Skipping ahead a few days
Perhaps a confession is in order.
We have yet to stay in a place where we have to share a bathroom with someone else.
It started innocently enough: When we arrived in Roncesvalles on Saturday night, there was no room at the albergue, so our only option was to stay at the attached hotel. We didn’t make reservations for the next night until the next morning, and again, the only option was a lovely inn. We started booking several days ahead after that … and it just worked out that the only places available were hotels or hostels which had private rooms available.
Go figure.
Rich keeps saying that sooner or later we’ll stay at an albergue in bunk beds. I say that if he really wants to do that, he probably shouldn’t put me in charge of making reservations every afternoon.
All that said, tonight we’re staying in a private room in a hostel. The room isn’t fancy by any stretch of the imagination. It has precisely everything we need, and nothing that we don’t. It’s clean, it’s comfortable (I hope) and it’s probably a valuable learning opportunity (h/t Andrew) about what’s really important in a life that has too much stuff.
It was cloudy and cool when we crossed the 11th century bridge out of Puente la Reina.
We thought it might rain this morning, so we had the rain gear close at hand when we started out from Puente la Reina. Although it was cloudy much of the day, it never rained. We’ve been fortunate in that respect: to date, the most we’ve had to do is keep rain gear ready even when the forecast seems pretty certain about precipitation.
Snail on the move.
Not sure if it was last night’s rain that brought them out, but there were dozens of snails on the path today. Many were making their way from one side to the other; a handful had been smashed into the ground by pilgrims in a hurry to get to their next bed.
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The most thought-provoking incident of the day was the snack stand at the halfway point to Estella. A young man had just about everything a hungry, thirsty, tired pilgrim might want, from sliced melon to coffee to cakes to beer. He offered all of it at no charge, though he invited people to make a donation to help make the little oasis permanent. He was knowledgeable about the route and even brought coffee and fruit to some weary hikers who were simply happy to rest their feet for a moment. Remarkable. I’m not sure such a set up would make it in the United States.
