Month: April 2016

Staying in the EU.

Well a good nights sleep and a late morning by Camino standards all awake just by 8am. A quiet night outside for a Spanish city. Still it is mid week and an economic depression hopefully we shall be well away into quiet hinterland by Saturday night. This is a nice quiet hotel.
Task one is to get pilgrim credencials. They can be had from the tourisr office next to the Cathedral the signs are clearly pointing at a demolition site.Eventally we acces the square inside the demolition with tall palm trees and the tourist office.
A clue as to the quietness of the Camino Mozarabe is had by the need to print out the forms and find 6 credencials.
On the way down we spot a fine mutamoros. For those not familiar with the Way of St James he appears on statuary either as a pilgrim with staff water bottle and floppy hat or as the teacher/apostlle with a book. Or as the mounted mutamoros or moor slayer of the crusades. Over the last year we have found them as far apart as Chile and the Philippines, indeed anywhere in colonial spain.
The next aim is the Alcazar the old Moorish citadel and gardens on the hill overlooking the town. This has been very well restored at EU expense but as a consequence entrance is free to EU nationals. A fine use for our taxes we feel. It is very similar to the Alhambra but more restored less original. Old cisterns with goldfish little fountains and waterfalls and many less people than the Alhambra.
After this we manage to find the cathedral office and get the credenciales stamped correctly ready for the start tomorrow.
It is now lunch times and the usual fun with dishes in local Spainish dialects ensues. We learn that gurullos are little pastas and jibia are small bits of random cephalopod. Entremeses are a starter plate of sausage jamon and a bit of spainish omelette. Later Tony manages to replace his bum bag as the clip had broken when he sat on it.
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Into the mists of Avalon.

We rise at 3.30AM and are conveyed courtesy ofJane to the airport near Merlins cave. Where courtresy of modern electronics Easyjet blast off through the clouds rising rapidly above them into clear sky. We emerge two and a half hours later into a warm land with wisteria in bloom and a small sharp rain storm.
We find some lunch early in a corner cafe.And recall or look up Rincon Spanish for corner. The bus we are on for the hundred or so miles up the coast is at 1pm and takes four hours. But there is a half hour break and the bus keeps diving off the main road to pick up more passengers. We have a good price 11 € each as we are a group booking.
All knees groan climbing down the steps after the first two hours.
We continue along the coast towards Almeria gaining respect for our driver as we go down more rabbit holes into tiny bus stations and back up serpentine roads to regain the motorway.
Eventually we arrive in Almeria at the new bus/rail station with the beautifully refurbished old station frontage next door.
After a frenetic march through town we find the Hotel Perla were we are booked for 2nights in a 4bed room that works out at 12.5 € per person per night.
So soon it will be beer oclock and tomorrow we find our pilgrim passports.

We’re of to see the wizard.

We are starting and are gathered.
At Tony and Jane’s now having picked up Ray at Bristol Parkway. We fly at 6.30 tomorrow from Bristol to Malaga.
Followed by a bus to Almeria.
We have a day there to get our Pilgrim passports and then aleap off into the hinterland.
Tony the IT wizard has got the blog as he is happy with.

Link to where we are on Google Maps