Day 13-19: Inner Trials

Has it really been a week since Burgos? The time truly is flying by. I’d better soak it up, because I’ll reach Santiago de Compostela before I know it.

Since leaving the city of Burgos, the landscape of the Camino has changed drastically. It consists mostly of long, flat plains and fields along the beautiful countryside.

Well, for the first couple days at least. It turned into very long stretches of walking alongside busy roads. Although it’s still pretty, you get used to it and pretty soon it’s just you and your mind to keep you company. And you just walk. And walk. And walk.

One night I had to sleep outside. I had thought there were albergues open in a small town named Hontanas, but when I arrived it almost felt like a ghost town. I managed to find a couple residents and ask around, but everything was closed. I contemplated asking locals for a place to stay, but ruled it out. I should’ve planned ahead for this. I got myself into this situation.

The sun was setting and the air was getting chilly. My options were:

A: walk 10 more kilometers in the darkness to the next city and hopefully find some albergue that was open. If not, sleep outside there.

Or B: Find a dry place in this city to sleep and keep warm. My sleeping bag should be up for the task. It’s designed for 0°C.

I went with option B. I once heard of packs of wolves that like roam around Spain in the night. I wasn’t sure whether that’s was true or not, but I didn't think it was worth the risk.

All the grass on the ground was wet. But I managed to find a large stone table that was dry and big enough for me to sleep on. The weather said it wasn’t going to rain, so I chose that place for the night. The air was freezing, but my gear and sleeping bag kept me nice and warm throughout the night. I even managed to get a few winks of sleep!

The sun rises on the town after the night outside

---

I’ve mostly walked these trails alone during the day, but I have had a consistent albergue buddy by the name of Leo. He’s from Korea. We’ve known each other since the beginning of the Camino. He’s a nice enough guy. We’ve had some nice conversations in the albergues and we’ve also played tons of chess games against each other.

Hey Zach?

Yeah, Leo?

You know where you’re staying tomorrow?

Nope!

Yeah, me neither.

---

Truth be told, despite everything I’ve seen and all the adventure I’ve had so far, I’ve also faced a lot of discouragement. Being all on my own isn’t easy. Sometimes it’s homesickness. Other times it’s questioning why I’m even here. Though this is a grand adventure and I’m learning new things, with every town I pass through, I see people doing their normal, everyday work or hanging out with loved ones.

And with walking through the long, flat plains give to me plenty of time alone with myself, I think so much of home and all the people I love, and I miss them. In fact, some mornings of this pilgrimage all I’ve wanted to do is just rest and stay in bed. Sometimes I second guess myself. Did I make the right choice by coming out here?

But as a pilgrim, I get up and keep walking. Every morning, no matter how much I don’t want to. I have a destination to reach. Nobody said it was going to be easy.