Alone In The Meseta (Day 14)

So I’ve arrived in the Meseta. I’m told I have four more days of flat fields to look forward to. I know that a fair number of pilgrims choose not to walk this section. It’s mainly due to the heat and because it’s “boring”. I might have a different opinion a few days from now but I enjoyed the walk through the fields today. At just under 15 miles and no intense heat it was fairly easy.

It was a lot of this.

Me and floppy hat rockin the Meseta. For those of you that know me well, yes - that is Carl the original Buff. Thanks for noticing.

I walked alone today and it was nice. I had many hours to reflect on anything and everything. At times I truly thought of nothing. Many of you smart asses will say, “that’s nothing new for you”. I will start by saying that’s childish and you’re a big meanie. i will finish by saying, can you remember the last time that you truly weren’t thinking about anything? If the answer is yes, then good for you - that’s awesome. If the answer is no then you should give it a try. I’m not sure where my mind went but it was quite nice. I looked down at my watch and it had been an hour. A full hour had gone by with no thoughts of where I would eat, what my hostal would be like, what my pace was, how were things back home, how was work going, etc. I’m not sure how I got there but I wouldn’t mind going back once in a while.

I’ve seen a lot of abandoned shoes on this journey but these are by far the sorriest pair

The prairies led me to perhaps my favorite place so far, the ruins of the Monastery of Saint Anthony. My friend Kim has a friend who volunteers at the albergue there so I wanted to make sure and stop in and maybe get to meet her (any friend of Kim’s is bound to be a pretty special person).

This is the albergue. The sleeping rooms are behind the doors to the left and the main hall/dining area is behind the doors on the right. It’s amazing.

The staff was out when I arrived so I wandered around and explored a little. Eventually everyone else left and I was alone in the ruins. It got extremely still and I found myself being as quiet as possible as I moved around. I’m not sure why but it seemed appropriate. This is what I saw:

I’m pretty happy with how the pictures turned out. It has a lot to do with my understanding of light and shadow and my firm grasp of perspective. Also, I press that little wand thingie on the upper right hand of the picture when you go to edit.

Shortly after the ruins I arrived in the village I will stay in tonight. I enjoyed a dinner with some friendly faces (those at the same pace tend to bump into each other many evenings) and am now hanging my underwear and socks out my window to dry, because I’m classy.

Possible rain tomorrow. Ugh. I guess it’s either that or extreme heat so I’ll take the rain. It will remind me of home, which I do miss.

When I started that sign said 780 kms

That’s Roland, the dog from a nearby bar. I’m not sure if that’s his name but if it isn’t it should be. All hail Roland.