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  1. P

    Backpack is 2 kg too heavy TwT

    Misuse of general guidance for *children* whose spines are still developing. About 20 years ago, when their backpacks started to be laden with heavy textbooks *every day* from a Calvinist notion that more homework was better for the lazy little turds, orthopedists fairly literally weighed in...
  2. P

    What should I do about calluses?

    Oh, I know what Compeed is *meant* for... but I've also found that if I am stuck in a situation and have a spot I want to protect, that the squishy cushion has always been brilliant and the other methods have been almost but not quite unfailing. Thanks for the recommendation. It would be nice...
  3. P

    What should I do about calluses?

    ....So... last week, on a training hike of 28K, I developed two small blisters -- roughly 3mm square on my toe pad (no callus there, but the blister was far inside the pad) and side of my first toe *under a callus*. I had used Foot Glide and had wrapped my problem toes with lamb's wool, but...
  4. P

    Dressy comfortable town shoes!

    Try the Uin shoes that I posted... because they are unisex for the most part. A Japanese man I met in Santiago was so enamoured of my kitty pattern that he went off promptly to order for himself.
  5. P

    Dressy comfortable town shoes!

    They have more structure than Tom's -- proper arch support etc. The upper is not floppy... And there are leather options if you don't mine the extra heft.
  6. P

    Dressy comfortable town shoes!

    I love a gorgeous shoe. On caminos I have to compromise, even as I want to eat in nice places sometimes, and go to art galleries and so forth… There is a shoe company out of Toledo, Spain called Uin. They make really nice canvas slip-ons that are wide in the toe-box so great for us walkers… And...
  7. P

    Advice for my language-challenged partner

    In a pinch, especially for when greater accuracy than “grocery store ability” matters, Google translate can be your friend. Use the microphone to speak into it, have it translate and then “speak” it back out.
  8. P

    Good snack for the Hospitales

    While we are at it: when anyone has the chance to stop in Campiello, stop at the larger grocer/restaurant there and whatever else you do, have the fresh cheese dessert with the blueberry compote. Outstanding! (And they taught me how they do it, so I can make a proximal version at home with St...
  9. P

    Good snack for the Hospitales

    Would not be my first choice because the bread will be both [more] stale and soggy by the next day when one unwraps it at destination. Croissant and cured meat amounts to the same thing but is likely to taste better. I prefer the tortilla because it’s just the right combination of protein and...
  10. P

    Good snack for the Hospitales

    Cerdo is pork… so I’m assuming this is some cured pork dish that I have not yet encountered. There are two grocers in Campiello (last ones prior to the Hospitales). You can likely get it or something else that appeals. I took a croissant and some cheese, 2 L of milk, and a banana But I had...
  11. P

    Ultra lightweight backpack--worth it?

    My ultralight does have some kind of extremely minimal interior frame, but it’s just not up to the task… and I think the reason why is that it is missing the usual load-lifters and density of foam and material on the shoulder straps… so while they appear fine when I first put the pack on, they...
  12. P

    Ultra lightweight backpack--worth it?

    Before you invest, take this caution. I thought as you do, and now I use my ultralight for nothing more than light use around town on errands. Worst investment of my sporting life.
  13. P

    Ultra lightweight backpack--worth it?

    FWIW... I have an ultralight pack and I don't think the brand is important (though it's a "leader" in the field). All the ultra-lights rely on the same design: absence of frame or much structure. In essence it's 4 sections of parachute material sewn together with straps and hip belt. And I...
  14. P

    Meaning of Latin Words on Santiago Cathedral's Main Door?

    The excavated ruins in Lugo give us some clue: first churches were often built using sites of previous temples and a "kind of" architectural syncretism followed from there. Indeed the apparent temple to Mithras uncovered in Lugo was used as a church and the floor plan and later arrangement are...
  15. P

    Shoes for the Salvador

    I wore Altra LP 6 mids, but it was October and a bit cooler. This time I will be going in Altra LP 7's without the raised ankle mid-height. And as I recall, there were several people wearing other kinds of trail shoes and trail runners on the San Salvador when I was there. This time I will...
  16. P

    May 4/5 Souraide/Espelette

    Delighted to report that I was able to write to the woman who runs the small albergue in Ustaritz, received a swift reply, and have secured myself a place... Now my only struggle is that I *cannot* get Renfe to process my payment all the way through to completion for the train out of Logrono to...
  17. P

    May 4/5 Souraide/Espelette

    Yes -- thanks... I am really trying to find things that are less aimed at tourists (like those not walking)... I think I have a new possible way set, thanks in part to your advice, and in part to looking around at websites where others have listed their 'off piste' stages. I have written to a...
  18. P

    May 4/5 Souraide/Espelette

    It's not the reviews that trouble me. It's that I cannot access their site at all (see the error message I cited) and so don't know that it will be open at all. I've stayed twice in a very questionable albergue in Foncebadon (fore hazard... bed-bugs... filthy...) and been grateful for it --...
  19. P

    May 4/5 Souraide/Espelette

    Thanks! I will give it a ponder... I like the idea of different staging if it's a feasible possibility. I know you have loads of experience out there. I'm merely worried that every town will be filled up (legitimately -- not complaining -- people have every right to travel home for holidays)...
  20. P

    May 4/5 Souraide/Espelette

    Alas, I do not use AirBnB. I suppose it must be the Francess as I really do not want to sleep in a field.

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