We walked a few blocks from our hotel and got a taxi to take us to Tardajos, a small village on the outskirts of Burgos, skipping the long walk through urban areas, residential areas and a complex system of expressways. The ride took about 10 minutes.
Walking through a very quiet Tardajos this morning.Storks were in their usual hangouts on top of Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción.We walked on pavement from Tardajos to Rabe de las Calzadas where we stopped for breakfast.We always stop at the Restaurant-Hostal Fuente de Rabe for breakfast. It’s usually the only place open for food or a reststop for the walk all the way to Hornillos. It also has delicious toastadas. The staff is exceptionally friendly and welcoming.Many of the buildings on the way out of Rabe have beautifully painted murals on them with religious or humanitarian themes.Another colorful mural on the way out of the village.Small hermitage was the final landmark as we began the walk up onto the meseta.It took nearly an hour to walk the gradual slope to the meseta.We finally reached the meseta, with its vast grain fields. For the first time we are seeing this in green, whereas in the past, during our summer and fall Caminos, it was always amber or brown due to mature crops or recently harvested ones.We walked on and on and on…
The Meseta is not an autonomous region, but rather a geographical area within the region of Castilla y León—the largest region in Spain. This central high plateau makes up 40% of Spain, with elevation ranging from 400-1000m.
The Meseta has a reputation for being boring, repetitive and bleak. However, there is a certain beauty and awe in the endless horizon and wide open space.
The lack of trees means little to no shade. Towns are often set down in shallow river valleys, practically invisible along the horizon until a few hundred yards from the entrance.
Just before we saw Hornillos, the red Templar cross appeared on the right. This marked the beginning of ” Mule Killer Hill”. Mule Killer is an appropriate name as soon as you experience the path dropping off rapidly before you.The descent is about a mile long.The beaufiful view on the way down is a welcome distraction to the steep descent.Looking back once we got to the bottom. No killed mules were observed today, thankfully.The street (only one) of Hornillos (pop. 61) was relatively quiet when we arrived at 10:30.We found a comfortable seat outside a favorite store, “Km 469” (usually open, food, restroom), to wait for Albergue Meeting Point to open at noon.
We checked in at 12:00 and signed up for the traditional paella dinner, dropped off bags in the room and returned to the store to have the owner prepare us a lunch.
Back at the Meeting Point kitchen, we had our lunch of ham/cheese/tomato sandwich, olives, wine and chocolate for dessert.
After lunch we retired to our room and chilled and chored until dinner time at 7:00.
Our host serving from a huge paella pan that has been simmering for several hours working up pilgrim appetites throughout the albergue prior to dinner.
As always we had great conversations with fellow pilgrims during dinner. There were about 30 seated at the table and ironically our conversations were with 6 nearby pilgrims who were all from the US.
Our hostess/owner cleaning up at 8:30 as pilgrims began heading back to their rooms.
Jimandi 