Rest Day in Ourense and Santiago
Morning stroll around Ourense. Attended the morning Mass at the cathedral. Then a train ride to Santiago to meet Jos. And now back in Ourense to prepare for tomorrow's return to the Camino.
Notable Memories
Of course, the biggest memory of today was the train trip up to Santiago to catch up with Jos, a Camino Amigo from 2016 from the Via De La Plata.
Jos and I had a good bonding experience in 2016. The memorable experience back then was the day we claimed the highest part of the Via De La Plata, grabbed a lunch under the cross on the hill top and looked out over the valley. We talked about our lives and dreams and hopes.
So today it was a pleasure to catch up with him again in Santiago where he had just finished his Camino, and I happened to be near by doing my Camino.
We stopped by the cathedral to get a look at the refinished facade, we had something to eat, and grabbed some beers. Of course, along the way we revisited all the pride that we have in our families and our lives and we talked about where we see ourselves in the future.
I consider him a great Camino amigo.
And I don't know if it will happen, but we will see, and we made plans to hike the Alps at some time in the future. That could be a lot of fun. Don't you think?
Morning stroll around Ourense
Galicia train ride
Jos and I meet in Santiago
I should have paid attention to the frog lying in the road on the way into town. He was flattened and his arms, legs and head all pointed the way back out that I was coming in. Yeah. I should have listened.
Ghost towns can be really interesting, wondering about the people who lived and died there. What happened to their memories, dreams, hopes and fears?
I passed abandoned farm fields to the left and abandoned homes on the right. It really felt empty. Even streets with no people on them can feel alive, but this town was dead, as a doornail. Not even insects buzzing around.
I was about halfway through the 30 or so falling down, falling apart homes when a car came up from behind out of nowhere, it seemed to me. I was surprised to see the car stop some meters ahead of me.
An old man, 80+ years or more got out and in a slow crouch with weak steps, he approached me. He looked every bit of his age, but those blue eyes fixed on me with considerable interest. "Did you see an old woman in a jacket?"
I told him that I had not. He leaned in, uncomfortably close. "She's old, wearing a jacket and not right in the head. Did you see her?" He gave me that classic circular motion of the finger next to his ear.
Again I told him that I had not seen anyone. As he headed back to the car, I told him I could call nine-one-one if I saw someone.
He told me not to bother. He would look elsewhere. And then he took off in his little putt-putt car. I got the feeling that this was a regular experience for him.
Yeah, I really should have paid attention to the weird feeling that I had when I saw that frog in the middle of the road on entering this ghost town.
Anyway I pressed on. I only had 10 houses or so to get out of this town.
And that is when I saw her on my left, coming out of a little gully which was emptying out of one of the abandoned farm fields.
"Hello", she said.
"Hi", I answered back. "There's there's an old man looking for you."
She looked through me, past me. "I'm going to New Vernon."
I knew that town was over a hundred miles away. I said to myself, it was clear she was not right in the head.
She started walking alongside me and out of town. Well, what could I do? I called nine-one-one.
The dispatcher wanted to know where I was but being a ghost town, and one of several on this trail, and none had name boards, I had no idea where I was. All I could say was that I was just between one town and some other town. It was frustrating for the dispatcher and me.
Just as I had exhausted any attempt at explaining where we were, the car came back. The dispatcher was as relieved as me. The old man got out and came towards us. Her called to her and walked up to take her by the hand.
The dispatcher wanted to talk to him, but he refused to take my phone, saying it was private business. There was nothing else to do. So the call ended.
That was when the old lady turned to me and said "Help me ... Help us." The old man said to her, "He will ... He will".
That was the last thing I remember. When I finally did start to get coherent again, it was evening and I think, but am not sure, that I had been walking around that town all day. Apparently no other living soul came thru, and I had been on my own. It is hard to believe that anyone would have left me there ... like that.
I found my stuff all strewn through the gully where the lady had come from.
It was all there. All except the journal of my memories, my hopes, my fears and my dreams, all meticulously written down during this hike so that I could recall and relive those important emotions.
For whatever reason, they took it ... And they took more. They somehow took six hours of me living my life. I don't think I'll ever get them back.
