So we set off bright and early from Roncesvalles. Not that we had planned to- we actually wanted to leave at 8, but everyone in the albergue started getting ready as loudly as possible at 6:45, and if you managed to sleep through that, the lights were switched on and Gregorian chanting was piped over the speakers. I'm sure that would have been lovely if we'd had a nice night's sleep...
So we left and started a pleasant walk through a witch's forest (according to local Basque legend) and had brekkie at a night little cafe about 3km down the road.
We passed through some beautiful scenery and cute little villages whose names I didn't quite catch.
We also passed a whole lot of farm land.
The scenery was gorgeous and we were having a lovely walk. At about the 15k. Mark s bunch of hills started happening, which I did not love, but it was still doable.
We arrived at Zubiri which was 23km from our starting point, and we felt fine. Noni's feet were sore, and mine a little bit too, but we thought we could push on for another 5km to the next town so that our next day's walk was a lot shorter.
We soon found out that 25km was our peak. The last 3km was so incredibly painful. It was liking walking on bruises. Everything hurt, and we were just miserable.
Finally, we were only 1km from Larasoaña and were getting frustrated because we could see and hear the village, but the path wound around and away from it every time we thought we were just about there. Finally, we crossed the bridge into town and went to look for the Albergue San Nicolas which we had been told about earlier in the day.
Then it started to rain.
Of course it did.
We hobbled/ran through the town and finally saw the hostel through some buildings. We got inside just in time for the rain to stop. Of course.
But, the incredible pain was, in a way, worth it. Albergue San Nicolas is a brand new albergue and was only €11 for the night. We paid an extra €10 for the pilgrim's menu for dinner and €3,50 for breakfast, and both were delicious! Dinner was a delicious soup, lots of hot, crusty bread, schnitzel, and a yummy ice cream cake for dessert. Breakfast was bread with jam, cheese, coffee, orange juice, and tortilla, which in Spain is a potato omelette. So good!
The facilities were excellent too- fast free wifi, rooms with only 6 people max, and amazing showers. Showers are so important on the Camino because a good shower when you reach your destination helps you come back to life.
No comments:
Post a Comment