Day 7 of the meseta.
Easy instructions today. Leave Sahagun under the Arco San Benito gate, cross the Puente Romano bridge, and you are on the path. Straight ahead for 17 kilometres. There is a quiet sealed road on your right, approx 1 vehicle per hour. There is a line of poplars on your left, equally spaced every 10 metres, for 17 kilometres. There are seats and tables among the poplars every kilometre. Enjoy.
On no account are you to start counting the poplars, as if you lose where you are up to, then you have to go back to the beginning and start again.
Up until the 80s this path was said to have quite a mystical effect. There was no road, the poplars hadn’t been planted and the path had not been formed. You just walked across fields. With no points of reference or distinguishing geographic features it was regarded as desolate and for those inclined, mystic. Today the path has been bulldozed and the road and trees give it a very strong perspective. These “improvements” make it impossible to lose perspective and the mystic effect has been lost.
The Puente Romano is a five arch Roman bridge but it was reconstructed in the 11the and 16th centuries so we couldn’t tell what was original. Just beyond the bridge was a woodland named Charlemagne’s Field of Lances. Charlemagne was pursuing the Moors in an effort to make the road safe for pilgrims. The night before the battle some Christians stuck their lances into the ground, straight up, in front of the camp. At dawn those men who were to die in the coming battle found their lances had grown bark and sprouted leafy branches. Astonished and attributing the miracle to God’s divine power, they cut them off at ground level. From the buried roots of the lances was born the woodland. 40,000 Christians died in losing the battle.
I love all the legends on the Camino. Everyday there is something to think about.
We both enjoyed today. The walking was “straightforward” and we had a spring in our step. Last night we happened to meet Victoria and Craig (from Arizona) and ate with them in the very good hotel restaurant. They are very friendly and generous people and Craig has a sardonic sense of humour and our spirits were raised hugely. We ate the basic peregrino menu but they really love their food and had a great time picking specialities from the a la carte menu.
Today was our nineteenth day of walking and I think for the first time we approached a village without seeing a massive church bell tower. At about 5 villages per day that’s 95 villages. When right in the village we did see a very skinny, skeletal tower. Sort of a Twiggy tower. We were not sure if it was a bell tower or a tower at the fire station for hanging up the hoses. There weren’t any storks nests, so probably the latter.
Ipod theme song of the day: Magical Mystery Tour, The Beatles
Roll up, roll up for the magical mystery tour
.. . . . . . .
The magical mystery tour is waiting to take you away
Waiting to take you away