It’s not like I needed to be up at 5 am today to start walking. Leon is only 18 kilometers from the auberge where I slept — fitfully among the hackers and wheezers. (Swear to god, thought I was in a TB ward.)
Call it the tyranny of the mob.
When several people decide to start their day at 5 am, everybody starts their day at 5 am.
I held off til 6:30 am as I’d already booked a spot in Leon. No need to race into the city for a coveted bunk in the municipal auberge.
Once again, the rain stayed on the horizon but the clouds made for an entertaining walk to Leon:
Somewhere in the wee hours, Ingrid from Sweden and Steve and Miriam from Florida and I formed a walking coalition, all the way into the city.
Ingrid has a walking friend who is experiencing a host of foot and leg issues. She’s busing into Leon today. Miriam is originally from Michoacán and they are considering a move to Mexico.
The view from my balcony — Leon cathedral in one direction and a public square in the other.
I booked a room in a boutique hotel a block from the Cathedral for the next two night. And you know what got me excited — besides the amazing shower, the thick white cotton towels, the luxuriously comfortable bed, and the privacy?
Some Camino friends who passed by as I was enjoying the cafe lifestyle. Photo 1: Minli from Malaysia and I walked together many days ago. Photo 2: Willemijn from the Netherlands and I have met off and on for nearly a week. Photo 3: Greg, from Poland, is a mutual friend who happened to be walking by as we were talking. Photo 4: The three sitting on the Leon sign were all in the same bunk room as me last night. In the last photo: The Three Musketeers Franco, Eduardo, and Roberto at dinner last night.
It has a washing machine in the room. And a drying rack! And a portable heater!
No more washing clothes by hand at 3 pm and hoping there is enough sun left to dry them.
Not today, at least.
Camino pro tip: don’t wash everything at once. Leave something to wear besides a towel while the wash runs.
As I waited for my room to open up, I grabbed a sandwich and coffee at a cafe table with a spectacular view of the Cathedral.
It was also a great place to spot friends from the road and catch up.
Friendship is a fluid thing on the Camino.
Some people I met early on are days ahead. Some are leaving Leon tomorrow, after an extra day. Some will be coming in tomorrow. Some arrived today. Some I’ve lost touch with completely.
Some seem on the same wavelength and you encounter them at the end of most days, even in the same auberge by coincidence.
I sometimes feel that there is a reason some of us keep encountering each other. Some cosmic reason that none of us knows or understand.
It is like we all share a piece of Camino DNA that is transmitted through friendship, no matter how brief.
You walk with someone for a day or even an hour, and then you see them a few days later and there is a bond you feel.
Tomorrow, I will tour the cathedral and explore a bit and then turn my attention to the home stretch.
My only deadline is to be on board an AirFrance flight from Paris on Oct. 25.
I honestly don’t know if I’ve left myself too little or plenty of time to finish the Camino Frances.
I’ll know better tomorrow.
Tonight, some dinner with friends, if my clothes dry.
And the a long quiet sleep between cotton sheets in a fluffy bed.
Heavenly.
