Church in Paradela

(Barbadelo to Portomarin’: 18.5 km, 6 1/2 hours, 1 hr & 30 min breaks; 27,018 steps, plus 2440 later)

Hebrews 12:14-28
22-23a But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven….

We’re getting closer. Maurice has studied the map and divided up the remaining distance, and we have evaluated where we might like to stay. We’ve just passed Sarria and pilgrim numbers have noticeably increased. When we get to Santiago there will be hundreds, maybe thousands, of pilgrims crowding into the cathedral for the pilgrim mass. But we won’t just be in the Santiago cathedral. Wherever God’s people gather to worship him in the name of Jesus, they touch the throne of heaven. Our praises rise and we are in “Mount Zion…the city of the living God.” It is not just the pilgrim people worshipping, in Santiago or anywhere else in the world believers gather, but also “thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly” who join their praises with the earthly church and raise their voices in love of the Creator. Hallelujah! Lord, thank you that you made a way for us pilgrims yet on earth to touch heaven.

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Breakfast was expensive and only adequate. We left the room at 8:15, not realizing it was raining. We stood on the porch to put on our rain gear. As soon as we started walking, the rain tapered off and the path went up. We were too warm so we stopped to take off our jackets. Finally we were really on our way, past fields fenced with flat stones on edge, alongside pastures wet and green, through lovely lanes curving through tiny stone hamlets with barns and cows and the typical picturesque granaries elevated on stone pillars to keep the rodents out.

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(Samos to Barbadelo: 18.4 km, 6 hours with 1 hr & 40 min breaks; 25,548 steps, plus 260 later)

Hebrews 12:1-13
v. 3, 7, 11 Consider [Jesus] who endured such opposition from sinful men, so you do not grow weary and lose heart…. Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons…. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

Growing weary and losing heart–that’s exactly what I’m doing. I go to bed tired and wake up tired and then we walk. What’s the point, I wonder. But consider Jesus, says the text. What I’m going through is nothing compared to what he went through. Jesus was not just physically tired but conspired against, unrighteously judged and dragged to a hideous death. He did it all “for the joy set before him” (v. 2), of pleasing the Father and returning to the glories of heaven with a redeemed people. What I’m doing may be hard, but it’s a discipline, writes the author of Hebrews. God has put me on this path because he loves me and is working his good purposes in my life. If I submit to the experience and keep walking with him, I will grow in righteousness and live in his peace. Dear Jesus, help me to endure this path you have set us on. Keep me from growing weary and losing heart.

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Breakfast at the hotel was just as nice as everything else there, with fresh orange juice and plenty of jam. We left at 9:15, first going along the road then continuing into the woods, through pastures and hamlets, for another beautiful walk in the sun. We stopped in a bar for coke and Santiago cake before returning to what the guidebook called a “delightful forest track;” we know that is Camino-speak for “uphill walk.”

At the top of a hill, with bread and oranges

Green Galician countryside with stone slab wall reinforced with thicket

A granary past its prime

At Sarria we walked seemingly forever through the modern part of town before climbing steps to the medieval section. At a little over 100 kilometers from Santiago, Sarria is a popular starting point for people who only want to walk the minimum distance required to get a compostela. The hordes of pilgrims we expected in town were not there; the churches at the beginning and end of the old town where credencials are stamped were not open. Apparently prime pilgrim season was over. It was damp and cool out so we went into the Meson O Tapas for a real lunch. The Ohio girls were already there.

Tympanum of Christ in Majesty and the Tree of Life, 13th-century Iglesia del Salvador, Sarria

When we left it was hinting of rain. We walked to the edge of town and put on our pack covers. We stopped in the Monasterio de la Magdalena for a sello and put on our rain jackets. As we headed down the hill it drizzled on and off. By the time we got to Barbadelo about four kilometers farther on it was raining steadily.

Maurice was ready to stop and selected the first place we came to, Casa Barbadelo, a sort of modern complex with a swimming pool (which I knew meant expensive). We ended up in a double room (spacious, with four beds) and bargained the price down. I thought the room smelled–sewery, covered over with perfume. Maurice didn’t smell a thing and was happy to be out of the rain. He also says we’re finished with albergue bunks; a month is more than enough for the true Camino experience.

The pilgrim menu was served in a lovely room that looked like a library in a country house. I had caldo gallego again instead of salad, then we had some tasty Galician beef. For dessert I had another specialty: a chunk of mild local cheese with a slab of quince jelly–delicious. After we ate I sat on the sofa near the small modern fireplace to write until all the tables emptied and the clean-up crew kicked me out. But first I went over to the piano. There was some sheet music sitting on it as if people actually played it. But no…. Maybe Camino pianos are supposed to remind us of the discordance of life so we long for heaven. Or maybe there are just no piano tuners in Spain.

Samos

(Triacastela to Samos: 9.8 km, 2 1/2 hours; 14,500 steps, plus 9,370 later)

Hebrews 11:13-16
v. 13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were strangers and pilgrims on earth.

Strangers and pilgrims indeed. Every town is new, every day is a challenge, yet in eating establishments and albergues we are generally received graciously wherever we stop. We have imagined the end of our long walk from afar for a long time now, wondering at the glories of Santiago de Compostela. I am tired and would welcome the goal right now. But we will get there in God’s time, just as we live out our earthly life according to his plans. Strengthen us, Lord, for the remainder of the distance. Help us to be faithful pilgrims.

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Breakfast with our expensive room was pitiful: three tiny slices of bread, plain yogurt, slivers of cheese, two transparent slices of jamon and a small glass of orange juice, perked up with coffee con leche and Cola Cao. Maurice spilled the OJ on his iphone. Keep reading

Starting at St. Jean Pied de Port (babes in the woods!)

