Villafranca (friday)

Hello


I´ve just arrived in Villafranca del Bierzo after a 25km walk that was flatish, with the odd hill to keep one focussed! I had a number of special pilgrim ´blessings` today that I must tell you about. Blessings like this are what make the camino special. I saw squirrels and a number of small hares today while walking. Secondly, at the tourist iffice in cacebelos I saw the person that works there going in, but noticed that the offices only opened at 10h30 and it was only 10h00. I would have liked a stamp (sello) in my pilgrim passport .. so I suppose i looked upset, when the lady turned around, asked what I wanted and when I expalined in my best spanglish, she offered to get me a stamp quickly. So - one helpful tourist officer. I then decided to walk 500m back into the centre of the village to get some tea, and when I´d paid for that, the lady who served me gave me a piece of Madeira cake to have with the tea. When I offered to pay, she declined saying it was for a pilgrim. So I had a rather nice tea time treat. Then, on a lonely stretch of raod I came to a place where I had to make a decision about which way to go. A number of arrrows pointed R, but were covered with black paint, andf the was one lonely, pale arrow popinting straight. I was a little stuck!..... what does a weary pilgrim do. Just then a cyclist came past and he said he was going straight ... but it was a busy raod with very little verge. Then from literally no where another walker pilgrim af¡rrived, with a map (mapa) and we could consult that and decided on the shorter straight route 1.5km, rather than the off road 4km the round-about detour was. Both routes met up just before Villa franca, so I saved my tired feet from some extra distance. Then .... my last special moemt that actually made me laugh was as I walked into Villafranca. The cobbled roads as one hits the towns ae killers ..... tored feet really comp`lain about cobbles. I had no idea where our accommodation was, but saw a woman selling cherries at the side of the road, so again, tried out my best spanish and aske her if she knew where the place was. She got a funny look in her eyes, and pointed to the place right behind her ... I had arrived. So. One happy pilgrim who has arrived for the night. Going to find out now if the others have arrived, get something to eat and then rest. I walked into the town - its literally like walking down fieldshill, so now I have to go UP UP UP again .... what a pain, but pleased I found an internet cafe.

Pam ... hope you are reading this. thinking of you!
Kathy