Sonoma, CA

We are at last on the plane, a giant AirFrance Airbus, getting ready for take-off. Everyone is shuffling around, settling in, arranging hand luggage and just setting up for a long trip to Paris. We checked our bags, securing our straps on the packs since I’m carrying poles and a pocket knife. Alaina and Kaily both called while we were clearing security, and I sent Alaina our hotel links for the first week by text message. I decided she can be my home contact in case of emergency because she’s in Sonoma. I sent Liam a text. I woke very early to make our final arrangements, mostly that involved making sure all the bills were programmed in to pay at the correct dates, and transferring money to cover the bases at home and abroad. Norm took the Pookster to Liz and Bruce’s house, and I put gas in the car, and packed up the bit of food left in the fridge to give to Alaina and Zakk. Zakk drove us to the airport, and it was smooth sailing from there. It took us about an hour to clear security. We had the full body scan, and as usual, we both triggered some extra attention. For me, it was the zippers on my pants, Norm usually has something in his pockets. We were relaxed because we were early. Now the Camino will become real, and the vision path I’ve held onto these last months will be replaced with substance.

Sonoma, CA

It’s spring break, and my mind has moved to travel. I’ve packed my rucksack even though we won’t leave until April 17, and my soul is already on the route. We will fly into Barcelona this time, spend a few days, then take the bus to Burgos. I reserved 2 nights at a pension on the route in the city center of Burgos, thus we will actually begin one week after our arrival in Spain. Wondering about the slow start? It’s because I injured my feet last year and want to take it slow so we can be ready for the long haul. Slow, but with a sense of urgency that we must take this journey now while we are still here, on the planet, alive and well. Every night I go to sleep with the vision of our interrupted Camino in my minds eye. I walk in my dreams. I haven’t been walking much in my daily life because of needed healing time. This time I will be more prepared. I’m bringing better shoes, with insoles and toe socks with compression sleeves. Perhaps I’ll also bring a foot brace to wear at night for my weakened right foot. I’m holding our journey in my heart.

Paracuellos de Jarama, Spain and Canary Islands

We arrived in Madrid by Friday night and checked into Hostel Odesa. We were happy it was so easy to find. Our bus left us off in the outskirts of Madrid, so we had to come in by metro. The metro seemed a little confusing, but then a young man noticed our struggle, and gave us his metro map which made all the difference. The metro stop was next to the street where our hostel was. The hostel owners were very friendly, and arranged our airport shuttle for us, as well as giving us maps with careful instructions for getting around Madrid. We had three full days in Madrid. On our first day, Norm devised a walking tour and we went from plaza to plaza seeing all the historical sights, parks, cathedrals, and market places. On our second day, we spent the whole day at the Musee de Prado. It’s a museum on scale with the Louvre or National Museum in London. We saw some amazing artworks, but my favorite was The Garden of Delights by Bosch. On our last day, we went shopping and bought gifts for family and friends. It was truly a challenge to find made in Spain products. Most tourist shops are filled with junk made in China or India. We did visit a ceramics shop where I found a rabbit plate that I liked. It was a Rennaisance design in yellow and blue. We also found a tile sun dial. Norm found several other pieces that he bought as gifts because he doesn’t mind carrying a lot of ceramics. The owner of the shop filled us in on the history of each piece we bought. The shop had been in his family for several generations. We also located a gift shop where I bought some leather bags and jewelry. My last mission that night was to locate some more hand painted fans. These I found in the shopping area near our hotel. We visited one last museum, Reina Sofia, where we saw Picasso’s Guernaca. I enjoyed an audio visual montage on the history of Spain that was called Canciones despues de La Guerra. It was a collection of newsreels and videos put together creatively to show human emotions and reactions to the effects of war. Norm snoozed through it. We cut our visit short because we both had museum fatigue. Is that a real condition? We rested, then packed, and enjoyed our last dinner in Spain. We went to bed early but struggled to actually sleep. We had our alarms set for 1:30 am so we could make our 6 am flight.

Paracuellos de Jarama, Spain and Canary Islands

In Barcelona we stayed at Hotel Medici which was close to Gaudi’s Sacred Family Cathedral. It was a modern style hotel, and we were several stories up, so it was quiet. Our first day we went to the cathedral, only a short walk, but we took a circular route trying to find a laundromat. Getting into the cathedral was a wait, so we hiked down to Las Ramblas shopping district for a bit. The cathedral was a magnificent work of art with columns that seemed to sprout like trees, and a front door carved with ladybugs. They played organ music in the cathedral, and showed a video about its construction. Below the cathedral, there was a museum. The cathedral is still being constructed so it was scaffolded and at times, you could hear the power tools. We eventually found a laundromat, and washed our clothes. We never could understand why it was so hard to find washing facilities. The laundromat was in the neighborhood of the hospital. Hospital Sant Pau was beautiful and we wanted to tour it, but ran short of time. We did see Parc Guell and the Picasso Museum on our second day in Barcelona. We resorted to taxi because Barcelona is too big to walk efficiently. We should have learned to use the metro but took the easy way out. It seemed everywhere we went in Barcelona took longer than expected because first there was a long line for buying the ticket to get in, then with the ticket they would assign a time which gave you a two hour wait before you could enter. Of course, entering meant another line. While waiting to see Gaudi’s work at the park, we could wander around the free part of the park and see the views and visit the gift shops. The museum let us in right away, but gave us time assignments for each portion. After a while, I started to get frustrated with all the schedules because I have no watch. We enjoyed the temporary exhibit the most because it included Picasso and Dali. Dali’s work was the best! Our intention was to finish with seeing the hospital which is also a work of art, but Norm injured his back so we called it a day. The next day, we caught an all day bus to Madrid.

