I apologise for the lack of blog yesterday. 8 pilgrims and 5 bottles of wine made the decision for me that I would not be writing anything coherent. 

To be fair nothing really happened. It was a wet one yesterday. Here are a few photos.

Here are a couple of me crossing the state’s border into the Asturias from Cantabria.

Mind blowing stuff!! 

The walk yesterday took us to an albergue that we waiting outside for it to open only to be confronted with “have you reserved a bed?” 

Still haven’t got round to being better at that.

A Latvian dude called Roslan was waiting with us. He hadn’t reserved one either but two other fuckers that were waiting had so we got to watch them walk past the bed bouncer into safety. After a very sarcastic and annoyed Buen Camino to both of them we left.

It worked out though. Latvian dude was awesome and we found an albergue a few kilometers along the way. 

We all approached, tired after the unexpected extra 4km and said “do you have a space?” She replied “have you reserved a bed” Grrrrrrrrrr

Fortunately it seemed like a hypothetical question because she just let us pile in. 

Once we had unloaded and showered we were sitting in the room and Roslan was on his phone. He put the phone down, looked at everyone and said “Wine?” We all left the bedroom to the dining table and started on one of many bottles of red wine. 

We had Ozzie’s, frenchies, Germanies, latvianies, dutchies and old englishy me. 

A real good bunch of people and, much like the wine, the conversation didn’t stop flowing. Dinner was about 7ish and we all tucked in and afterwards we sat there chatting until about 12. It really was a nice evening. 

There was a short walk planned for tomorrow due to 

A: Being a rubbish pilgrim

B: Beth was on route and we wanted to slow up a bit so she could catch up

C: Jenny’s birthday!!! 

It started off well. I had a great night’s sleep and there were no snorers! Jenny had to fight off a couple of mosquitos but apart from that all was well. 

We awoke and chewed the fat for a bit with the other guys and then went on our merry way to a beach which was about 6km away. That would leave a nice 2km left to the Albergue the other end. Easy peasy.

The route today was fantastic. Off road, along the coast and it took us past some truly spectacular sights. 

Again, the benefit of not doing any research prevailed and we found ourselves looking at a natural bridge with some rather chaotic waves crashing beneath. It was photo time and just as I was about to get my photo taking a million children in little orange hard hats came crossing over on a little tour I guess. For all I knew it was some sort of weird Spanish tradition but it turned out they were there to explore a cave. 

We kind of tagged along and saw them all go into a dark cavern. If there wasn’t a guided tour going through it I would have bottled it about 5 meters in but instead we followed them and after about an 80 meter walk of low ceilings, musty air and it being pitch black we were treated to the opening to the sea. What an experience!! I tried to pass it off that I had put it all there for Jenny’s birthday but I don’t think she believed me. 

After pretending I was batman we made our way off to the beach. There were a few to choose from along the way but I took full advantage of Google’s eye in the sky and we picked one of the most perfect little beaches I’ve seen. The sand weaved it’s way through rock formations and a corridor of cliff guided you straight into the sea. 

One of the main benefits was that there were no other smelly pilgrims there! In fact, apart from myself, Jenny and Roslan, there wasn’t a single soul to be seen.

It’s lovely being sociable and talking to new people, getting to hear other people’s stories and building relationships but it’s also lovely to be on a completely secluded beach. 

My inner child came out and I drew some tits and a nob. I stand by my decision because 5 blokes rode past, stopped, looked and laughed. 

It’s nice to know that deep down every man is actually a child in a slightly larger body.

I then drew Jenny a little message.

I then drew all the other pilgrims a message. 

There was a really cool rock formation which I thought was a bit special.

As I waved goodbye to nature’s buttplug myself and Jenny made our way towards the albergue and I reflected on the day.

I won’t go into any detail but if anyone knows the answers to an existential crisis then let me know. 

It’s a simple question guys. What should I do with the rest of my life? 

Come on, you’re all mates who read this, help a brother out!

Failing that I’ll just wander through Spain for the rest of my life. It’s a win win for me! 

We got to the albergue and Roslan was sitting out the front with a couple of beers. It was a very welcome sight. Myself and Jenny walked in and were welcomed by one of the loveliest people I have met on this journey. 

A Dutch lady called Anna showed us to our rooms and said “chill outside and have a drink, get your bed or just wind down. The choice is yours” 

We chucked our stuff on the bed then head to the supermarket to grab wine and beer. 

While I was sitting there chatting to Roslan Beth turned up and we had a massive cuddle. It was soooooo good to see her again. 

She dropped her stuff off then went to the supermarket for beer too. Man I’ve missed this girl!!! 

Once everyone was checked in and settled Anna put on a dinner for us.

I can honestly say it was one of the nicest evenings I’ve had. She made everyone some pretty amazing food and prompted everyone to have a bit of a chat about themselves. Initially I was a bit apprehensive but once she started and the conversation moved round the table it was so lovely. It opened people up, it got conversations started and after an hour of food and chatting I felt much closer to all the people around the table. It was a very cool thing to get going. It was unique and a bit special. 

I’m finishing this off now because I’m writing it as people are chatting in the background and I want to go and join them.

Today was one of my best days. I am really loving this guy’s.

BUEN CAMINO