Carrion to Caldadilla

The 10 mile hike from Carrion was pretty much the same landscape. Endless miles of farmland with no farm house, silos or barns. It seems that the farmers must all live in the villages and we have no idea where the crops are stored. They must harvest and immediately send their crops to market.

We were supposed to get a free breakfast at a restaurant down the street from our hotel but when we arrived it was not open. No problem we had protein bars and a few oranges with us so we started off.

During the walk we shared our oranges with a shy young man from Estonia. His English was quite good and he told us that he liked Americans because when Russia threatens to invade his country America helps them. It was nice to hear a positive remark because on a few occasions we have been walking and have overheard someone say "Americano." Not sure in what context they were using the word and did not ask. We also spent some time with a young couple from Winnipeg. She is walking the entire 500 miles and her husband has flown in towalk with her for awhile.

I made a real effort to drink more as per everyone's advice and it made a huge difference. I tried out the new shoes and my toes were quite happy but my heel, not so much. By the time we arrived I had a sizeable blister on my left heel.  The recommended treatment is to run a needle and thread through it to drain the fluid. I had the needle and thread but we needed some antiseptic. The only store in town was a Mini Mart a lovely young mother was running in one room in her home. Of course she spoke no English and our Spanish consists of about ten words. Using sign language we could make her understand what we needed.  She pulled down from the shelf a box containing a liquid she promised would do the trick. She also had quite a supply of hypodermic needles! I assured her that I had a needle. Charlie skillfully ran the thread through the blister and then we sent Dr. Dan a text asking if it was time for antibiotics and he gave us the go ahead. I am sure in a few days my poor feet will be as good as new.

In every town we stay in every restaurant has a pilgrim menu. For about 10€ each you can get a three course meal with unlimited wine and beer. Some meals are better than others but all have been satisfactory.

Last night we dined with three lovely ladies from Minnesota and three real characters from California. About three days ago one of the women from CA saw a small snake on the road and she decided to pick it up. It turned out to be a poisonous snake and she ended up hospitalized on IV's! Her hand was still nearly black and somewhat swollen.you certainly meet all kinds of people here!