience.
Mornings are getting really cold now. It is time to start with a sweater as well. The long sleeve shirt was not enough this morning. It is actually so cold in the morning, the locals have given scarfs to the trees now.
I had a lot of alone time, which I really appreciate on this journey to who I was, am and want to be. If you start early, you meet very few other pilgrims which is really what I need right now. So I get to Reliegos, where the alternative routes join again, which separated me from many of the others I had met up with after a days walking.
I originally wanted to sit down for a few minutes and enjoy a brunch and maybe a Cerveza or two. Then the two lovely friends I found over the last days, Gary and Susan came in. We got a bottle of wine and love was in the air. Then Bobby, a woman from Arizona I had met a few times but yesterday sat down with an had a couple of bourbons together. Then Magret and many other wonderful people stopped by and suddenly a band came in and set up their gear!!!! Wow!!!!
We had so much fun, and the whole village was there with us dancing and just sharing this wonderful day with us. Garry and I made sure the botellas de Vino kept coming and noon turned to afternoon to evening to… oh darn. I had stopped reservations of rooms a week ago, and I had no place… Bobby had a reservation and was trying to get me a bed with out luck. All of a sudden it was past 8pm. Now the two of us thought we both had to sleep on the street. We took a taxi for the last 5km and got to Mansilla de las mulas at around 8:30pm…
And guess what! The Camino always provides you with what you need. So I did not get a bed in that albergue, but they called another hostel, and I got the last available room. I felt blessed once again. Such a wonderful day with soo much love, music and happiness.
And I got back to drink with these two wonderful man as well. My day one pilgrim friend Floris, and my source of energy and the guy who made us discover Mias and Maus place Jake – truly blessed!