Day 5
June 16
Today was a long day but not a hard day. We didn't have wifi the albergue last night which is why I didn't post until the next day. We hiked about 10 miles today but we made multiple stops so it took until about 1am to get to Pomplona. I finally bought a SIM card so I have data now which makes my life much easier. I won't use it much except if I don't have wifi at an albergue or need directions to someplace around town. I walked pretty fast in the beginning but my Achilles is bothering me so I spent the last 2 miles hobbling slowly down the street with Emma and Marnix who were nice enough to walk slow with me to make sure I didn't get lost coming into the city. I'm really scared of tendonitis so once we got to the albergue I didn't go to the market with the rest of the group in hopes that Resting it would help it heal before the tendons get worse.
Pomplona is the first major city we've come to so far and it didn't disappoint. I've heard there's pick pockets but none of us seemed to have any problems with theft. The city is so colorful with each building being a different color and a huge plaza in the middle of town with donkeys and street performers. It is not a huge city but much larger than the towns with a population of 200 we've been staying in. I haven't seen this many people since we left the airport. The streets are packed with people and there's so many cheap shops. Perhaps if my body didn't hurt as much I would walk around more but walking to the phone store allowed me to see a lot of the city. My blisters and chaffing keeps getting worse.
I am chaffing on my inner thighs and also my under arm which rubs against my backpack strap. The chaffing on my legs are way worse than the spot on my arm but none of it feels great. My brain can only focus on 1 emergency at a time so for a while my Achilles on my left bothers me and then after a while I begin to notice the blister on the bottom of my left pinky is much worse and I transfer my limp to my other foot. This walk is dofficult. Not because of the physical strain from the hills but simply the mental strain it takes to wake up at 5am and say "I'm going to walk 20 kilometers with a 30 pound bag on my back today regardless of how sore and tired my legs and feet are". At home if I'm sore I lay around and use it as an excuse. Here, it's not an option unless it is physically impossible to move. I am always tired and always sore. At night it is a gamble of what amount of pain I will be able to slee off for the next day.
We cooked dinner tonight. Michael, a new guy in our group finally joined us who was doing some sort of seminary work in france I think. He brought s German friend with him who will hike with us for a couple days. Kira and Corbyn both think he's very cute and have crushes on him so we'll see how that works out over the next couple days. The 2 new guys coooked Mexican rice with vegetables which was really good after a long day yesterday. I find myself craving fruit and smoothies most of the time. Fruit here sirens to be rare and therefore very special when we find good fruit for an affordable price. Emma bought me an apple at the market which I ate with peanut butter in bed.
The room we are staying in has 4 long hall ways each filled with about 40 bunk beds in a row. It is a church that houses pilgrims and then finds a non profit for people with cerebral palsy with the profits they make so it was a good deal. The only down side is the stairs and the fact that I saw a naked man in the bathroom today just walking around after his shower. The one thing about pilgrims is none of them give a shit. Especially since this is europe after all and everyone seems to be comfortable.
Today was a long day but not a hard day. We didn't have wifi the albergue last night which is why I didn't post until the next day. We hiked about 10 miles today but we made multiple stops so it took until about 1am to get to Pomplona. I finally bought a SIM card so I have data now which makes my life much easier. I won't use it much except if I don't have wifi at an albergue or need directions to someplace around town. I walked pretty fast in the beginning but my Achilles is bothering me so I spent the last 2 miles hobbling slowly down the street with Emma and Marnix who were nice enough to walk slow with me to make sure I didn't get lost coming into the city. I'm really scared of tendonitis so once we got to the albergue I didn't go to the market with the rest of the group in hopes that Resting it would help it heal before the tendons get worse.
Pomplona is the first major city we've come to so far and it didn't disappoint. I've heard there's pick pockets but none of us seemed to have any problems with theft. The city is so colorful with each building being a different color and a huge plaza in the middle of town with donkeys and street performers. It is not a huge city but much larger than the towns with a population of 200 we've been staying in. I haven't seen this many people since we left the airport. The streets are packed with people and there's so many cheap shops. Perhaps if my body didn't hurt as much I would walk around more but walking to the phone store allowed me to see a lot of the city. My blisters and chaffing keeps getting worse.
I am chaffing on my inner thighs and also my under arm which rubs against my backpack strap. The chaffing on my legs are way worse than the spot on my arm but none of it feels great. My brain can only focus on 1 emergency at a time so for a while my Achilles on my left bothers me and then after a while I begin to notice the blister on the bottom of my left pinky is much worse and I transfer my limp to my other foot. This walk is dofficult. Not because of the physical strain from the hills but simply the mental strain it takes to wake up at 5am and say "I'm going to walk 20 kilometers with a 30 pound bag on my back today regardless of how sore and tired my legs and feet are". At home if I'm sore I lay around and use it as an excuse. Here, it's not an option unless it is physically impossible to move. I am always tired and always sore. At night it is a gamble of what amount of pain I will be able to slee off for the next day.
We cooked dinner tonight. Michael, a new guy in our group finally joined us who was doing some sort of seminary work in france I think. He brought s German friend with him who will hike with us for a couple days. Kira and Corbyn both think he's very cute and have crushes on him so we'll see how that works out over the next couple days. The 2 new guys coooked Mexican rice with vegetables which was really good after a long day yesterday. I find myself craving fruit and smoothies most of the time. Fruit here sirens to be rare and therefore very special when we find good fruit for an affordable price. Emma bought me an apple at the market which I ate with peanut butter in bed.
The room we are staying in has 4 long hall ways each filled with about 40 bunk beds in a row. It is a church that houses pilgrims and then finds a non profit for people with cerebral palsy with the profits they make so it was a good deal. The only down side is the stairs and the fact that I saw a naked man in the bathroom today just walking around after his shower. The one thing about pilgrims is none of them give a shit. Especially since this is europe after all and everyone seems to be comfortable.
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