Monday, May 30 Albergue San Miguel

Our Room / Pantry

It's touch and go but chances are we'll run out of time before we run out of 'nice'. Just one more day and evening to go. Our replacement hospitalera, Maria, arrived early this morning so we have all day to show her our routine and then she can develop and refine her own way of doing things. I'm a little anxious for her as she will be on her own for the first week. This is a big job for two people. I can't imagine one person doing it all. Hopefully she will be able to rely on the kindness and assistance of the pilgrims.

It's amazing how our neatly packed backpacks have managed to spew their contents all over our small hospitalero room. Now we have to re-organize and squeeze all that stuff back into our packs. Tomorrow we'll leave after breakfast for the bus station. We'll take a bus to Pamplona and then another to Bilbao. I am so ready for the convenience of a hotel with real towels, sleeping in past 5am and an order of French Fries.

Saturday, May 28 Albergue San Miguel

Our stint as hospitaleros, with only four more days to go, may be winding down but there is certainly no winding down on the job. That is an observation not a complaint. Each day's pilgrims have the same needs as those before and some may be have even more. Although the routine and pattern of the day is same old, same old, it never gets old. This albergue is a new experience for each pilgrims and each pilgrim is a new experience for us and too, there are always a few incidences that highlight each day.

Friday I had to, very unwillingly, play paramedic to a lovely lady whose first and only language is German and who was adamant that I should 'pop' all the blisters on her suffering feet. I do not have one iota of Florence flipping Nightingale in me but there I was boiling a needle and piercing it through each and every blisters. And there were a lot of them. An elderly Spanish camino veteran insisted that I needed to enlarge each of the holes in the blisters so that iodine could be put directly into the blister. He insisted, I desisted and so he took over. Between the German lady and the Spanish man, they had a complete surgical kit but not one common language phrase. Tomas set to work enlarging the blister holes. How? I don't know but there were needles, scissors and a small plastic syringe lined up on the table. He used the syringe to inject iodine into each blister hole. He injected. She grimaced. I hid away shaking my head and thinking thoughts of liability and lawsuist and wondering if I could cover my trail after our departure so that I couldn't be tracked down to be supoenaed (sp?).

We also had a group of cyclists who arrived very late. Cyclists usually bike about 90-120kms so they tend to arrive late and then want to sleep in and leave late - not happening at our albergue. Up and out and enjoy your ride! Our late arrivers had only time to get ready for dinner but no time to go to a tienda to buy wine for their meal..................so Dayton and I went to our private wine stash and donated some of our 'vintage' wine (2.45€ a bottle) to the cause. The Italians were suitably surprised and pleased. We also had a Chilean cyclist arrive just as we were about to clean up the dishes. We were able to set him up with salad, pasta, bread and wine. No problemo.

We also had a delightful Canadian contingent Friday, family and friends from Toronto, Calgary and Edmonton: mom and two of her daughters, a cousin and two other close friends. It was fun to speak Canadian for a change, eh?

Thursday, May 26

Yesterday was a real roller coaster of emotions: lively satisfaction as the young kids left and, I'm embarrassed to say, a tinge of frustration and irritations signing in a few frustrating, irritating and picky pilgrims as well as a swell of empathy and sympathy for the heat exhausted, dehydrated walkers. With so many pilgrims we notice a 180 turn around in their attitude from the time they sign in to the time they leave. Some arrive a little pushy, demanding and judgemental but they all leave behind smiles, hugs and kisses in the morning.

We had a Brazilian contingent yesterday and one tall elegant lady spent the late afternoon offering and administering foot massages to her fellow pilgrims. Needless to say, she was a very popular lady. One late middle age, sturdy Portuguese lady was injured and combatative at first, insistent that she could carry her own pack to her bed, didn't need water or a drink or help of any kind. Her knee was really bad and she was using her walking sticks as crutches all evening. Her determination was more powerful than her body and she insisted on setting out at 6:30 the next morning. At least she was having her heavy pack sent ahead.

One Polish lady came in in the heat of the afternoon and was immediately in tears from heat, exhaustion, relief and our attention. We gave her water, chocolate, a cool cloth for her face and lots of time to recoup.

The kindness and generosity of one pilgrim to another is wonderful too. A young South Korean girl returned to us in the morning after realizing that she had forgotten the crucifix that she slept with at night. It was no where to be found. An elderly French man then dug into his first aid kit and pulled out a small leather pouch. Inside was a beautiful crucifix attached to a delicate beaded bracelet. I'm sure it had sentimental value to him but he generously gave it to the oh so grateful Korean girl. Camino magic at work again!

Wednesday, May 25 San Miguel Alberque and Youth Hostel

Intn'l Youth Contingent Helping Karen With The "Pilgrim's Blessing"

Two years ago today we finished our first Camino de Santiago de Compostella. It is memorable in that it was the culmination of 31 days of walking and alberques, bocadillos and cafe con leches, pilgrim meals and wonderful new international friendships, and of the realization that we had actually walked the 792kms we had dreamed about for two years. It was also such a wet and dreary day. We were exhausted and injured and as we dragged our wet and weary selves towards the catedral, it felt anticlimatic. The square was overcast and deserted. Oh that it were a day like today! We are experiencing the best sunny weather here in Estella and, as we say our morning farewells and buen caminos to our pilgrims, there is a tinge of envy of all the camino experiences that they have ahead of them, although there are some camino experiences that are evoke less envy - the blisters, shin splints and tendinitis, and Redicilla.

