On 22 April 2013, I walked from Azofra to Granon, a distance of about 22 kilometres. By now, the blisters on my feet continued to thrive but the pain they caused had begun to recede. The albergue in Granon had not been listed in the John Brierly Camino guide and it had opened for business a short while before I walked into Granon and discovered there was a brand new, clean albergue in which I could stay. Stopping in Granon meant I could stop walking earlier than I had intended. I had intended to walk to Ciruena, some additional kilometres along the Camino. The universe had smiled at me because the Granon albergue was a much more appealing place to stay than the village of Ciruena. Ciruena had been badly hit economically by the Global Financial Crisis and had a depressed appearance when I walked through it the next day.
****
Me at a giant cross on the Camino between Azofra and Granon on Monday, 22nd of April 2013.
****
Stuart and me as we walked from Azofra to Granon at the giant cross on the 22nd of April. The countryside was mostly flat, rolling plains.
****
The church attic at Granon where I slept on a mattress on the floor after the walk earlier that day.
****
The eating area below the church attic where we slept on the 22nd of April 2013.
****
Waiting outside the local Granon restaurant, we were wondering when it would open. Spanish custom is for the evening meal to be eaten much later than in Australia – often in late evening, from about 9.00 pm onward. All of the people in this photo were peregrinos staying in the Granon church attic; we were all hungry because we had walked many kilometres every day for several days.
****
The Camino on the way to Granon from Azofra on the 22nd of April 2013. The walking was pleasant, although the weather was always cold until later in the day. Eventually, my body started to toughen up and get used to the constant walking.
****
Diary Entry Made on Monday 22 April 2013 at 2.20 pm
I am at Granon. I arrived at about 12:55 pm. According to Brierley I covered 22.2 kilometres today. I covered this distance with the Canadian Stuart Taylor. We got a bed on mattresses on the floor inside the local church here in Granon. It is a very pleasant location.
Santo Domingo de la Calzada was the major town along the way. We paid for a tour ticket to let us tour the cathedral and saw the rooster that is housed inside the cathedral. I have a pamphlet about the rooster.
It was a relatively straightforward walk today. My feet were well on the way to healing themselves when I woke up this morning. They didn't look very good when I stopped at Azofra yesterday. I walked without strapping today for the first time since Uterga. It was a great relief.
For the first time since Larrasoana I didn't feel I was about to pass out when I got here, hence this entry so early in the afternoon.
Distance Walked Today: 22.2 kilometres.
Total Distance Walked So Far: 205.6 kilometres.
Total Distance Covered So Far: 218 kilometres including the 12.4 kilometres by taxi.
This was my entry ticket when I visited the rooster in the cathedral at Santa Iglesia catedral in the town of Santa Domingo De La Rioja.
****
Soul Song Number 10 – Rolling on the Rooster
(22 April 2013)
It is dawn again.
Once again, the Path unfolds in front.
For once, you are mostly pain free,
So your pace is longer,
Your step a little higher.
After the walking you have already done,
This is simple stuff.
Die berg is now merely an occasional visitor,
It is keen to remind you that it is still there,
Even if it is no longer anxious to inflict any real pain,
For die berg has made its point.
So the uphills can fade away,
Letting you roll on.
Striding out the kilometres.
Ciruena swirls past.
You are glad you didn't stay there last night.
It is a distressing place,
Haunted by the ghosts of failed real estate developments.
Before you know it, you are in Santo Domingo de la Calzada,
So you visit the cathedral.
For €3.00 you get to see the only rooster that lives in a cathedral.
While the visitors wander aimlessly,
The rooster crows.
Why should it not?
Crowing is what roosters do,
Even if they do live in a cathedral.
Then it is time to roll again.
Soon enough you are in Granon,
With your mattress spread out on the floor of the "Hospital" albergue.
It is housed inside the church.
It is peaceful.
It has been a good day.
.
****
No comments:
Post a Comment