Day 16 – Burgos to Hornillos

I woke up at 6:30 but it was on my own not to the rustling of others. I had my breakfast and packed up.

IMG_4880-5.JPG

My feet had been very tired when I arrived in Burgos, now they feel much better. I like the old city of Burgos very much but the hike out of town was not very interestingly and went for a long time. After several uninteresting villages all of the sudden I broke out into the countryside. I had entered the meseta. It was really pretty. This picture is a panoramic from road behind me to road ahead of me.

IMG_4892-0.JPG

The air was cool and and sun bright. I reached a high point and could see the path winding down the hill to Hornillaos.

IMG_4894.JPG

This is a very sleepy town. It has a population of 100 but it looks bigger. However many of the buildings along the street appear to be façades, the building behind collapsed.

IMG_4899.JPG

IMG_4900.JPG

It reminds me of a small Mexican village, dry, sunny, and dusty. Many people seem to be walking on but I’ve stopped since there is no hurry.
I went through the routine and it was a nice sunny day my stuff dried nicely (first time in several days). I read, wrote postcards, and rested. I went to the small square and had a couple of beers. Various pilgrims came and went some I knew some were new. One was a nice lady from New Zealand, Marion. She is a contract nurse in Australia. She works when she needs to and travels the rest of the time. We talked about places to visit in New Zealand but I think that information didn’t stick in my head. At 6:00 the pilgrims meal started and everyone rushed the door. It looked like the blue light special at a diner. I sat in the square listening to the noise and decided to skip dinner and have bread, cheese and almonds. Martin and Jane came by and we discussed the fine art of Chablis and Champagne wine. I’ll have to start planning a trip back to France. Afterward I returned to the albergue and chatted with a couple of young guys playing chess. They seemed to be thinking hard about what move to make but the two empty wine bottles made me think that deep thinking wasn’t really happening.

It’s been a good day.

21.8 km
33891 steps