The Bubble

We had a short walk today but it was so beautiful and colourful, we kept stopping to take photos and it took us ages to get to the next stop, Olleros de Tera. We are still on the same river. 

We haven’t seen a sunrise for a few days but were treated with a golden glow this morning, lighting up the cornfields and plantations of birch trees, all perfectly aligned and standing tall. 

Today was full of colour. We passed blackberries and raspberries galore, apple trees, pear trees, sweet corn and veggie patches laden with produce, and we dreamed about food and recipes. 

Last night, we had no choice for dinner. We had only been in the bar for 5 minutes and dinner was plonked in front of us …two oily fried eggs and chips. Ice cream for dessert. Take it or leave it!

There was no breakfast this morning and we resorted to a packet of chocolate chip biscuits and a cup of green tea. We were starving! Each day we discuss what we will eat when we get home. The Spanish diet is terrible!!!  

I ambled slowly today. I was very thoughtful. I can feel my father with me. He was such a gentle man, so loving and kind, and I still miss him every day😥. He taught me so much about life and encouraged me to question everything. I could smell him, I keep seeing yellow roses (his favourite flower), and I saw strawberry clover everywhere. (He took me out into the paddock at our farm and taught me all about the different types of clover). That’s how I know about the strawberry kind I saw today.

 There are so many things here in Spain that are familiar, but so many things that are not, and I was asking Colleen questions all day. I was filled with excitement at the sound of wood peckers  and she has taught me all about European  flora and fauna. It is all so foreign to me. 

As I ambled along the path today, feeling warm and fuzzy knowing that my dad was with me, I started thinking about how isolated I am here. I have removed myself from life as I know it and immersed myself into something completely unfamiliar.  What the hell am I doing this for?! It hurts, it’s out of my comfort zone, I can’t speak Spanish, I miss my family and my doggie. I’m living in a bubble where nothing from the outside world can touch me. It is as if I have stepped into a book and this is not real. Each step takes me further into  its pages of fantasy and I have been imagining what it must have been like for the Romans, the pilgrims, and the traders who have also walked these paths and worn them down for me to walk on as well. 

No-one told me that the Via De la Plata and the Sanabrese routes were so beautiful. I was expecting long dry and dusty roads, but instead, I have been blown away by the scenery. Sure it is Autumn, dry and dying off for winter, but the colours are magnificent, the trees and the rivers are stunning. This Camino is SO different to the Frances in every way. It is untouched, less travelled, quite primative, and raw.  What an experience!