La Calzada de Bejar to Fuenterroble de Salvatierra

We departed at 7:00 and worried about Claude and the German guy since for sure they would not make it for the agreed 7:15 breakfast. Thus, they might already had been executed?! Our way of making fun on the Camino. Camino is constantly opening pilgrim’s immagination. Rejuvenation effect? Nice first part of the walk. For the first time, the air was a bit coldish and I put the shirt with long sleeves on me.

When we arrive in Valverde de la Valdelacasa the owner of the bar El Peregrino Bar came out of the backyard and beside coffee and croissant he offered “the most beautiful sign” for our Credencials. Oh, this is also something different from the experience in Extremadura– we were actually offered a sign!

A long but nice walk… today we couldn’t remember neither the date or which day in the week it was! What a divine feeling!

How great that is! Finally, at 12:30 we enter Fuenterroble de Salvatierra and head straight to the famous albergue parroquial.

After a bottle of local wine (Tinto Tempranillo from Bar Jose at Bar Jose) immediate siesta and… two noisy Spaniards. I had to teach them some manners.

A short and sharp explanation about the siesta peace solved the case. They would later afternoon cross on the other side of the street when the met me, yet soon after we reconciled. Then a very recovering two hours siesta sleep! At the local grocery we buy food and wine for the dinner, it came 6 Euros per person.

Jesus suggested we go buy groceries and he will prepare dinner with it. We and Claude agreed. Jesus – the guy that was serving in this albergue, not the Christ one. So we had a nice, original paella (a rice dish originally from Valencia), tomato salad and local grapes from the pergola in front of the albergue as desert! Two bottles of wine: a local one Via de la Plata – Vino de la Tierra, Ultramarinos peregrino and a good El Coto Rioja from Crianza. A really nice dinner. A relatively good sleep this night as I woke up at 0:30 but then managed to get asleep again pretty soon.

*The story of “Ladrones de Camino” in Gibraltar?!

*What would the the formula, equation to calculate the relative weight of distances on Camino?

1.Sleep (how long, cuts, temperature, which period of the night),

2.Terrain (flat, uphill, downhill, off-road, asphalt),

3.Period of the day (4-7, 8-9, 9-10, 11-12. 12-17),

4.Region/landscape.

Fuenterroble de Salvatierra to San Pedro de Rosados

Early breakfast at 6:00 prepared by Jesus: boiled eggs from yesterday.

Claude walked with us the first eight kilometeres and that was a good decision as in this stretch, without our GPS he would lost himself as here markings were totally missing?! The night was one with a strong moonlight (dawn as well). Uphill, windmills and again a close encounter with bulls!

This time happend on daylight and more safe. A photo together at the Cruz de Santiago hill. The whole area smelled of the strong stench of cow manure. Flies were literally attacking us!

A long but again nice walk on a nice day. Entering San Pedro de Rosados at 1:00 PM!

The “whole” albergue just for three of us!

The same lady Carmen owns the only bar in the village Restaurante VII Carreras. A good and strong beer – San Miguel Selecta for 2 Euros! After this beer we went to the albergue for a siesta sleep. We didn’t know how to ignite the gas boiler but she came to do it.

Nice dinner, at 8:00 PM, with minestrone, pork fillet, salad and pudding. In total, with a good wine (which I somehow managed to spill) Abadia del Roble from Bodegas Ayuso, all for 18 Euros. German and Dutch pilgrims were there too. “She did took out eggs?!”

Somehow I started to feel some confidence and after eighteen days finally Camino became something that I am living with! Or was I wrong?