September 20. 8:33 late start. Leaving Santo Domingo. No cafe on the way out of town! Breakfast and coffee must wait until the next village – Grañon.
GrañónGrañónViloria de RiojaGrañón – The My Way bar. Hated to leave. They were playing the BEST music! Visited the church across the street.GrañónGrañónViloria de Rioja – Not much air conditioning in these small villages, but this doorway provides a nice barrier to the elements. Villambistia – Another rest stop! yay!Crossing into Belorado
This is John writing in the first person. I’m going to share a summary of our conversation of this evening, and sprinkle in a few photos she has shared with me. Mary has had a long trip today, pushing the limits of her comfort zone, but doing well, ne’er the less. Her original lodging plans didn’t work out as well as expected, but she’s found accommodations more to her liking.
Within this post, there are some photos she’s taken while sipping a glass (or two) of wine and chatting with me via the usual channels.
Through the miracles (read: technology) of Google StreetView, I can get a glimpse of where she is. So, with the give and take of chatting, I can pretty much get a sense of the environment. Amazing, really.
She had the opportunity to share a table with some local folks that may have been our for dinner, given how they were dressed. Mary and the lady to the right shared some language via iPhone text messages, some how. The young lady spoke a little English. Mary has been enjoying mingling with local folks along the way and has found them to be very friendly.
This is from StreetView Mary is along this strip of wide sidewalk somewhere…
A StreetView from across the street of where Mary is.
This family welcomed me at their table. They didn’t speak English; I didn’t speak Spanish, but we had a grand time. Shared family photos, made jokes. We all laughed and none of us understood a word. I love villagers!
This is not where I was going to stay. But it’s nicer than where I had reservations. The other place was in a questionable part of town. Better safe than sorry.
It has four beds… !
Today’s distance: 14.68 miles. Whew.
I will forage for food after I somehow retrieve my backpack from the other place.
The merchants don’t open till 5 PM. They’re having a siesta.
Cirueña – Shade! Took advantage of that little shady spot. Alesanco – Muddy pathCirueña – A spot for a break after a long, hot, shadeless climb. Just climbed a hill for about 40 minutes. Felt like hours. A man at the top of the hill is selling cold drinks and other stuff. Diet Coke and watermelon for me. Here are people relaxing after the climb.
