On our walk from Sansol to Logrono, we stopped at a food truck exchanged buen caminos with other pilgrims and Colléen bought a banana. She was charged 1.70€! She did query it, but to no avail! We wandered on along the track, moaning about commercialism on the Camino etc etc!

When we all met up in the evening, Laura, one of the group who’d taxied the last bit, said she had a story to tell us. Once we’d all settled with our drinks and apéros, she told us that she’d been approached by a spanish guy, who had recognized her as being part of Colleens group. He gave her 1euro, and asked her to pass it on to the red headed pilgrim who had bought the banana, with many apologies from the truck vendor who had accidentally overcharged her!

There is a great camaraderie on the Camino, items that get left behind by pilgrims eventually find their owners, injured and ailing are helped.

I was very uncomfortable the first day leaving St Jean Pied de Port en masse, but the crowd thinned quickly and it didn’t take long before you could walk alone, just joining up with and crossing the paths of other pilgrims now and then.

It was a great experience that I’m missing already! Apparently The Norte is the most difficult, so that’s on my radar, but next year I’m planning the Portuguese coastal route! I’ve even got used to the term Pilgrim, meaning a traveler, usually to a holy place on foot. The holy bit is not me, but the connection with the environment and meeting like minded caring people fills my boots!