Day 13: Burgos to Hontanas
- sarezend
- May 2
- 2 min read
Jeff, Jimmy and I meet for an early breakfast and say our farewells. Jeff is done and off to Madrid for a couple of days before returning to California. My brother in law Jimmy now joins me for the next 8 days or so. Jimmy is a sociology professor at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.
Jimmy and I decide to avoid the concrete jungle and taxi to a town called Tardajos, about 10kms outside the city to start our 22km trek to a small village known as Hontanas. Leaving Burgos means the start of the Camino’s journey through the Meseta, a high desert area full of badly and rice farms. The meseta is known for its relative wilderness, and there are airings of wolf and other predators. But for me, it’s the coo coo birds that are frequently heard sending their message to the pilgrims walking.
As we are dropped off in Tardajos, our walk begins next to the Church of Our Lady of the Assumption, built between the 13th and 16th centuries. As we walk towards the end of town we are greeted by a nun, Sister Ana walking towards a small chapel. She says hello, asks us if we are walking the Camino and tells us she is visiting the sisters at the church and helping them out because they don’t speak English. Sister Ana, was Spanish but spent time in Chicago at DePaul University. I asked her if she was also walking the Camino and she smiles and says, “no, I’m just going to the Chapel to open it. She says, pointing straight ahead to a small chapel and asks, “would you like to see it inside?”
Jimmy and I are struck by Sister Ana’s smile and joy as she walks to the Chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and opens it. She walks to the front, kneels and says a short prayer and returns to tell us about the pictures on the walls of the chapel depicting the life from birth to death of the Virgin mother. We thank her for allowing us to see the now restored chapel built in the 15th century. I light a candle for my parents at the alter, and before we leave, Sister Ana blesses us both, gives us a hug and provides us with a necklace holding a pendant of the Virgin Mary, says, “Buen Camino”. It was an awesome way for Jimmy to start his Camino. I’m struck by her happiness exuding joy in what she is doing and her purpose. I’m angry I did not take a picture with her.
The 22kms to Hontanas were unremarkable except for meeting Sister Ana. We arrived in Hontanas, the weather warm and the sky full of sun. It was Jimmy’s first day and a long one for him. Tomorrow is another day, so far so good, no blister problems for me and that’s enough to celebrate with a few cold ones somewhere in the middle of Spain. Please enjoy the pictures
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