Lugana to Triacastela - 9/7

(Distance: 23.8 kms  Time: 7 hours)
The Day: We started out early and in the dark. The weather wasn't great but it wasn't raining ... lots of fog. We were high up in the mountains and it was cold. Betsy wore her fleece most of the day and I had a long sleeve shirt on. Still, as some of the fog burned off, the views were spectacular yet again. We both felt pretty strong most of the day and we enjoyed the walk. It does seem as if it is becoming more crowded but we were still able to find some stretches where we were alone. One benefit ofmthe fog was that it was very quiet ... kind of like when you are out in a snow fall. We got to our destination by 2 pm and after doing our laundry, getting a shower and grabbing some lunch it was almost time for Mass. The Mass was very unique and tailored for pilgrims. The readings were read in 7 different laungues and Betsy read the the English version. We are now only 6 days from Santiago which is hard to believe. Soon this will all be just a memory which feels kind of sad.

The People: We had one of those days where old friends seem to pop out of nowhere. After reaching the top of the mountain around 8:30, we had breakfast and  saw Sally & Mark fom Colorado who we had not seen for a couple of days. Moving on, we started down the path when out of a building came Cherry from NYC. It was great to see her again and we walked together for a while and caught up. Then a little further down the path we passed Jamie who we thought was way in front of us. It turns out he got a bad case of tendinitis and had to rest for a couple of days. Later on in the day out of nowhere, Christian showed up and we walked the rest of the way into town with him. In town we saw a number of familiar faces which just makes you feel good.

Villafranca to Laguna - 9/6

(Distance: 26.3 kms  Time: 7 hours)
The Day: Cleansed of our bed bugs, we are back on the Way. Today was a solid day of over 26 kms with the last 10 or so climbing to about 1150 meters up in the mountains. This is the feared climb that Camino books talk about people paying to have their backpacks taken to the top for them while they make the climb. After tackling the Pyrannes and walking almost 400 miles we figured we were up to the challenge. We indeed made it without too much difficulty and will go another 200 meters first thing tomorrow morning to the top and continue on from there. Santiago is now under 100 miles away!

The People: We made some aquaintances along the way today but were alone for the most part.

early in the morning the Way followed a road

the road to the top

the view close to the top - spectacular

In Villafranca - 9/5

The Day: We stayed the day in Villafranca but not really by choice. Somewhere over the past two or three days we got into bed bugs. We have no idea how since we have been careful (we thought) and have sprayed our beds every night before using them. Betsy got bitten more than me but we both have multiple bites. So, we stayed in Villafranca to deal with it. The people at the albergue were wonderful and washed all of our clothes & sleeping bags in ammonia and they sprayed our backpacks & sealed them for 24 hours. The good news in all of this is that it rained all morning long so we avoided the challenge of walking in our rain gear. That is the first rain we have encountered and because of the bed bugs, we were able to dodge it.

The People: Most everyone we have met has moved on with the exception of Christian who had to take a day off for a sore tendon. We ran into him in the main plaza in Villafranca and sat at a cafe and shared a pitcher of sangria.

A special blog from Betsy: Hello everyone.  God, once again is reminding us, maybe me,  that he is in control.  Having bed bug bites on the Camino feels a little like being a leper.  We only have a few bites but it causes a systemic reaction so spots appear all over.   My legs and arms were covered yesterday and I had a couple of spots on my face.  It has been a very humbling experience for me.  The one thing I was really worried about for  this journey was getting bed bugs. Not being able to walk gave us some extra time, so we spent some of it in a beautiful church.  I was catching up on some daily readings, and one from 9-4 was Jesus healing the sick and casting out demons.  It helped me to accept these spots as sign of the inward cleansing that God has been doing on this journey.  It also is a reminder that He still has a long way to go. It is hard to believe that we are less than 2 weeks away from Santiago. I miss you all but would not change a thing, except, maybe the flies. I do not understand why God created flies! We are praying for you all and the special requests that you have given us.