- Time of past OR future Camino
- 2003 CF Ronces to Santiago
Hospi San Anton 2016.
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Sunday was our most unrelenting day. It was nearly our longest day, and the start of a week of lots of heat, humidity, and direct sun (which is the worst). It was relentless because, at the top of each ridge, you could see that you would descend the entire altitude gain, only to have the next ridge of similar height! As sun and humidity rose, so did the frustration. We can't blame it on some chemin sadist, because it was a paved road, probably in use for centuries. We had five ridges, and we seemed to go over the very highest part of each ridge. I swear that on the fourth ridge, we could have gone higher only if they had made us climb the tree on the top of the ridge.
So, we learned to start earlier, and have done a good job since Sunday at arriving by early afternoon at the destination. That trades the boredom of small towns, with nothing more than a church, for hiking in the heat. Yesterday, for example, there was not a single thing to purchase in the town. Even the gas station had closed, and it used to be the single place selling bread and beverage. As a result of all the hungry pilgrims that were arriving, the lady who collects the money on behalf of the mayor for the municipal gite has set up a very small grocery store, and sells a few canned items, drinks, and ice cream at 3 pm and 6 pm.
We cooked the French equivalent of franks and beans for dinner. Otherwise, we sat in the shade or lay sweltering in our beds waiting for the sun to set. As usual, our room faced west, so we had light to the bitterest of ends! I did not realize until France that every room in a building can face west. It must have been karma for stopping before the sun had a chance to cook us. The ice cream was good, I must say.
The landscape is still a nice view, but very similar each day. We saw a deer and her fawn in a corn field. The corn is "knee high by the fourth of July," but needs rain. A lot of fields are irrigated, but many farmers seem at risk of a drought. The following day we saw a family of three martins. That is about it for wild life. Many fields are labeled as hunting preserves AND preserves of wild life. I am not sure how the two can be the same, but it makes sense to the French, so who am I to take issue.
Again on the French not being friendly, yesterday morning we were collapsed roadside, soaking wet from starting the hike in the dark and hiking in 100 percent humidity. A Frenchman in a beret stopped his car, said a few words in French that we were too tired to understand, then extended a big bag of freshly picked cherries and insisted that we take two handsful each! I must say that our reception everywhere has been remarkable.
johnnyman said:You sure she wasn't just a little cuckoo? :?
Lise T said:I hope to return to the Camino one day and I will take that picture with me...in the hopes that as I walk along the road....I will come across the "pancake" lady again and present it to her.
Canuck said:Don't worry, the pancake lady is there everyday all day.
It has been her business for many years; she sells pancakes.
I hope you didn't think she was doing you a favor and didn't pay for your pancake.
Cheers,
Jean-Marc
tamtamplin said:@ michaelwalker
great post brother
Canuck said:Lise T said:Don't worry, the pancake lady is there everyday all day.
It has been her business for many years; she sells pancakes.
I hope you didn't think she was doing you a favor and didn't pay for your pancake.
Actually, for some of the people who 'provide', their help is indeed spiritually motivated. I am thinking back to some of the gîte owners with whom I stayed in France who I know sacrifice much to provide for pilgrims. And they do it because they believe in what pilgrims do.Millie Mochila said:When I hear people say that the' Camino will provide', I point out that it is the people on the camino who provide; there's nothing spiritual about it. It's social provision.
What about the partial atheists then? :roll:Millie Mochila said:There are also complete atheists...
>dutchpilgrim said:What about the partial atheists then? :roll: I am not a complete idiot. Some parts are missing :mrgreen: Carli Di Bortolo
There's something special about being floor mates at Granon I think. In Granon in 2008 I slept next to a Frenchman called Francis who I am still in contact with. This year when I was planning to walk the route from Cluny to Le Puy, he offered advice, and then even offered to walk with me the first two days. He wanted to be sure I understood how the coquille balises worked to show direction, so that I wouldn't get lost. And he just wanted to support me as I started off on what he knew would be a far more solitary experience than walking from Le Puy was.mspath said:We had met earlier when pilgrim floor mates at Granon. Such shared serendipity is precious. Margaret
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