Well, they say the Camino provides, and it appears to be true so far. Met a Canadian yesterday in Bayonne who accompanied us into SJPP. Roland already had a reservation at a refugio, so we followed him and got a lovely room right off the bat. Rooms are hostel style, so we shared. (Gotta get used to that quick here!) Roland is fluent in French, and ended up helping us get in some last minute shopping (Em's sandal broke) and obtain our pilgrim's credentials, and then we shared a few beers and dinner.
He also phoned ahead for us and got us all reservations at the refugio just 8 kilometers up the trail--but that 8 K was an altitude increase of 1650 feet! Don't know if it was just nerves, but none of us (Niles, Em and I) slept more than an hour or two last night--not the best way to start, to be sure.
The area is absolutely chqrming--farms, sheep, horses, cows--very idyllic. But wow--UP! It was a very tough morning. Tomorrow we have to continue up and go twice as far, but the grade is a little easier; we'll see! But the view here is stunning, looking out into the Pyranees, watching the vultures ride the thermals, and just enjoying the respite after tough first leg. Roland woke before us and got here so early he chose to go on, so we haven't been able to thank him again for making this possible. But thank goodness for his presence and help yesterday--we would not have been able to do the whole 26 K in one day, I'm sure.
But at least we're feeling more confident now of the next step. And the fellow pilgrims we've met have been delightful--although there are very few English-speakers. We were glad to learn that our strategy of starting late enough to arrive in Compostela after the festival seems to be working; our host told us they had been seeing 2000 pilgrims a day, but last week it dropped to 190. I'm feeling a lot better about that; rooms will be easier to get, and everything feels more relaxed.
So far, so good. Thanks for the good wishes and prayers. Buen Camino!
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