People start shuffling at 6am (as predicted) and we are up and out on the road around 7am with our teeth brushed, our water bottles filled, and head lamps on. Sunrise has been around 8:13am and it´s pretty dark until about 7:45. Walking in the morning always seems romantic. The stars are still out, and there are TONS of them! And it´s usually just the two of us walking. Recently, some of that has changed. It´s getting pretty cold in the morning, hence the Burgos stop for hats and gloves, it´s also inefficient walking time. Remember that we have almost no idea where we´re heading each day if not for the yellow shells and arrows. It really slows you down to be looking for them in the dark!
Usually, we stop for breakfast around 2 hours into our day. This is generally at a small town bar that traditionally serves café con leche and tortillas for breakfast. A café con leche is espresso with steamed milk and a tortilla is an egg and potato dish that is cooked like a fritata and then served by the slice. Very tasty, but sometimes gets old. We miss cereal.
Leaving Burgos, we officially started the Meseta, which represents the high plains of Spain. It´s windy, hot, and open. There isn´t much to look at other than the massive, modern windmills. It is a bit Don Quijote of the 21st century. The terrain is akin to a dirt road with gravel and large, smooth river rocks mixed in. The path through the Meseta, as we were told, is man-made. This makes sense as there is no river or waterway nearby to leave this kind of terrain. It´s hard on the feet. Very hard. Jess´s blisters have been taking a beating.
When you stop for breakfast, pilgrims will usually buy a baguette and a few pieces of meat and fruit for lunch as there may not be a place to stop for the next 5-6 hours. The towns around big cities tend to be in clusters that are 1-5km apart, but most of the time it can be 10-12km before you see another building. That´s 3-4 hours of walking. We´ve been sustaining a diet of home-made "bocadillos", or little sandwiches, made of chorizo slices, laughing cow cheese, and baguette. We tend to buy lots of nuts, fruits, and chocolates too. Nothing too exotic. We´ve stuck to apples, oranges, and peaches :)
We arrived to Hontanas around 2pm and checked into an albergue. This particular one cost 4 euros per person. It´s on the low end, but not worrisomely cheap.
And there you have it. It´s a very simple existence, but it affords alot of time for reflection and conversation. Unfortunately, not as much journaling or blogging :)
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