Salamanca to Calzada de Valdunciel

Distance: 16 km / 9.5 mi

Today is a rest day.

I'm in this small town but the hostel inn keeper is a real friendly person who is going to show to us pilgrims later tonight the church and some other things about this small town.

 It's one of the things I like on this hike. Salamanca was interesting but I felt crowded in by all the people. Although I liked being there, I also became interested in leaving.

 I have been meeting very interesting people, and we keep crossing paths along the Camino. That is also something I really like about this hike. The ability to form, I won't say friendships, but meaningful relationships that exist for the time that they exist.

Sometimes finding the Camino marker can be a challenge.
Sometimes people park their car right in front of the marker.
The Meseta

In Calzada de Valdunciel the hostel innkeeper was a very gracious person who also took us to the Parish church and showed us the inside of this wonderful building and gave us some history of it. The church was originally built in the twelfth century, later reconstructed in the 16th century and is still used today. You can see from the pictures, many of the beautiful statues of the Virgin and the Saints inside the church. The final picture is of the Camino, headed north towards Zamora. You can see how the Meseta overwhelms a pilgrim.

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From
Four days of solo Camino: walking through the Spanish Meseta

Nic Freeman

The Meseta is the central Spanish tableland, which intersects the Camino Frances between Burgos and Astorga. It is a part of Spain known among pilgrims for its wide skies, dry heat and flat lands, all of which mess with perceptions of time and distance. It is also anticipated as a part of the Camino that is likely to get under your skin, test your mind, confront your heart, and make you wonder a little bit about your connection to this world.

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Tomorrow will be a challenge. It looks to be a 33 kilometer ( 20 mile ) day -- in order to reach Zamora earlier on the following day.  The reason for that is to avoid searching for lodging when I'm considerably more tired.  Early in to Zamora means a shorter hike on that day.  I do have other options and I'll keep them in mind, but tomorrow could be a killer.