Got up today just before 10 or so. I'm getting lazy, and just days before I have to leave and start waking up at some god awful hour. Oh well, ha ha. I went and had some coffee, then hopped in the shower and got dressed. Paddy and Rebekah were taking the dog out for a walk, so I decided to join them.
First we headed over to The Alamo, and there was a pilg there, Phil from California. It was nice seeing another American walking, and he was very friendly. He came back over to Paddy and Rebekah's house to have a cup of coffee and get a Moratinos cello (that's a stamp, not a musical instrument!), then we walked with him to San Nicolas while Una ran out in the hare fields.
Rebeakh and I headed back, found Paddy and when we got home the neighbor lady had my card that my mom sent me. A funny singing birthday card from her and Jimmy. Also after we got back the three of us lined the basin in the courtyard with a tarpaulin, filled it with water, added a little bleach and then dumped in the old yurt lining which was covered in some kind of mildew. Rebekah noted that while yesterday we were “yurt wrastlin'” today we were “yurt bleachin'.” We're a simple folk.
After we got that situated, we came in and Rebekah made a very nice lunch, something called Pasta alioli, which I'm probably misspelling, but was basically pasta coated in olive oil which has been cooked with garlic, onion, and some red pepper. Then an egg is mixed into the lot, similar to my Carbonara, and just as tasty! I did the washing up after we were through, Rebekah sat down to work on the issue of American Pilgrim she's volunteering for and Paddy went to take a nap. Meanwhile I pulled out the large map of France and started charting the different routes that make up the Grande Randonnée, anticipating my adventure post-Camino.
Rebekah, bless her, lent me her mobile phone to use while I'm walking as my VodaFone SIM chip works in her VodaFone mobile, but not the spare they have here. Her SIM however works in the spare phone, so she was willing to swap. In the meantime I'm going to order an Orange SIM since that's the only network I seem to be able to get with my Cingular Nokia. All in all a royal pain in the ass, and I start to feel like Paddy sounds whenever anyone talks about mobiles or other electronics: “Oh fuck it all!” Nonetheless, I have a working phone now and my European mobile number is the one I can be reached on (see side box on how to contact me, the number and dialing instructions from U.S. are listed there).
Once Paddy was up again, we hauled the now hopefully clean yurt lining out of the basin and strung it out on the clothesline to dry. It sort of looks like the backdrop to some high school performance of a Greek tragedy. Then we gathered our things and went back into Sahagun to do some more Internetting that wasn't finished yesterday (because Reb forgot her purse and her list of things to Internet). We went to German's where I parked my laptop inside to catch the WiFi, and Paddy and Rebekah sat in the car to use Skype via her Mac.
I chatted with some friends–amazed that I was online two days in a row!–wrote some emails, caught up on my friends' lives via LiveJournal, updated my blog, and uploaded pictures that I've had for a while. I also downloaded the program from IKEA that Rebekah wants to use to design her spiffy new kitchen. After I was through I met both Paddy and Reb over at Cafe Zentral where they were enjoying a drink. We left shortly after and stopped at the train station before heading home. I got my train ticket to Pamplona, leaving on Friday afternoon. I've decided to rearrange my Camino itinerary, and will be starting from Pamplona now just for the sake of simplicity. It is one day in from the “official” Camino start point of St-Jean-Pied-de-Port, and about 4 or 5 days from my original plan to start in Somport. It would just be more hassle than I think it's worth though to get a train to Pamplona and then try to route myself via bus to wherever else. When I head back on my way to France I'll be sure to visit the Aragon area though.
Back at home Paddy made a very nice pallella with some chiperones (squid thingies) he and Rebekah picked up while we were in Sahagun. It tasted great with a little soy sauce, and lots of bread. Yum squid. Before and after eating Rebekah and I sat and discussed stop-by-stop the Camino from Pamplona to Santiago. She gave me good tips on places to see and albergues to stay in. I'm also going to catch up with Sebastien and hopefully James and Marianne before I leave on Friday and see what they recommend. Talked to my mom for a bit before sitting down to write, and now I think it's time to hit the hay... but not in the barn. That stuff is all smelly and old. Good night.
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