Paracuellos de Jarama, Spain and Canary Islands

We are now on route to California, by way of Amsterdam. We’ve been up since 1:30 am. We woke with the alarm and ready very quickly since our bags were packed, and clothes laid out. We said goodbye to the son of our hotel keepers, and he charmingly invited us to return next year. We were surprised when we got down to the darkened street because it was lively with people mostly returning from their night out. Our shuttle bus was waiting for us, even though we were earlier than our reserved time. We arrived at an airport shut down, but filled with sleeping people. I was grateful we were in a hotel for part of the night and didn’t need to sleep in the airport. We found an open coffee shop and at breakfast so we could pretend it was morning, though it was just 2:45. We had to wait more than three hours for our flight. We should have wrapped our packs and the check in attendant was annoyed because the straps could hook onto the loading belt. This was a new procedure for us, so I just tied up the floppy straps as best as I could so they were acceptable. Norm was restless, and scooted all over the airport while I watched the bags until it was time to board. After a couple of hours, everything came to life, and we boarded for Amsterdam.

Barcelona, Spain and Canary Islands

Since we weren’t going to Morocco, Norm came up with the idea of renting a car at the airport, then driving to Córdoba and Sevilla to see those places with the luxury of a car. Our plan was jinxed however, because when we arrived at the car rental place in the airport, they wanted an international drivers license, which we didn’t have. We bought our plane ticket to Barcelona, since we were there, and proceeded to the bus terminal where we could take our planned trip by bus. The bus to Córdoba wasn’t so bad. It took about three hours. We stayed at Hostal Fuentes in an apartment so we had more room, but it was noisy on the street. We found some great tapas bars and a restaurant. The main sight to see was the Mosquita which the Catholics claimed as their cathedral, but really had been a mosque during the Moorish times. There was a first holy communion going on in the cathedral which was a delight to watch. We only stayed two nights, so had one full day which was enough. Our next stop by bus would be Sevilla. The trip to Seville took only a couple of hours. In Sevilla, we stayed at Hostal Parlade above a wonderful plaza which was occupied by Duos Tapas Bar and restaurant. This turned out to be our favorite tapas place as it was fusion cuisine with Spain and Japan. We especially loved the crispy vegetable tempura. Sevilla had more to offer with the Alcazar Palace and Gardens and the regal Plaza de Espana. The shops were nicer, but we still didn’t find much to buy. I did get a few more fans. We also became afficionados of the gelato and pastry shops. We enjoyed the tinto de Verano. We stayed two nights again, then rumbled off by bus to Granada, where we flew to Barcelona.

Miami, Spain

I haven’t written for a long time! Once we rested in Burgos, we knew we were done with the Camino until we pick it up again next year. I felt sad to leave because the experience was so rich and meaningful. It’s the type of journey that builds to a climax, thus leaving in Burgos was a cliffhanger. We took off our clam shells and kind of slunk away, as it felt like quitting even though we planned to stop for valid reasons. It turned out Malia and Tomas needed to see us right away or they wouldn’t have the time, and a visit with my niece was imperative. Picking up our maletas in Burgos was not as simple as we supposed. The post office didn’t recognize the bar code on our claim tickets as one of theirs, but luckily, the workers had compassion for us, made a few phone calls to track our luggage to a private international shipping company that had an office in the outskirts. We took a taxi way out, then found our bags, intact. Taking on our rolling maletas sealed the deal. We’re not pilgrims now. We meandered around Burgos, purchased souvineer fans, and ate dinner by the cathedral. We had avocado salad and paella. We concluded our tour of Burgos, walked contra Camino to the bus station, and whooshed off to Granada with our feet up watching Spain pass by through the bus window.

