Day 15 – Princess Eliot

Day 15 – Burgos to Hontanas, 31kms, 9hours

Today was pretty non eventful – if thats what you can call walking 30km, in the sun, freezing wind, with the most painful blisters amd every footstep hurting like hell. But we both bought new shoes so we had very high hopes for a good day. We walked an hour through the streets of burgos to get out of town then we wandered along side a freeway for quite some time and then onto the open plains.

Good to go with attractive new shoes and a new pack

We met Bjorn as we were leaving burgos. Yet another german guy. We spotted him early on in burgos and in our true style of not preparing and not using a map so having no clue how to even walk out of the city, we saw him and said he looks like he knows where hes going so we followed him for a bit. We have this thing now where we see someone on their own and then its like they become our target. we hone in on them to say hi, how are they etc etc. So thats how Bjorn came about. he jumped on our coffee at every town bandwagon too and so we stopped at a bar and had coffee and tapas before continuing on our way.

Cafe con leiche stop numero uno with Ted, Bjorn and Jessica

I hold out hope ill run into my blue man again but until then he has been replaced by ‘green pants man’. This beautiful almost graceful old french man who cant speak a word of english but will just talk french to us like we can understand everything hes saying. We cant but i absolutely love that he just speaks to us like we can. Not short sentences, hes describing what he sees, asking us questions about where we started walking and whatever else. He never gets frustrated, he just looks at you with these eyes and a smile that make you know he is just so happy. We made him laugh when we thought he asked if we had walked across antartica! (Still dont know what he really was asking but we started impersonating penguins as a result) Its so cool how even though you dont understand a word you can still communicate and walk together like youve just found an old friend. We kept bumping into him throughout the day and same thing every time and of coursw we’re greeted with a kiss on each cheek.

Todays soundtrack was aussie inspired – pub rock classics – so we screamed johnny farnhams your the voice and darryl Braithwaites Horses right out onto the plains.

And then we hit the plains

Our music tastes soon changed when we met 3 Palestinians. 2 girls and a guy from Jerusalem. Thought they probably wouldnt appreciate ‘Khe San’ as much as we do so turned it off.We wandered with them for quite some time, asking all about their lives and culture in palestine all the while the guy just strummed away on his little guitar. Then the three of them did some singing in arabic while we wandered through the desert. It was pretty cool!

Aisha and Aiya

We also picked up shannon, another aussie girl from heathcoate, vic. Thickest country aus accent. And so the 3 aussie girls and Bjorn, walked and walked and walked through very dry fields with just wind turbines lining ever horizon while breaking out in song and dance sporadically. Bjorn probably wondering who the heck he has got involved with. But he being very quietly spoken stuck with us the whole 31kms.

Just dancing on the plains

it was so so dry but the landscape was just stunning. I loved it! Maybe because its reminding me so much of home or maybe just the vast open spaces makes you feel free and at the same time so i significant and helpless.

5kms to go! The worst 5kms of every day

Wind turbines everywhere

everthing looked so flat when we saw a sign saying Hontanas 1km ahead. We couldnt see any town and was a little puzzled. Next minute out of no where there is this valley and in it this tiny desert town. Our stop for the night!

Walking in to Hontanas

Our albergue in hontanas

Our albergue (5 euros) proved quite an entertaining night. It was in the communal showers (dont worry we were all in individial stalls Ma) that every voice we could hear were australians. We now had elliot and Emily In the mix. Elliot, 22 from canberra, emily From euchuca. And turns out by chance we all ended up in a 8 bed dorm together. Elliot, oh elliot, had done the 31kms in 5 hours so he was beside himself moaning and groaning like a girl on the top bunk. ‘I cant move, im cramping, my legs hurt, im dying.’ Meanwhile we are all just laughing hystericaly telling him to toughen up. So i baby him, tell him to keep his feet raised up against the wall (little tip ive learnt on the camino), then i gave him deep heat for the legs, electrolytes and i may have just given him a few of my drugs just to shut him up. Placebo effect. That boy recovered in 5 mins flat.

Princess eliot

Despite all of Eliots 99 problems, his hair isnt one of them. His hair remains perfect all of the time, looking like hes about to hit the town, so we jokingly call him the princess. He took it well and gave as good as he got. Somehow dont think the Palestinians and germans get our humour… especially when Jess is insulting you by calling you an underground animal who wears a flash light… ‘renay you mole!’ (Dont worry i know moles dont wear flash lights)

R x

Deserving that beer after 31kms

Typical pilgrims dinner menu

Lunch stop foot stop

Sunflowers are everywhere