Camino Day 23, June 27: Astorga to Rabinal

Camino Day 23, June 27: Astorga to Rabinal

Numbers: Miles Per Garmin GPS - 12.61 miles; Per Fitbit: 31,828 steps, 86 floors, and 258 active minutes. Also, after I posted yesterday's Fitbit numbers, we walked an additional 6,000+ steps around town and visiting the cathedral, museums, etc.

Deb: first this time :-)

Error, Will Robinson, error! When we got into Rabinal, we looked at our handy dandy cheat sheet regarding our hotel reservation. My notes said it was 1.9 miles away (about 3 kilometers). Unless it's on the Camino and close, we most often call the hotel and they pick us up. It didn't seem to be on the Camino, so we called. It was about 11:00 am and after 15 rings, someone picked up and said we couldn't check in until 1. Ok, I thought, and asked him in my broken Spanish if he could pick us up. I didn't think he understood, so walked into a local tienda where we had bought some stuff (in central Rabinal) to have a store clerk converse with him in Spanish. Come to find out the hotel wasn't 3 km away, but 90 (55 miles!) He was nice about it according to her and cancelled the reservation without charge (it was only 45€, so if charged, no big deal) and were able to get a nice enough room right here in Rabinal. Lucked out again!

So, as I said, we haven't turned on a TV since our arrival here on 6/3, and I only check the internet once or twice a day for a few minutes for emails and to wish people happy bday on Facebook, see a few posts, and blog. But, one can't help but have seen the news about the ACA exchange decision by SCOTUS and the gay marriage decision. The only reason that I being this up is that today, for the first time, we saw the following Camino sign (on the left). I seriously doubt that the rainbow was painted there yesterday, but it was nice to see it in light of the decision.

A few Camino signs today

Pet photos of the day. Kitty pics were while waiting in "descanso" for our hotel ride 90 km away :-) with German peregrino checking his Camino book. I think he's the best looking caminar we've seen. He said that the author of the Camino book/itinerary was actually on the Camino - two days ahead of him - and he wanted to catch up to tell him about the errors in the book. :-) The dog photos were taken on another walk after lunch. He also told us about Greece suing Germany. For real?

The Camino has gone to cats and dogs

As we walked from Astorga to Rabinal, the terrain wasn't remarkable, but seeing the stone used in the buildings in the small towns - was interesting. Most of these towns owe their existence to the Camino and peregrinos. Many are almost ghost towns with The Camino keeping them alive, but everyone is welcoming, and we saw something different today: Meson Cowboy in El Ganso. We stopped for a soda and Nutty Buddy. The Calif. Dept. of Health hasn't visited, but the drink and ice cream hit the spot.

Every town needs a cowboy bar

Buildings using local rocks and rocks piled on brick wall symbolizing ???

A little bit of (1) The Way today; (2) Dave looking strong, and (3) Deb with Peregrino statue yesterday. Note that today's walk, although just short of 13 miles was very tough footing the last two miles- lots of roots and rocks...too busy watching feet for photos!

Rabinal: street view along with "doors" in homes/stores: views from inside and outside.

And, now Dave (please read to the end...it really doesn't take that much time.:-)

A cool, early start to, as always, beat the heat. We’re going uphill a little now and are no longer near farm land. Instead we see shabby villages with mud-baked walls and a few tired-looking people who look us as if we, this trickle of foreign tourists, are the most exciting thing they’ve seen today. Could be true.

We pass through El Ganso, one of many villages that’s one bar away from being abandoned. The bar here is called the Cowboy Bar and has the dirtiest tables outside that we’ve yet seen. On the other hand, it’s getting warmer and they have Coca Cola, Nutty Buddies, and cerveza. If that isn’t enough, there’s a guy in the street playing the banjo. Not a tune, exactly, just strumming. He’s hoping to sell local touristy stuff like leather bracelets, walking sticks and possibly a banjo. There’s something melancholy about walking past someone who’s trying to sell poorly-made merchandise out in the middle of nowhere. You want to have a heart-to-heart with them about satisfying careers in high tech. Or banjo lessons.

Not the best best day for footing, but Dave’s minor injury has responded to treatment and we’re In good spirits as we cruise into Rabanal (population: 50) to look for our lodging, which we thought was 1.8 miles from town. So, where’s the courtesy shuttle? Uh, 90 kilometers away, it seems. Owing to a mix-up, our hotel (in Dillablina or some such) is 55 miles from Rabanal. And, no, there is no shuttle.

A brief conversation with a kindly shopkeeper reveals that there’s lodging to be had right here in Rabanal (population: still 50) at a “Refugio.” If that sounds like refuge, it is. Our small, and air conditioning-less room has a nice view of the laundry facilities (aka: lines for drying the stuff we “washed” in the sink) and, we’re pretty sure, a wonderful exposure to the afternoon/evening sun. Not something we’re used to.

Still, it’s lodging found in an emergency and we’re glad to have it. No bar soap, but a flat screen TV about the size of a laptop stuck high on one of the four undecorated walls. We’ve seen little news and what passes for sports (today - seen in the restaurant where we have lunch: motorcycle racing in a place so hot, the audience was being sprayed with misters during the event). in case you haven’t seen it, motorcycle racing is like NASCAR only without explosions. Bikes complete God-knows-how-many laps until someone waves a flag and it’s over. Why anyone would sit in baking heat among stinking spectators to watch this – and presumably pay for the privilege – is beyond me. My brother had the idea of brightening up NASCAR by having pits open suddenly under the cars at random moments. That’s entertainment! Another option would be to throw a few (a dozen?) loaded shotguns into the crowd. Anyone able to wrestle the gun from other fans and actually shoot one of the drivers (harder than it looks with people around you trying to grab the weapon from your hands while you’re trying to aim), would earn an audition to become a NASCAR driver. It’s win-win. Oh, the sentence started off being about TV; we haven’t watched any in our room yet. It’s amazing how much fun an elderly couple can have playing strip-Scrabble.

Met the best-looking person so far today, a German kid about as handsome as a German kid can get, the kind of smiling, blonde good-looks that belong on a recruiting poster saying “Join the Wehrmacht and see France!” A good kid, too, it seemed. Told me about playing chess with his grandfather, who told him that, in life, the chess pieces we call pawns should be the politicians, the ones who go out first and lead the way. The king, the grandfather said, was the children, the single thing for which every sacrifice had to be made. Not sure if this was a real grandfather or a hypothetical one, but the sentiment sounded good to me.

The kid also said that Greece was suing Germany for war reparations equal to the amount of Greek debt owned by Germany today. Good luck with that.

We’re enjoying this more than this blog might seem to say. The little towns aren’t exactly pretty and the countryside is ordinary, but strolling through them with no goals more important than relaxing later and enjoying a few glasses of wine is very pleasing. What we’re saying is, why don’t all of you blog readers chip in a few thousand each so we can keep doing this for several more months?. If the cash isn’t readily available, why not have bake sales? Or play the banjo and sell trinkets in the street?

Take your time We’re in no rush.

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