Castrojeriz

This was the approach to Castrojeriz today. The town is in the valley, with the castle on the hill. Or from the other perspective: 

Had fun exploring the castle ruins, much of which are 14th-15th century, with much older roots (possibly Roman.)

As the pictures show, finally some beautiful weather after two weeks of yuck! 20 km went pretty easily, lots of interesting conversations. 

Tomorrow: Juntos Albergue in Boadilla del Camino.

Hornillos del Camino

This was the final couple miles of my walk today. Down the valley into the village where I am spending the night. Much of the walk looked like this today - except for the village. (There were only two villages along the way today.) So more like this:

Open, mostly flat crop land, mostly wheat. Grey, cloudy skies, but fortunately I avoided the rain. Cool (50°F), damp (85%-90% humidity), and windy (10-15 mph). But at least the wind was from the side and not in my face today.

So, I marched through 20 km of this today, as I will for each of the next 4 days, if all goes well.

(This is a Camino thing. It translates to something like: Onward! or Forward!)

Tomorrow: La Riconada in Castrojeriz.

I'll leave you with some roses:

Burgos - day 3

Visited the cathedral. Will add more later.

Burgos - day 2

I got the dining schedule right today! Coffee and croissant at 8:30a. Coffee and tortilla (egg and potato dish) at 11a. Three course Menu del Dia (roasted vegetables, lamb ragout, cake) at 3p. Goat cheese salad at 9p.

In-between dining, I did some shopping, visited the Museum of Human Evolution, connected with a few people, and wandered. It was a very nice day. 

The museum was fascinating. It's here in Burgos because just a few miles away, in the hills that I walked through yesterday, are the Atapuerca archeological sites - where the oldest human bones in Europe have been discovered. The oldest fragments uncovered so far are 1.2 to 1.4 million years old. In the museum, I was looking at actual bones from 950,000 years ago, and tools (sharpened rocks) from 1.2 million years. So... maybe 50,000 generation, or so? (Although, any surviving line from these sites probably led to Neanderthals, and thus were wiped out a while back.)

Tomorrow, I plan to visit the cathedral. 

Burgos - day 1

Lots of walking today. Started a little after 8a, arrived at my hostal around 3p. Breaks for breakfast, lunch, and rests, but otherwise just walking. After checking in, I bathed, napped, read a little, and then went looking for food. In a Spanish city. At 6p. (And on a Monday.) It doesn't work that way here. 😖

In short, lunch is roughly 2p to 3:30p, dinner is 8p (or 9p) to 11p. And good luck finding anything but bar snacks or sweets in between. Yes, the bar snacks - called "pinchos" or "pinxos" - are quite varied, creative, and tasty - but they are still more about fats and carbs than vegetables and proteins.

This isn't so much of a problem in most of the villages along the Camino, where the needs of the traveler are much more readily accommodated. (The travelers are a major source of income in these small communities.) But I'm in a city now, and things are different. 

After wandering around for far too long, I finally gave up, got pinchos and sweets, and made my way back to my room. Tired now, and looking forward to a long sleep.

A couple more highlights of the day...

This bridge was reportedly built for pilgrims in the 12th century by San Juan de Ortega - whose tombs are documented in a previous post:

The goose holds a special place in Camino lore, though I haven't studied it much. Nevertheless... Geese!

Agés

Hills and forests today. Not a lot of sun, but only a few raindrops. Nice day, notwithstanding the chilly wind in the openings. 

Visited Iglesia de San Nicolás de Barí in the village of San Juan de Ortega. Another one of these curiosities... This is the tomb of San Juan, in the center of the church: 

But his remains are actually in this tomb, in the chapel next door: 

I guess if you are a saint, you can have a second home? 

The church is also known for this intricate 12th-century capital (top of a pillar) depicting the annunciation. On the equinoxes, the images a illuminated by the sun.

After that, four more kilometers of forests, hills... and livestock.

Tomorrow: 23 kilometers 🙀 to Hostal Bezana in Burgos, where I will spend the next three nights, exploring the city and waiting out some rainy weather.

Stopping by Woods...

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,   

But I have promises to keep,   

And miles to go before I sleep,   

And miles to go before I sleep.

....

I had to look up the rest of it. Not quite so appropriate for the setting, but a similar sentiment: 

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

By Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.   

His house is in the village though;   

He will not see me stopping here   

To watch his woods fill up with snow.   

My little horse must think it queer   

To stop without a farmhouse near   

Between the woods and frozen lake   

The darkest evening of the year.   

He gives his harness bells a shake   

To ask if there is some mistake.   

The only other sound’s the sweep   

Of easy wind and downy flake.   

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,   

But I have promises to keep,   

And miles to go before I sleep,   

And miles to go before I sleep.