We have been back in Australia for about a week now. Most of it has been rather mundane return to work issues, recovering from jet lag, sorting out photos and the GPS log and the like. However, here are a few observations about some of the more interesting discussions in recent weeks.
Real Pilgrims
This
post appeared just a few days before we arrived in Sarria. We were walking at a pace where we were unlikely to be overtaking anyone, but were still concerned about the effect that the behaviour reported might have about our own morale as we got closer to Santiago. And there is no doubt that both the increased numbers of pilgrims and some of their behaviour was annoying.
But we saw no parade of taxis, it was impossible to actually identify anyone in the three that we did see and they could have been empty for all we were able to tell. One would have had to have been walking backwards to see if there was anyone in them! And the only pilgrim that we witnessed asking at an albergue for the hospitalero to call a taxi clearly needed assistance. She was also quite clear that she would be returning to the albergue the next day to continue from there.
Yes, there were people walking with the lightest of loads, and a few so morbidly obese that we would not have been surprised if they had taken a taxi, but we didn't witness that happening. We did see some people at a bus stop one morning, but that was about the extent of any use of vehicle transport that we witnessed personally. I formed the opinion that, for all the discussion that this post generated, there might have been more than a little hyperbole in its content.
Beds, booking and dormitories
We never went without a bed, even at the beginning of May when there was extensive discussion about bed shortages. There were eight days that I walked alone, and I was able to find an albergue bed without booking on six of these. On one day of the days that I didn't book, I had to walk on to the next town to find a bed.
Initially at least, we were walking too slowly together to arrive early enough in the afternoon for there to be a reasonable prospect of getting a bed. We tested this proposition in a couple of places, and albergues were already full in the early afternoon when we passed through. As a result, we would book somewhere for the following day when we knew how we were feeling after the current days walk. The exception was from Sarria, where most of the bookings were done a few days out, and we left only one booking to later.
I was happy to sleep in albergue dormitories, but when we were together, we always tried to get a private room. This didn't always work, so we ended up with a pretty full mix from dormitories, private rooms, casa rural, hostels and hotels.
We did work out that we would reach Santiago at a time when there were no vacancies at the Parador, and treated ourselves to a night in the Parador in Villafranca. It is a rather more modern building that those at SDC and Leon, but it was delightful nonetheless, and breakfast was to die for. I suppose it shouldn't really have been a surprize, but we were not the only pilgrims in residence.
My take on this is that one should have a strategy for getting a bed. Whether it is stopping early in the afternoon, booking ahead, using non-albergue accommodation including places a little further from the path or shuttling back and forth in a taxi isn't really important. You might never need to use the more expensive options, but if you have thought through how you will escalate your search, it won't be so distressing when you find the place you set your heart on using is already full when you arrive.
Pack Transport
I am neutral on this. On two occasions we met people who had been separated from their packs while using a taxi service. Both of them were handling the circumstances remarkably calmly. We carried our packs all the way, even when Elaine wasn't feeling well and we weren't making very long distances.
Medical
Elaine needed some medical care, and we ended up going to the emergency department at Burgos Hospital, were she got quick treatment by an English speaking doctor. When we insisted on paying the bill before we left, it resulted in us getting a grand tour of the hospital as we were taken to a couple of different offices to make these arrangements. There was also no facility to pay by credit card, and we were fortunate enough to have sufficient cash on us at the time. We are glad we insisted on doing this rather than waiting for the bill to arrive at home, and having to arrange overseas bank transfers or the like to make the payment.
When we left and wanted to take the bus back into Burgos, people were incredibly helpful in helping us find a bus going the right way, and then letting us know where to get off at the other end. This was just the tip of the iceberg of the sort of generosity we experienced, but coming as it did at an otherwise stressful time, it stood out for me.
... to be continued
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