Three Nights to Remember

Last year I immediately began walking after arriving in Spain. But this year Rand was in charge of planning our first 3 days. Then we would walk.

Rand picked out 3 very meaningful places for us to stay.

The first night we went to St. Jean Pied de Port, France, where we first met. It was so much fun reliving those first hours. I had arrived in the early evening, by taxi (remember I got car sick in the backseat!) and he came by taxi later, around 10 p.m. I stayed at the albergue across from the citadel, and he stayed at the albergue next to the river. I ate at the pizza place, and he ate at the restaurant right across the street. How amazing that our paths were so close to crossing that first night!

We went to my albergue first. It was 9 p.m. and the doors had just been locked for the night. But at least Rand got to see where I stayed the night before we met. We walked down the same street that I walked. I pointed out the fountain where I filled up my water bottles, and the store where I bought postcards and my Camino shell.

He pointed at the clock, with the statue of St. James, "You mean you saw this before you even met me?" I laughed. Because when we first met he asked me to go see this statue with him before we continued our walk. I didn't tell him that I had seen it 5 minutes earlier. I simply backtracked with him before we went on our Way.

We crossed the river and made a right, down the street where we first met, and around the corner to his albergue. Little did he know that he could see the street where we would meet from the backyard of his albergue! It too was locked for the night. But next door a woman was closing up shop, packing away fresh oysters, and she called Sabina, the woman who ran the albergue, and asked her to come.

It was cold so the woman let us wait with her. I asked if she wanted us to go and she said, "Slowly, slowly." A good reminder that you can't rush on the Camino! She told me that she sleeps in her van on days she works and had it running to keep it warm. The woman had to be 80 years old. I wonder if I will still be so adventurous!

Sabina showed up and remembered Rand right away. She was delighted to hear that we met a year before, practically in her backyard! A beautiful first evening in Spain!

Our second night Rand took us to Granon, where we fell in love with Ernesto, who ran a Donativo (an albergue that operates on donations but doesn't charge a set fee to stay). Ernesto was so excited to see us and update us on all the people we had met that night a year ago. (Oliver, the man with the tractor, now has a donkey and a girlfriend with 3 kids. They all come from France and visit regularly.) And to show us all the improvements he has made since we were last there. The top floor was completed and now has bunk beds (where we slept this time), and the bottom floor has a living/dining/kitchen room with a fireplace. "My dream," he said. It was so wonderful to see that this man, who we remember for having such a passion for the Camino and its legacy of hospitality, succeeding. A great reminder that dreams can and do come true!

On our third night Rand took us to the Parador Hotel in Leon, where we spent our last night together a year ago. As much as we loved staying with Ernesto on his bunk beds in an unheated room, we were equally happy to stay at one of the fanciest hotels in Spain. A night of pampering was just what we needed before beginning our walk! And this time we didn't have the added pressure of saying goodbye to one another in the morning. This time, we are going to Santiago together!