Carrion de Los Condes to Calzadilla de la Cueza

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Today was a little different. Originally the 3 of us were going to wait in Carrion de Los Condes for 2 hours, so Alex could catch up. When it was after 9am, he called and said he was 2 1/2 hours away. I didn't really want to wait there that long, and get to a town at least 1 if not 2 short of schedule, and at 4 or 5pm. Raresh suggested I go ahead and try to make sure they have a place to stay.

I left Carrion de Los Condes just before 9:30, with 17 kilometers to go. Little did I know that there were absolutely no towns or bars along the way. About 9 boring, flat, featureless kilometers later, I spotted a food truck stop and almost danced for joy... until I found out they had no coffee and little else. After finding out that there would be nothing the last 8 kilometers either, I took a break, and trudged on. Kilometer after kilometer I could see no signs of the town, even when my Camino Companion app's GPS told me only 1 kilometer to go. Finally, I reached a small downhill and there it was.

Calzadilla de la Cueza is a tiny little town with 3 or 4 albergues, with 2 stores and bars attached, right at the entry to town. I checked into the Albergue Municipal for 5 euros, unloaded my stuff, and went next door to eat lunch at the Camino Real. I ordered merluzza and Patatas Bravas, with a much appreciated cafe con leche. I finished the fish, but ate less than half of the Patatas Bravas. The owner was kind enough to put the leftovers in the fridge for later. After lunch, I went back to the albergue to get my bed and stuff organized, then took a shower. The shower stalls were nice enough, but the water wasn't very warm or powerful.

While I waited to hear from Raresh, I took a walk around the town. It is a very small town, but they have two playgrounds and a nice big rest area for pilgrims. Finally, around 2pm, I heard from Raresh, on Whatsapp since I don't have cell service, that they were 10 kilometers away. He wanted to know if the albergue had 3 beds left. They didn't, but I was able to reserve 3 beds next door for the same price.

Around 5:45 Raresh finally showed up, with Alex and Livija 20 minutes or so behind. I haven't seen Raresh since he checked in, but he said when arrived that he wanted to eat the Pilgrims Menu. I am going to wait a bit longer, then decide if I want to wait for him or get something myself.

Tomorrow I think we are planning on walking to Sahagun, about 22 kilometers away.

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Comments

[Home and Away]

It's hard tp keep a Camino family together...
sometimes you just have to let serendipity bring you back together. That was my greatest joy running across my dispersed family under the most unusual circumstances.