Hello dear friends! Today (Friday), my Dad wanted to try and walk, so that he did! He sent his pack ahead to the hostel we would be at, and off we went. It was an 11km day, and he made it! However, probably not the wisest decision. He was in a fair amount of pain, and by the end it seemed like a good “just because you can doesn’t mean you should” moment. But it does really show my Dad’s determination, which is admirable!
Since my Dad still left ahead of me, I walked for a bit on my own. I stopped at a couple churches along the way and saw some beautiful stain-glass. In every Catholic Church you’ll find images depicting the stations of the cross. In this particular church they had it depicted with stained glass, which I’ve never seen before. It was a more modern way of doing it, which usually doesn’t appeal to me as much, but something about these windows really struck me.
I stopped in the next town for a quick coffee and while inside the very tiny cafe, one of the employees quickly spun around and stepped out, body slamming me from the side. I make it sound super dramatic, but that’s what it felt like haha. I haven’t had any back pain this entire trip until after that moment. This man, who was much larger than me, hit me in such a way that jarred my back. Thankfully it was nothing major, of course, but I was slightly annoyed that now I had some back pain. Oh well!
We stayed at a small, privately owned hostel run by a man named David. He absolutely loves the Camino and has put so much effort and love into creating the hostel he has. We had a communal dinner, prepared by him, and got to know many new people. The hostel was unlike any other, with a loft for sleeping in. The building is incredibly old, and he’s worked to improve it for pilgrims.
This was one of our favourite hostels and we made many wonderful memories there. David was nothing but kind, and he even sang and played guitar for us.
We are unsure what tomorrow will bring, but for now, Dad is resting his knee as best he can and we’ll take it one day at a time.
Please keep praying for us! We are praying for you!
Hannah and Tony
