Well, Got the Pics... Alas, He Forgot to Send His Musings, So, I'm posting what he shared in his phone call this morning!

Day 18 - Half Way!

I did talk to him on the phone.  It was a good day traveling... blisters are there still, but not bothering him as much.  Warm day and he walked mostly with Jim and Aiden (but chatting with others as you can imagine).
There's a pic of Jim letting his feet recuperate by taking shoes and socks off for a while. Yes, Jerry does the same thing.  Before they left their place this morning, the owner there tried to make them a RSVP at the next Albergue.  Sorry, the inn was full.
They took off and planned on finding something once they were in Ledigos. 
Got a triple again... private bathroom for the three of them, only 20 Euros for each of them.  Well worth it they feel.
Jerry's new favorite drink there is a 'Clara'; we know it as 'Shandy'.  When they come in for the day, that's the first drink he has... and another... and maybe another...he said it's only about 2% alcohol.
I asked if he's always dressed all covered up.  He said yes, he just doesn't want to burn his skin.  Temps today were in the 80's.  I guess it heated up a bit!
Dinner was late for them... they ended up eating AFTER the crowd had left.  The Chef was pretty much their personal chef... although, there was a menu that was different than the other Pilgrims got.  He provided pics of that... He said there were two 'loaf' type items... One was salmon and, forgive me, I don't remember what the other one was.  He said it was a great meal.. so good I guess, he forgot to send his notes...
If I get them tomorrow morning, I will post them...

  

Walking, Walking, Walking... But It's All Good!

May 30 

I’m starting up from Fromista today: beautiful day, no clouds in the sky, probably going to get warm today. Very nice evening, nice hotel and took a shower this morning. The blister on the left foot looks much better. The one on the right I left alone. I had a very good breakfast this morning at the hotel: cereal and milk, cafe con leche, orange juice, banana, toast with jam, and a little bit of a sweet roll. I left about 8 o’clock and was hoping to go 19.4 to the next city... Carrion de los Condes... it’s a glorious day, God bless... bye.

I met Dam (short for a challenging Portuguese name and she is female) just as I was leaving Fromista. We enjoyed walking all day together about 4 hrs... 20 km we stopped once for a rest. I had orange juice and she had an ice cream bar. she’s a very nice lady, turns 36 in a couple of days... she’s from Brazil and speaks Portuguese. We arrived in a Carrion de los Condes about 1230. She had a reservation at a hostel... I did not. I tried an Albergue, but it was full. I got a hotel room and then Jim and Aiden showed up and we are together now in a triple.

My feet are doing well... I emptied the blister on my right foot and airing it out. I am hopeful that tomorrow will be a great walking day. Today is Aiden’s birth anniversary... he is 50! I ate lunch while they shopped a bit... then bought beer... very nice mix of beer and lemonade... quite tasty.

I hope to see Dam again. Her name is pronounced Don, but spelled Dam. She is not a Christian... she is on a path... love seems very important to her. She was open to hear about my God though and about maybe there is a life after we die...

As we were walking today, many very small flies... as I observed, they were seeking moisture... when I wiped my face dry, they were gone for a while...

One recollection ... I may have mentioned, but there was a canal we walked along yesterday... a sign said something about boating the Camino... sounded very nice... when I arrived at the boat dock... it is a sort of ‘cattleboat’ ... fits too many people and only for a short time... no overnight accommodations... underwhelming.

Somewhat unexciting day regarding the landscape... pretty flat with farmland... but a beautiful day and great company...saw some mountains as we approached town... likely more of them tomorrow. All in all... another blessed day... thank You Lord!

Very enjoyable evening with the guys Jim and Aiden. We laid around a bit and washed a bit of clothes and then went to shop for tomorrow... (there will be 17 km with no services)... then dinner... Jim had spaghetti and Aiden had pasta carbonara and I had a salad and pan. Along with 1.5 liter of rose. Then we finished a line of Oreos I had bought for tomorrow... no worries. A definite ‘add’ to the day!!! The glory goes to You God!

