Camino bore, day 8.

Santo Domingo pastry

 Najera to Santo Domingo de la Calzada

Santo Domingo albergue

This was my second day by bus, which David walked. My journal notes, 'Foot is in no state for walking'. I was very afraid to get it looked at, though it was mentioned that there were good medical facilties along the camino; I didn't want to be told to stay off it for 5 days. So I travelled by bus and hung about somewhat disconsolately in Santo Domingo waiting for D, and noting the haberdashery shops. I managed to scrape up enough Spanish for '7 metres of that ric-rac, please', which I thought might make a skirt look 'very Spanish'; not that any Spanish people wore anything like that (more on skirts when we get to Santiago). But the locals gave a pilgrim in a haberdashery shop very odd looks, and would try to lead me back to the camino. The pic of Jesus in a skirt in the cathedral was one of the things you get used to here, but somehow it just doesn't look as though it would play well back home.

For the reason why there's a hen-pastry, see the link:

http://www.jubileosantodomingo.es/index.php?id=74

and why didn't we take a pic of that hen cooped up in the cathedral? There is a shift system - a group of hens does a day at a time each, so there is no cruelty involved.

The albergue at Santo Domingo was beautiful, a newly-refurbished place, all architect-designed as you can see, in the town centre, and there were these things called sofas that we remembered from our past life, but somehow we didn't have time to languish on one; we were very busy looking round the cathedral (all that walking - ouch!), finding dinner and then going to bed. We had one of the very best meals of Spanish ham and eggs, served by a bar lass who was just like one of the most beautiful statues of the Virgin we'd seen in the cathedral.

It was disappointing to have to make a second day's journey by bus, but expected. There's a pilgrim wish to do the whole thing 'properly', and it was an early lesson in learning to accept limitations, and I came across the concept of  'making YOUR camino'; it's not actually a sin to get a bus when necessary! Yesterday (in 2011) I prided myself in not having repeated last year's sedentary May 6th by going on a 35 mile bike ride; but today I felt tired and had to have an afternoon nap and didn't achieve much, and it's disappointing when one is up against such limitations; but then we 'make our camino' in everyday life back home and have to accept the limitations of ageing and so on*, she says sagely, and I no longer keep my hula hoop in the living room.

*I'm furious I ever had such a thought; as Dylan Thomas said:

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rage at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light. 

 

They had these things called 'sofas'

Pilgrim staircase

Jesus in a lovely skirt

Coldest spring