Day 13-16

Belerado to San Juan de Ortega

An early start lead to a beautiful sunrise, and hiked the morning portion with the Camino youngsters. Quite a crew! After lunch I hiked with James, where we talked tech and nerded out; he used to work on IBM Main frames for NASA when they were first created. Stopped for watermellon at a truck/vanstop ran by Angel, a very funny Spaniard. Spoke with a old highschool friend the night before, and it was good to catch up with him. Caught a taxi to Burgos after San Juan; the Camino youngsters booked a Airbnb for two nights. We went out onto the town, and ate some good food!

Day 14

Villivlal to Burgos

Since the camino youngsters booked a Air BNB in Burgos for two nights, I taxied from San Juan to Burgos after hiking. The next day we took a bus to Villivlal; as the taxi was expensive and the bus for 1.60 euro would take us that far. Only downside was missing the Archaeological site at Atapuerca — but I learned the history at the museum the next day. I easily spent 1.5 hours at the Burgos Cathedral, absolutely stunning! I ran into a friend named Sergio from Spain; he was hiking the next day while I took a exploration day. Casper from Denmark made the crew a absolutely smashing dinner, and he literally made homemade pasta. Delicious, and we spent the night hanging out.

Day 15

Burgos Exploration Day

A family friend Mike recommended you take two days to explore Burgos — and I can see why. It is a gorgeous and historic city, and way too much to do in one day. I kicked off the day with a slow morning — much needed. I then headed to the Museum of Human Evolution — which showcases the discoveries in the caves of Atapeurca. Over 900,000 years, different species and eventually homo sapiens occupied this cave system. This cave system has literally seen humans develop, from slightly less ape and more chimp, to splitting from chimp into Humans with frontal lobes. The discoveries also put human-kind in Europe a few hundred thousand of years before thought. Absolutely incredible. See Elvis the Pelvis below. After the evolution museum, I went to the Spanish military museum before siesta. Very cool to see how another country displays their military history. Although online there was mention of the Spanish civil war being showcased — it was not a large portion, if barely mentioned at all. Post Museum, I got a kebab and went to my hotel room after saying goodbye to Jenny from Scotland. Hotel was called Los Vegas — although there was no Vegas theme. Slight chance Los Vegas means something different in Spain. I was able to video chat with Jenni, and it ended up being a good evening!

Burgos to Hornillas Del Camino

A good day of hiking. First day in the Meseta! Jenny from Scotland and I walked together, and the weather could not have been better for hiking. Sunny, 65-70; and dry, not humid! The albergue had a pool, which was the coldest water yet. Felt great on the joints. Met a Korean group, and the man “with no name” wanted to share a photo in the pool. Good people! Large family-style Paella for dinner, the owners really did a good job. Went back for a second plate.