32º F this morning as we start off. Thankfully, there is no wind. We have a shortish hill climb to a plateau that warms us right up, then its endless plains for the next 13 miles…..today.
We run into an odd person yesterday, calling himself “The Politician” wheeling a urinal behind him on one of those portable luggage wheel racks. We spoke with him briefly, but couldn’t quite get the gist of the whole thing. Well, we got a second chance today. Something to do with Marcel Duchamp and his art piece “Fountain” which was a urinal signed “R. Mutt”, which then morphed into a story about the Pope visiting the town he lives in and having to stop in a pup to pee. That pub’s bathroom became famous for the urinal that the Pope peed in, much to the embarrassment of the Vatican, who paid some people to remove the urinal which was thrown in the garbage 38 years ago. I think someone retrieved it out of the trash and this Politician got a hold of it. He began having dreams that it needed to go to Santiago. So, that’s why he is dragging it along with him. And making a documentary out of his travels. Or something to that effect. Like I said. Odd Person.
Not a whole lot seen today. Not many places to stop and rest. So, we made good time getting into Castrojeriz, but it seemed like the last hour was walking thru this very small, but long town. The people are friendly and happy to see us and serve us in the restaurants. But, there are more of us, and we are in the traditional stage stops. The traditional stages are somewhere between 20 km ( 12 miles) to 30 km (18 miles). While we feel confident doing 13 miles or so, if it gets up more than that, we are way too tired at the end of the day. And it takes us too long.
We have 8 days in a row this stretch and we are only on day 3. I’m having some issues with my stomach. I’ve finally figured out that it’s likely my pack hip belt that is cutting off my digestive track and all my food is staying in my stomach and not traversing the rest of the way. When I took my pack off yesterday, there was a hard lump above where the belt goes that didn’t go away for several hours. My heart burn is horrible, and it makes the day a really long one. So, for the next week, I’m having the Correos take my pack and I’ll walk with a small day pack to try and remedy the situation.
The internet is weird here. We were told by someone that Spain only really has decent internet in the cities and they don’t really care about taking it out to the smaller towns. So, we’ve really had difficulty finding reliable wifi. And it almost seems as if they turn it off at night, so in the morning the internet doesn’t connect. Thankfully, I can use my phone as my personal hotspot to get connected.
Tomorrow will be warmer and sunny. “A unique and unforgettable stage for pilgrims who enjoy silence, solitude, and infinite fields.” Yay.
28 Sep 2020 ~ 29,802 steps ~ 12.4 miles ~ 60ºF ☀️
Oh my gosh! Love the story about the urinal! There’s a movie in there somewhere! 😂 Hope you’re stomach gets better. My backpack fits the same way. Hadn’t ever considered that aspect. That’s a real handicap!