Accommodations

Starting with today’s punchline. The view out our hotel window in Burgos.

Day 14, Agés to Burgos

The day began in Introvert Heaven. After a night on a sleeping porch in a municipal alburge, I was up at dawn, and to a cafe all to myself. In the background on a screen, four hands, two pianos playing Debussy. How did this happen?

The range of possibilities in accommodations was dramatized by where we slept last night and where we are tonight. Generally the decision as to “where” is driven by expense and how much privacy you need. It can also be driven by not reserving in advance, where upon you take what you can get.

On one end of the spectrum and the cheapest possibilities are the municipal alburges or hostels. These are city run and typified by large sleeping porches that easily hold up to 50 beds/bunks, where all are welcome to lay their head. Simple breakfast of a carbohydrate, coffee and maybe juice are offered for the morning. Forget any protein. Communal bathrooms are often separated by gender, but maybe not, and a coin toss on the shower curtains.

Moving up, private alburges may also have sleeping porches but generally not as large, more often rooms or partitions with bunk-beds for 6-10, cost a bit more and often have separate rooms available for a few bucks extra. Sometimes they will have a private bath, or bath shared with one or two other rooms. Food the next morning can also be sparse, but almost always a juice is offered.

On the top of the food chain are hotels and room for rent. Keep in mind that one of these accommodations with a four star rating would likely be a three star in the states. Rates range but for $100US you can get killer rooms, such as the one shown here across from the cathedral in Burgos. We paid, to an apologetic hotel manager, an extra 10 euro for a room facing the cathedral. Ya, think we can swing that. Hotels will often have a complimentary breakfast with more substantial fare. A particular challenge, however, is the time breakfast is offered. Not all open early enough for the pilgrim who is aiming to get a head start on a potentially hot day.

©Theresa Elliott, All Rights Reserved

Where we started the day. I slept above an Italian Men’s Biking Club last night.

I beat the hordes. There was some misinformation around opening time of the cafe which I did nothing to correct.

Sandy and I comparing height and leg length in trying to solve a FitBit conundrum. We walk the same distances, yet Sandy’s totals were consistently 10-15% more than mine. After a bit of sleuthing we realized that although he is taller and leg length slightly longer, I have a longer stride. Chalk one up to hamstring range.

Lovely fields, poppies in the center.

Camino friends Frank and Monique.

Walking into Burgos and to our hotel, the magnificent cathedral making a point of it’s existence in the background.

Our hotel, Hotel Meson le Cid.

Hmmm, sleeping porch, private bed, sleeping porch, private bed . . . ?

Bonus points. They light up the cathedral at night.