Camino Pilgrim

Today was a very spiritual day. It started off slowly moving uphill. I wanted to walk in complete solitude, without headphones and other pilgrims, to go deep into a journey within.

The highlight of the day was a small rock. Weird, right? When I first started walking the Camino back in France, I picked up a pebble from the side of the road. I have been carrying that tiny rock over 600km as a memory of all the burdens from my past.

The highest point today was at a cross called Cruz de Ferro (not in the image). Pilgrims from all around the world carry their rocks to this place and lay them at the foot of that cross. Out of those stones a little hill has evolved over time. Many people there got very emotional, some kneeled down in front of the cross and prayed, others just laid down their rock and moved on. Itsuki took a picture of a guy who found the rock with his father’s name on it.

The way downhill started to feel lighter step by step. Just after a few steps from the cross, the sun came out. A little before reaching my village, rain started to pour while the sun was shining. Later it turned into a thunderstorm which might continue even tomorrow. I took the picture next to the albergue which fully runs on donations. Sleeping, dinner and breakfast are all served for free. The donation you make before leaving will be used to buy food for pilgrims arriving the next day.