Fellow travellers

The Camino is a UNesco World Heritage site, so there are many travellers. In fact, the past couple of days haev felt like a big group tour.

There are a lot of Europeans, of course, mainly Spanish, French, German, and Brits; a smattering of people from around the world (a couple of Koreans, Japanese, a few Brazilians, some Aussies via Scotland), and a LOT of Canadians. Quebeckers, of course, but also Canadians from sea to sea to sea. Last night we had dinner with a couple from NFld, There are a mother and 2 daughters from Yellowknife, and people from Toronto, Vancouver, and of course, VIctoria. And that´s just the ones we´ve met! Everyone is here for a different reason, and it is interesting to hear their stories.

Today, we did 27 km, most of it downhill. While that might sound a lot easier than yesterday´s trek, in some ways it was harder. It took as long! Most of that downhill was rocky, reminding us of a dried up river bed, and a lot of it was very muddy. There was a stretch of about a km that was very steep, muddy, and rocky - so imagine trying to keep your balance with a pack on your back, your toes painfully being pushed to the front of your shoes, while trying not to fall as you slip slide your way down the rocks.

We arrived at Zubiri around 1:30, tired and hungry. After lunch, Nadine`persuaded me that we should do the extra 1.5 hours to Larrasoaña. Am I glad she did! For one thing, we were alone that whole time, jsut the two of us walking in the woods, so nice to get away from the crowds. FOr another, the road turned out to have quite a few gentle climbs, so that we were actually stretching muscles that had been cramped all morning. I arrived at Larrasoaña feeling much less sore than when I left Zubiri.

I think we are both in pretty good shape, as evidenced by the fact neither of us was sore this morning after yesterday´s climb. That was a good thing, because in between the snorers, the jet lag, and the fact we were cold, neither of us slept very much. Tomorrow will be an easy day, just 19.5 km.

Till next itme.

Gisele