In Galicia and still walking

Here’s what a typical day on the Camino is like: Keep reading

(O Cebreiro to Triacastela: 20.7 km, 7 1/4 hours with 2 hrs breaks; 30,600 steps, plus 1840 later)

Philippians 4:10-13, 19-20
v. 13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

I can walk up hills. I can walk without breakfast. I can walk in the rain. I can walk when I hurt. Walking with Jesus, I can do whatever he calls me to do. Thank you, Lord, for your strength in all the steps of life.

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The restaurant where we ate in O Cebreiro Keep reading

9th-century Iglesia de Santa Maria Real, O Cebreiro, with sello

(La Portela de Valcarce to O Cebreiro: 14.8 km, 5 3/4 hours with 1 hr & 40 min breaks; 21,170 steps, plus 1830 later)

Philippians 4:4-9
v. 4-7 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

“Rejoice in the Lord always!” The joy to be found in our relationship with the Lord is always greater than whatever despairing situation in which we find ourselves. I need to look to that joy instead of the steepness of the rocky path under my feet. I’ll get up it. We pray every day in our pilgrim prayer that Jesus will be for us “a companion on our journey, the guide on our intersections, the strengthening during fatigue….” Will he not answer with his presence, his direction, his strength and his joy? So rejoice! “Let your gentleness be evident to all,” even the careless pilgrims blowing smoke in my direction at the tables outside the bar. “Do not be anxious about anything,” not lung damage from the smoke, not two beds for the night, not even whether the laundry will dry. I just need to discuss it with the Lord, thankfully remembering all he’s already done for us. As we wait for answers, even answers we might not expect, he brings us peace. Thank you, Jesus, for your joy even in the difficulties and irritations of life.

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We slept fine, but the bar was not open at seven as the barkeep had told Maurice it would be. Since the day’s path was to be so steep, we had decided to send our packs ahead and weren’t sure where to put them. We were also supposed to call to confirm our hotel in O Cebreiro and we were counting on the barkeep to help us with that. We took our time getting ready and finally left at 8:15, breakfastless once again, with a light in the bar but the door still locked. Maurice called the transport company himself; their English was minimal, his Spanish is nil. They got the message our packs were waiting; they’d find them. As for the hotel–well, Maurice called them too and they didn’t answer but Maurice may have accidentally dialed a number in Iran. Or Singapore. Or both. At least that’s what his phone says. Keep reading

Villafranca del Bierzo

(Cacabelos to La Portela de Valcarce: 22 km, 6 hours 40 minutes with 1 1/2 hours breaks; 31,00 steps)

Philippians 3:12-4:1
v. 12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.

I am done–ready to be finished with this pilgrimage. We’ve been walking for over a month now and we have not arrived at our goal. We are so tired. As we came through the hills the sky clouded over and the temperature dropped. The toughest climb of the walk looms in the morning, and my weather app tells me the chance of rain tomorrow is 100%. But we can’t stop now. We have to keep walking, to press on in this journey in which Jesus took hold of us and said, “Let’s go!” Though our gaze may be mostly at the rocks in the path that threaten to trip us, Jesus sees beyond the horizon to the blessings at the end of this walk and the eternal goal of all our lives. Lord Jesus, help us to hold on to you and to keep walking.

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Riego de Ambros

(Molinaseca to Las Angustias: 22.7 km; 34,953 steps, plus 3860 later)

Philippians 2:12-18
v. 14 Do everything without grumbling or complaining.

Uh huh. How, then, am I supposed to discharge my miserable fatigue? “Come to me, you who are weary and burdened,” says Jesus (Matthew 11:28), and so I will. I am so very tired, Lord. I am tired of walking. I am tired of junky paths and rocks underfoot. I am tired of carrying this pack. I am tired of carrying the poles when I don’t need to use them and tired of taking pictures and tired of friendly greetings with passing pilgrims. I am tired of getting up at 6 am and trying to quietly get ready in the dark. I am tired of squeezing out my laundry as hard as I can and tired of it not drying anyway. I am tired of potatoes. I am tired of the search for restroom facilities. I am tired of people smoking in my space and tired of not having any space. I am tired of chewing as fast as I can and not being able to properly compose my pictures and rushing through the day because we have to do the kilometers. I am just tired. The rest and the motionless sitting in the sun we had on the plaza in Leon seem very far away. Please, Lord, energize me and refresh me again.

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The bathroom facilities in this albergue are quite adequate even though they are in the basement. Breakfast was OK–orange juice, a hot drink and two big slabs of tostada with plenty of butter and jam. But the smoke! People started puffing on the porch before dawn and the smoke was sucked into every open window and door of this otherwise lovely albergue.

We had a nice enough walk into Ponferrada, mostly downhill but not too steep. We took selfies by the castillo in the sun then spent over an hour walking around looking for an ATM, a grocery store and a bar with bacon and eggs. Ha. How about a bar with a chocolate croissant? Nope. Finally just a bar with a WC would do.

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We did it!  We walked 500 miles across Spain!  Stay tuned for details on the rest of the days that got us here.

(Foncebadon’ to Molinaseca: 20.3 km, 7 hours with 1 hr & 35 min breaks; 30,200 steps, with a few more later)

Philippians 2:1-11
v. 9-11 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

The name that is above every name–all the greatest personnages and cities of the earth–is the name of Jesus. God has exalted him to the highest place–higher than mankind’s engineering marvels, higher than Fancebadon’ and other Camino mountain villages–as Lord of heaven and earth. One day, to God’s everlasting glory, every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Hallelujah! Lord Jesus, may we honor you with all our lives.

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In the 8 am darkness the fog hung thickly on Foncebadon’, softening its decaying gray buildings. An international contingent of us tramped up the rugged street, up and out of the stone town. As the morning lightened, fog wrapped around fences and bushes along the path.

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