It is 9:45... the sun has set, but it is still very light out... I hope to be sleeping in about 15 minutes. Thank You Lord for yet another amazing day on the Camino de Santiago... my love to all.

Jean here... His beard is seriously white... He's looking a bit scary I think!  But, he is protected from the sun!

 

 Stopped for lunch here... nice respite!

 Dam

 Nice Van... but Jerry didn't include anything about this in his musings!

Good Day on the Camino... But Alas, the Heel Blister is not a Happy Camper!

May 29   Day 16

Beautiful morning, woke up, had some breakfast. checked on a blister, won't go into details on that, recovered it, feeling better and I’m off walking leaving Castrojeriz... very nice town, pretty good sized, beautiful streets, beautiful houses, beautiful morning, beautiful church coming up! God is on the throne and we, each one of us, benefit from that every day. His blessings are there for us, we just need to open them up and enjoy them every day. And share them with others. And give God the glory. 

I took a picture this morning of the street has my shadowing, but part of the idea is to show the arrows in the street... I’m quite sure that’s pointing us towards Santiago, the way, the Camino. Very nice. 

I took off alone today and it is just a nice day. I just climbed up a pretty good sized hill... probably about 100-200 feet in elevation gain. I’m not sure, and then climbed down. The downhill was paved made it easy for me. I came down pretty quickly. I took some pictures on both sides ... very beautiful views of a valley and then flat plains... then downhill... then farmland.  We’re all walking across the valley. The trail looks like it meanders through the valley and I think you can probably see it in the background. More beautiful scenery... greenery, a little bit of brown where there’s fresh tilled soil, a wind farm on the I left with maybe 30 or 40 wind generators... just another glorious day. 

I just stopped to have a coffee and a sweet treat and a Itero de la Vega. I’m about 10 km in today. My left heel on the left side is talking to me...is causing me a fair amount of discomfort. I went fairly fast over the last 9 km or whatever it is. I’m definitely slowing down now. Possibly re-figuring to just get to Fromista today. 24 km total I think and I’ve got about 15 to go. Still a beautiful day...  partly cloudy sun shining...  beautiful breeze blowing, probably 6 to 10 kn... very nice... very comfortable, just a little discomfort in the feet. God is blessing me still and I’m sure missing and loving you folks and yet enjoying every day. 

So it is now I think about 2:30. I  had a hard time getting going after that early break... much discomfort in the feet. Then I met a young lady from Taiwan. She’s passed me a few times  and then finally we had a chance to talk. We had a wonderful conversation. I started by sharing the wisdom about our Camino is a lifelong walk... that is the long Camino... this one is pretty short... She is not a believer but she was sure open to listen. I spoke about God creating us and wanting a relationship with us... she seemed to be soaking it up. she was a very nice lady and the time went by very fast. We went to the Albergue she was going to stay at. There was a bar restaurant out front. I was planning on having a lunch; it was nice place... very inviting... and then I saw Karen from Singapore that I have met a couple three days ago. Also saw the Italian gentleman who’s gear I had returned last evening... they were eating lunch. The Italian gent bought me a beer and a sandwich. I ate and talk to Karen a while. She was heading towards Fromista after lunch ... maybe we might walk together.  

In all the excitement of seeing those folks, I forgot about the lady from Taiwan. I looked for her so I might get contact information from her, but did not find her. 

I walked on to Fromista... Arrived 3:00. I got a Coke and relaxed a bit, cogitated where I might stay. All of the Albergues had questionable reviews... as I was talking with Jean, Jim and Aiden walked in. They checked at the hotel I was sitting in front of to see about a room for 3, but they only had rooms for 2. So I got a single room. Turned out to have 2 beds so I sat in the shade and watched as folks arrived to see if maybe someone might want a bed... but it was pretty late by then and nothing came of that. I did empty the left foot blister and hopefully it will be a bit better tomorrow morning.

Had a pizza for dinner and wine and ice cream... and OREOS for desert, spoke with Jean and now am about ready for bed. Thank You Lord, for another memorable day!