Burgos Baby - Day 18

Ok, so instead of making use of the hotel we had to book into today (and I´m talking about using up all the complimentary toiletries people), or seeing the amazing historical sites of Burgos, or attending one of the many hundreds of church services, or reflecting or even walking like a good little pilgrim, I´m sitting here in a dirty Internet cafe with a pretend coca cola updating you lot and considering getting Burger King for dinner (maybe I´m a tinsy winsy bit homesick and a little tired).

So the update is.... we walked around 25 kms yesterday.  Which was super impressive as I had a nasty stomach bug two days before.  It was like a 24 hour throw up bug that was on a tight schedule so it decided to do all it´s business in 6, obviously not in it for the overtime.  I recovered well as we walked only 12 kms the day afterwards and found ourselves in a lovely little place called San Juan de Ortega at a hostel that is connected to the church.  It didn´t open till 2pm so I fell asleep on a bench like a tramp and shuffled through the door at opening time.  I then found a corner bunk, got in it and didn´t get up until 5.45pm, went to mass and then took part in a tradition of theirs.  After mass they feed all the pilgrims this amazing garlic soup.  Without a doubt it´s the best soup I have ever had.  Healing soup I reckon!  I went back to bed at 7.30 and woke up again at 6am and walked to Burgos!  I am a brand new pilgrim.  However...

It´s now Alan´s turn.  There is no healing garlic soup, but he is in a hotel with lots of Spanish TV so I think he´ll live!  He is already on the mend and we´ll be walking again tomorrow.

Last night we thought we may have arrived in heaven.  We had been recommended to stay at a Albergue (hostel) in Burgos called, Parroquial de Peregrinos Emaús.  A local had to help us find it but it was like walking into a palace.  They have rebuilt this church and it includes lots of rooms for the youth to use, smaller chapels for daily mass, a massive church for weekly services, accommodation for the two priests and a hostel for pilgrims.  It´s donation only and we prepared the meal together (well, Alan and I set the table), went to mass altogether and had breakfast too.  I think it holds about 20 people and Alan and I had a room to ourselves (which was just as well as he wasn´t well in the night).  

As we were getting our credentials stamped they invited us to mass.  I explained that we cannot take mass as we are not Catholic but was it still alright if we attended.  She huffed and puffed and said something about it being the same Jesus, gave me a English translation so I could follow along and instructed us to go up for a blessing instead.  

So we attended (there is a lot of standing up for a tired pilgrim, and no MCC style rise as you are able, and when it came to communion we thought maybe we shouldn´t go up to receive a blessing.  However, the lovely huffing and puffing French lady marched up to us and said she had spoken with the priest and it was time we got walking up the front.  And we did, and it was wonderful to be a part of it.  We have found it very hard that we are not welcome to take communion at church and we have had angry moments and sad moments.  We are trying to be open minding and it really does help to meet everyday people who think they same as we do as after all it is the same Jesus, isn´t it?

In true Emily and Alan style we have made up for it in our own ways.  We had communion last Sunday, just the two of us, at the side of the road with our water bottles and croissants!  Chris Dowd will be beaming!

All things considered we are doing great and might even book at flight and a date from Santiago back to the UK in the next week.  The lovely people at the Science Museum have given us two nights at a hotel in Santiago (which isn´t that spiritual I guess, but VERY motivating!), so we´ll let you guys know very soon when we intend to get there.

Love you all lots and more xxx