Tinto to Pola de Allande

Last night’s dinner was good but nothing spectacular.  I did love the ensalada mixta.  The salads here have the freshest ingredients and as always the mixta is topped with tuna. This one was not a disappointment. It always amazes me that we forget how a tomato is supposed to taste. Ordering was a bit of a challenge because there wasn’t a menu so the owner is trying to ask what I want for a main course and he suggested an omeletta which sounded wonderful.  Spain has really good omelets. Instead, I got a tortilla which is the egg potato dish.  I was all set for an omeletta.  Phooey!  But only a small matter in the grand scheme of things.

I love some of the clever ways that the people honor the Camino,  I ended walking another 2.5 miles last night.  Tineo was a really cool town.  I saw this in the center of Tineo.

I have these trail notes from Camino Ways and when I looked at today’s route it said, “Today’s stage of the Camino will take you through some more challenging terrain.” It was that “more challenging” that concerned me, as well it should have.  Today’s hike was as hard as many of the longer hikes I have had. I climbed over two mountains and there was a ton of very steep uphill.  Whew…pant, pant, gasp gasp.  The total distance was 17.9 miles but it felt more like thirty miles. My first diet coke didn’t come until the ten mile marker. Boy was I ready! And it was rocky which challenges your feet and ankles. There was one small moment that gave me a chuckle.  This young Italian man (say 25) was behind me for quite a ways and I thought, well maybe he wants to pass?  So being a considerate pilgrim, I stepped to the side ad he motioned for me to go ahead and I must have looked confused because in very broken English he told me that he liked my pace.  Everyone else was too slow and if he followed me, it pushed him.  I was proud as punch for about twenty-five yards and then I remembered that my feet hurt.  I lost him who the trail split and became two different Caminos.  Fortunately, there was a map and I knew I wanted to end up in Pola de Allande.

As the day got longer, I turned my iPod to John Denver.  I know some of you are older and some of you are younger but John Denver defined my college years.  What better music than Rocky Mountain High and Annie’s Song to be hiking the mountains.  I listened to John Denver by Eight-track tape each day on the way to the police academy.  I had a dream to be a police officer.  Doesn’t sound like much of a dream by today’s standards but it was pretty lofty at twenty-one and considering the times.  I couldn’t have imagined where that small dream would take me.  And hiking the mountains in Spain wasn’t even a consideration…I just don’t know how it passed so quickly.  Okay so hiking gives me a lot of time to think :)  

I don’t spend a lot of time on my iPod because I like the sounds of nature.  I think one of God’s greatest music contributions is the wind through the trees.  I love that sound.  I also heard lots of birds, tinkling cow bells and the ferocious bark of farm dogs.  Luckily the dogs were all behind fences or chained. I passed one area that was full of honeysuckle that permeated with air with the most glorious fragrance. And of course, anytime you pass through rural areas you get the smell of horses and cows.

So all and all it was a wonderful day with plenty of up and down.  I am as ever, humbled by the majesty of the mountains and the sheer beauty that our Lord has created.  I have two nights here in Pola de Allande which is a pretty small village.  I need the rest day and it is probably good that it is a small village.  I desperately need to work on my school work so you may not hear from me tomorrow.  Adios!