As hospitaleros we are over the hump. We have only one more week to go. If all passes are wonderfully as the past two nights, it will be clear sailing. We have had the best two groups. We've been 'completo' but not overbooked. Last night we had an amazing group of young pilgrims from Portugal, Italy, Isreal, Belgium, Spain/Russia, Canada, Greece and France. They all met in St. Jean Pied de Port and have been travelling somewhat together. It was our treat to have them staying at our alberque. Their facility with the languages was amazing and had me so embarrassed by my tedious efforts to learn French, German and Spain. ( I don't even try Italian.) Most of these kids spoke at least three languages and one really nice young guy spoke seven languages fluently and just flipped back and forth without hesitation. What a wonder! We did spend some extra time at breakfast putting our last supply of Mefix, Compeed and tape on a mass of blisters and hot spots. Blisters hold no age restrictions.

Today is the Feast of the Virgin of Le Puy so it's a major holiday in Estella. The only people working are the hospitaleros and two shops are open - the internet cafe and one tienda to get our daily ration of bread - 12 huge baquettes.

Monday, May 23 San Miguel Alberque and Rehab Centre

"Peregrino Princess"

Same old, same old. Nothing new to report. We have our routine set. By the time we've cleaned up and gotten back from our 'bread run' (We go through about 6-8 huge baquettes a meal; apparently no one over here worries about carbs.), the pilgrims are lined up and waiting. We still have the 'peregrino princess' enjoying her extended stay with us: coffee and cigarettes at 7:30am, then wine and cigarettes all afternoon and night. You'd think she'd get tired of a bucket load of pasta for dinner every night. She did tell me yesterday, as we were trying to accommodate another overflow day, that I should ask her to help us - tomorrow! We do get lots of help though and most pilgrims are effusive with their thanks and appreciation.

The dynamics of every group is interesting and so different. Last night we had a huge party group - over 45 pilgrims for dinner. Breakfast time is a bit of an unknown dynamic though. Dayton and I were up at 5am yesterday for the breakfast crew and didn't see a soul until after 6 am and then today the place was hopping and bopping before 5:30am. If only there was a siesta for the hospitaleros.

Saturday May 21 San Miguel Alberque and Rehab Centre

Aussie Chef

I think it's been said that stress doesn't build character but that it reveals character. Either way we are character building every day. Once again we had an 11am line-up and the alberque was 'completo' by 3pm but the pilgrims just kept coming. We had to direct the late comers to the overflow dorms at the parish and then bulk up our menu to serve close to 40. One of our overflow guests was an Australian chef so he came up with a couple of good suggestions to enhance our 'creative' recipes. More olive oil!

Our wonderfully efficient cleaning, shopping and food preparation schedule has been thrown for a loop as we are now the rehabilation centre for a German lady who has tendinitis and wants to stay with us and rest her foot for FIVE days. The work here is fast and furious and we are busy all day long and that is all good. However......... there is a little niggling irritation when you have someone with her foot wrapped in ice resting it on the bench, drinking her fourth cup of coffee and smoking a cigarette while we clean and mop around her and the laundry line she has hanging from her bunk. Obviously my tendinitis treatment (work and wine) needs some refinement.

And then..........some of the pilgrims from the parish overflow rooms, which apparently are a lot quieter in the morning than the main alberque, showed up at 8:30am looking for breakfast, coffee and a chat. These are the things that help us prove how flexible and friendly we really are.

I did find 30 minutes last night to hobble down to the municipal alberque to watch an outdoor street performance by a group of very young South Korean kids who are walking the camino carrying not only their regular clothing and supplies but their costumes and drums too! And they are really young, probably nine to maybe fourteen or fifteen years old and really talented. The passers-by were treated to a wonderful concert of dance and drumming. Awesome.

Friday, May 20 Alberque San Miguel

Every day is the same and every day is totally different.

We have established a pretty efficient system and each day the schedule is the same but, because we never know whether we will have 10 guests or 43, every day is so different.

We've been moving at warp speed the past few days and so were stunned today that by 6pm we had registered in only 13 pilgrims. Yesterday we had more than that waiting at 11am. We took advantage of the Thursday morning Farmer's Market in the plaze and it was what a Farmer's Market should be. We got huge heads of lettuce - 5 for 2€, 2 kilos of fresh strawberries for 2€ as well. What other alberque greets their pilgrims with fresh cherries and cookies at registration and then serves fresh strawberries (on their canned fruit) for dessert? The fresh fruit was our treat to our pilgrims.

Just as we were about to serve dinner, an Austrian man drove up in his van, hopped out and we worked out in German and hand gestures that he needed beds for himself and 4 Austrian cyclists. They had set out from St. Jean Pied de Port that morning (about 130kms away) and would be arriving momentarily. I asked if they would like to eat with us. He couldn´t understand so I asked another German lady to translate "Would you like to eat with us?" The lady turned to the Austrian and said in perfect ENGLISH "Would you like to eat with us?" Then we all burst out laughing as she realize how ridiculous this was. She's been so used to flipping back and forth from English to German that she repeated verbatim what I'd said. Anyway we got it all straighten out and she was still redfaced and laughing as she went back to dinner.

The Austrians showed up just after we had served the salad. We had to hurriedly set out more seats and plates, more bread, some wine we donated as this alberque does not provide the wine, and added more pasta to the pot. We once again enlisted the pilgrims to do the clean up while we grabbed a moment to sit. You know a man does not help around the house very much when he asks "Which side of this sponge do I use to wash the dishes?" Seriously, like there's a different side for dishes and the other for cutlery?





So far we're not out of wonderful yet so all is good. I'm now going to hustle back to the alberque to attempt my first potato tortilla. Hmmm