Miami, Spain

We arrived in Granada around midnight, so checked into our hotel in the Old Town. We would meet up with Malia on her birthday, June 9 – the next day. Hotel Lima was very nice, with lots of artworks and handcrafted touches. We were on a quiet side street but near a plaza with a fountain. The owner was very friendly and we seemed to be the only guests. The next day, we were awakened by the noise of hammering around 10: am. When we went into the lobby, we found out why. Some workers were gutting the lobby, demolishing the brick and stone interior walls. We stepped over mortar and broken tiles to exit the hotel. We had breakfast on the plaza, then explored a bit. We met Malia and Tomas for lunch to celebrate her birthday. What a joy to see Malia again! We spent all day together on her birthday, tapas hopping around Granada, seeing her house, and enjoying the view. From Malia and Tomas’s apartment you can see the Mirador of Alhambra. That night, we met up again with her friends. At the first bar, Norm started singing happy birthday, and soon the whole bar was singing choruses in several languages. We stayed out until the wee hours. The next day, we met in the evening for flamenco at a small club. We had a front row seat, and watched a young flamenco dancer move through her routine with a very serious look. She was accompanied by two musicians, a singer and guitar player. They both had a gypsy sultry look. Of course we visited the Alhambra which was quite spectacular. We wandered the moorish and Jewish quarters where the streets were narrow. We had Morrocan lunch. This would be our taste of Morrocco because Norm had decided we didn’t really have the time to visit there this time. The only other bad news is I lost my iPhone on the bus into Granada. Luckily, I had find phone set up so I could remotely erase it since it was surely stolen. Malia and Tomas tried to help me recover it, but that didn’t happen. Anyway, I still have my iPad. I’m missing the phone, because it was my watch and camera too, and loaded with useful travel apps. I know when I get home I can replace it with an equivalent model, and reload all my data. Our last day, we went out for tapas one last time, and I went shoe shopping with Malia. It was sad to say goodbye. Meanwhile, back at the hotel, the crew finished up the demolition. The maid cleaned it all up, and all the artworks were strategically moved back in place. Except for some missing walls, you would never know what a mess it had been yesterday!

Burgos, Spain

When we left the Alberque in Ages, we didn’t get far because we discovered the bar next door was already opened for breakfast. We enjoyed our cafe con leche with croissants along with our room mates, then took off at a good clip for Burgos. I was sleepy because I hadn’t slept well in the bunk due to sore feet. It was a cool misty morning so I needed my fleece and rain coat. It didn’t seem to take very long before we were in the industrial part of Burgos, but little did we know just how giant this city is! Norm was bothered by his map, because it seemed quite inaccurate. We had fears we would be lost because the map made no sense, but many passing Spaniards helped us stay on track, and after a long walk, we found a travel agency specializing in the Camino. Norm stopped in for a map and was well counseled about our route. We caught a glimpse of the Cathedral, but made no attempt to see it. After many miles, we stumbled upon our reserved hotel, Puerta Romeros right on the Camino! We checked in and took a well needed rest. The hospitlero didn’t want to make us lunch, but with great reluctance he produced a boccadillo with bread and chorizo. After that, Norm and I stumbled into the neighborhood to see what we could find. It’s a university area, and we located the neighborhood hangout which served a collection of tapas. We ate again, and had some wine too. Another rest, and a long soak in the tub, with foot care, then we ate the pilgrims dinner, as the hospitlero’s mother had returned to cook. it was the usual fare, salad, chicken and potatoes with ice cream for dessert. Norm has kindly agreed to see to the laundry and locate the bus station so I’m here hiding with my feet up enjoying a day of rest. We are at the end of our Camino part one, and will return here on another trip to finish the hike. Norm is intent on getting to Morrocco, so is actively researching that. We hope to pick up our luggage that we mailed ahead tomorrow at the main post office. I’m concerned about my feet healing, and preventing infection which is why I’m here taking it easy. Both of us are well contented with our Camino experience and we are enthused about picking it up again here next fall or spring.

Burgos, Spain

After a lovely stay in Belorado we set out before the sun came up hoping to make it to San Juan de Ortega by midday. It was mostly a shady walk, but with lots of steady elevation gain through a mixed forest of pine and oak. Sadly, when we reached San Juan de Ortega, the one hotel was completely booked. Hikers were lining up for the Alberque, which was reputed to be a large but crowded one. We had a drink, and ate our picnic lunch at the bar, then decided to hike on to Ages which would only make it easier getting into Burgos. The hike onward was harder than we thought it would be, but we’ve discovered that last 5 km is always the hardest. We wound up in an Alberque in Ages, our first time in the dormitory because that’s all that was available. Norm and I both agreed we could go no further. Here’s where it got funny, Norm was excited about staying in the dorm, but I was less than happy. Before, I had been the more open minded one. The hospitlero was charming, and I was assigned a bottom bunk, with Norm above me. It was the first time I needed my sleeping sack that I’d carried because the bunks were without bedding. We had to leave our boots in the lobby, but had lockers next to our bunks for our packs. Luckily we bunked with a friendly group of 8 who were all early risers, so we agreed to all wake at 5 or 5:30 to begin hiking early. The Alberque served a good hearty dinner that we ate family style, which included singing to each other. I reserved our hotel in Burgos, and watched others lay out their laundry which proved ill fated because it rained.