In Castrojiritz we were awoken by classical music blasting from speakers hanging on the wall. The hospitaleros had told us specifically that we could not get up before 6:30 and that he would wake us up. Sure enough at 6:30 on the dot the music came on and we were ushered out of bed by the many calls of buenos dias!! Loosely translated as "get out of bed!!". The hospitaleros was a strange old man and it seemed like the tasks required of him were too demanding.
Katie, Luke and I started the day with breakfast at a cafe in the town. The two german girls Anna and Pauline were still in the hostel. It was clear that the day was going to be hot so Katie and I were eager to start the walk. We ate quickly said goodbye to the Germans and Luke, Katie and I were on our way. Its funny every time you part with someone you are not entirely sure when you will see them again. Everyone walks the way at their own pace, some faster then others so you never really know where everyone may end up. Sometimes you see the same people in the same hostels other times you meet new people. People you thought you'd never see again suddenly walk around the corner. That is the fun if the Camino.
The walk from Catrojeritz started almost immediately with a significant hill to climb. At this point we lost Luuk who with his long legs and newly updated ipod decided to be ~quote "autistic" for the day and walk at his own pace a.k.a super fast. The incline was followed immediately by a sharp decent which hurt the knees.
The rest of the walk was flat through farmland and wild flowers. At first the walk was very interesting as there were many flowers, butterflies, birds and empty snail shells to count. We stopped at a stall selling fruit and coffee, where we had a welcone break. Then the day got hard.
The walk through the farmland was very monotonous and the hot afternoon sun was burning down on us.
At last we got to Bordaloa. We had planned to eat lunch here before continuing to Fromitia but there was no panaderia in the town. Instead we stopped in the albergue which had a bar for some lunch. Here we ran into Luuk who was staying at that hostel for the night. He had been tricked into stopping there as there had been rumours that the albergue had a pool. Camino gossip flies like wildfire ad sure enough every new pilgrim walking through the doors was dismayed tosee that the promised pool did exist but was being cleaned and empty of water.
Despite the lack of pool, Katie and I decided to spend the night at Bordalla anyway. After a lovely pilgrim s menu and some sitting around in the sun we went to bed early.
The next day we walked from Bordalla to Carrion. We knew Fromista was only 5km away so we decided to eat breakfast there. The walk was lovely along the manmade canal there and we were just in time to see the sun rising .
In Fromsita we ran into Joo and the two German girls again. For the rest f the day we walked with them. The day s walk was hot and filled with flies. When you are in an animated conversation with someone however time flies by. We ate lunch at a bar and ran into Luuk again who then accompanied us to Carrion.
Carrion was a beautiful city and much bigger than expected. It had many old buildings, monuments shops and cafes and there was a bustling atmosphere.
We stayed at a nunnery where we paid 5 euros and were told we could eat for free. Everyone is so generous on the Camino. This however was not to be.
The first thing Katie and I did on arriving in our dorm was lie on the cold floor and stretch. Once we had finished stretching however we realised that we could no longer get up and needed to lie on the floor for another 30 min to recharge. We got some funny looks from our dorm mates.
Eventually we got up, showered, shopped and enjoyed the sunshine. I got talking to a dutch man who was 82 and was walking the Camino for the 19th time. He was very interesting.
At about 5:30 we found Luke and the german girls sitting at a bar which sold glasses of wine for 50 cent! Needless to say we joined them. One glass of wine became two which became three. In the end we stayed at the bar untill after our bed time. We came back to the hostel at 11 an hour after curfew but luckily it was still open.
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