Across the Meseta…
Camino Journal – Part 3: Into the heart of the Camino
Our little Camino family — Nancy, me, and our three newfound friends — rose before sunrise each morning, packed our backpacks and started another day of walking west across Spain.
At first glance, the Meseta appears endless and unchanging. But the longer you spend there, the more you notice its quiet beauty. Brilliant red poppies painted the fields, tall grasses danced in the wind and golden wheat and cereal crops stretched to the horizon. It wasn’t dramatic scenery, but there was something peaceful and almost hypnotic about it.
After nearly 300 miles on foot, our bodies were beginning to adapt. Our legs were still sore when we started each morning, but they had grown remarkably stronger. Day by day, mile by mile, the Camino was changing us physically before we even realized how much it was changing us in other ways.
One of the greatest joys of the Camino is meeting pilgrims from every corner of the world. Despite speaking different languages and coming from different cultures, we all shared one common goal: to safely reach Santiago de Compostela.
One morning, while packing our backpacks, Nancy noticed a Korean pilgrim sitting quietly in the lobby. He was struggling to care for painful blisters on his feet and didn’t know what to do. Without hesitation, Nancy grabbed our blister kit and gently treated his feet.
