El Peregringo

It was almost sad to leave the Dutch albergue. I felt as if I had become quite close to so many of the pilgrims that as we parted ways for the day, I was hard to say good-bye. Actually, there were no good-byes at all–just “buen camino” for everyone.

The total walk today was 26 km.–the longest day I’ve done. After the climb to Villamayor, today was a long, gradual descent through a great many vineyards. We’re moving through wine country now in the province of La Rioja–known world wide for its fine wines. Lots of vineyards, both old and new. It might have been quite pleasant except for the fact that the wind was unbelievable all day, and just as I started the climb into Sansol, it started to rain–horizontally. There was no agreement among the several guide books I consulted through the day about how far it was from Sansol to Torres del Río. One guide said 800 meters, another said 1.5 km, and another 7.5 km. In the final analysis, it was clear why there was no agreement–it depends on what one means by “to” and by “how.” Absolutely the most difficult part of the day was that short walk down from the heights of Sansol to Torres. A relatively steep descent over rough rocky terrain in high wind and rain.

I walked alone most of the day, though I paused every now and then to check on Lizette, Manuela, and Marina, the Brazilian women. They made better progress today after being cared for by the Dutch hospitaleros, but were still moving pretty slowly.

Another in the group arriving at Torres today was a Canadian named John–probably in his late 50s. We had quite an interesting conversation about the current world political order. He apparently splits his time between a village in Guatemala and Toronto. And somehow, he’s friends with Oscar Arias, the ex-President of Costa Rica. Arias was campaigning for the Presidency when I lived in Costa Rica in the late 70s.

The climb into San Sol that seemed much steeper and longer than it really was due to the rain and fatigue. In San Sol I stopped to check on the albergue there just in case the one in Torres del Río was full and I would have to walk back the 3 or so kilometers. The town of San Sol is beautiful, though there is really nothing there. No stores, no shops, no bars. The albergue is a private one, owned by a fairly young guy who answered my buzz at the door from the third story balcony (he apparently lives in the building as well). Since there were plenty of beds still available, I decided it was worth the risk to walk on to Torres del Río and if there were no beds left there, I could still get back.

There are two albergues in Torres del Río, both private. The one in the center of the village is fairly large and consists of a bar, restaurant, and 30-40 beds. The new owner is named Ana. She’s never been in the restaurant business before, but when the previous owner put the place up for sale, she decided to get out of home health care and try something new.

Dinner here was a pilgrim menu, and it was here that I met two Spaniards who are pretty wild: Antonio (on the left) and Juan Manuel (center). They saw my American Traveler Apology T-shirt and immediately adopted me as their best friend. I also met a French couple who are really special.

The french couple walked into the albergue restaurant at about 9pm. Most pilgrims are done walking for the day around 2 to 4 in the afternoon, so the fact that these two had walked until well after dark was amazing. The entire restaurant of some 40-50 people stood up and gave them a standing ovation. I could hardly breathe. The fellowship was absolutely palpable and I will never forget that moment.