San Pedro de Mérida strikes me as so forgettable that if I don’t write this now likely I won’t remember i was here tomorrow. In fact the other two towns between here and Medellin are singularly equally uninteresting to a walker except for one thing: both had an open bar at the time we needed it. Breakfast at the first bar was good and coke light at the second very welcome. Lunch here was essential!
Today is memorable for me for a real reason though: the boys, Benedo and Manolo, are 15km ahead, having needed to get to Merida today. Neither Victoria nor I fancied 40+km so we walked just the 26 or so to San Pedro.
Sad to part from the boys but they both have work at home, in the Canary Islands, next week. And we missed them this morning! Their uncanny ability to find yellow arrows in the dark is amazing. My electronic map is essential for me as be blowed if I can find the ‘flechas’ like they can. V shows some promise.
She had a hard day today and, like me, needs a break.
The countryside was very different with a crop I’ve never seen here before: flood irrigated rice. The usual maize and almonds were near the rice. And I loved the stork’s nest on a pole. First time I’ve seen that since the last walked the Via de la Plata, in 2013, and fell in love with walking in spain.
Finding accomodation
So, Merida tomorrow. A 15km walk, hotel already booked for two nights. No albergue: had I not already had an ambivalence to them in some places I’d have developed it today. There is one here, in San Pedro, but find the keys on a Saturday! Ha ha. Good luck. Everything is shut. It’s a strange system in places.
The Spanish couple with backpacks who suddenly appeared on a street in front of me, and who can’t have come from Medellin or I’d have seen them earlier, finally found a key somewhere. Then they decided not to stay in the albergue and were going to give us the key after they picked up their packs.
They disappeared from the restaurant they’d been in, didn’t bring us the key so I suggested to V we stay in the hostal over the road from the restaurant. We are now happily ensconced here, a two-bed room for possibly not a lot more at €12.50 each.
We have a bathroom, balcony (sort of) and a tv (‘spose it works). And we are none the wiser as to where the couple came from, why they didn’t want to stay in the albergue and why they didn’t bring us the key. In fact they moved into the hostal but I’ve neither seen nor heard them again.
Next stage
Now, back to Merida. I’ve booked the sort of hotel I want to stay in for two nights. Costs me the same for 2 as for me alone so it’ll be with V too. We will continue north towards Salamanca on the Via de la Plata. Don’t know how long I’ll keep walking.
Maybe I’ll get sick of the attendant hassles of a camino or maybe I’ll continue to just love the walking in the early part of the day especially, from sunrise on.
Maybe V and I will stay walking together for a while, maybe not. Who knows. She is nice and it’s great traveling with a native speaker. At present we usually use Spanish (conversations are neither long nor involved) but she can speak english. When I’m tired that it is such a blessing. I’m looking forward to meeting native english speakers again. It’s been a couple of weeks since I have.
I’m also so looking forward to the short day tomorrow (15km), the same bed for 2 consecutive nights, and a rest. Roman ruins and museum on Sunday as they’ll be shut Monday. So a whole day of nothing on Monday. I need it. Had a nana nap late this afternoon and will still sleep tonight. I’m tired.
Feet
My feet are begging for a rest. They and me have managed without poles quite happily but now need some time out. 😁 Time without a pack making them pound their little selves so hard on the ground, especially when on sealed roads rather than tracks. Hard!
Back to Medellin
And the lovely town of Medellin last night: I had some techo problems and couldn’t find some of the photos I wanted.
Wandering the world 