Day 18 Morille to Salamanca - 20km

The heavy rain from yesterday morning, which we all managed to avoid, came later in the afternoon and continued through the night. Thankfully, by this morning, it had cleared up, leaving behind a cold and fresh start to the day.

I left just after Jean-Michel and Suzette—a lovely older couple in their seventies who joked that they “can’t quite walk as fast as they used to.” Despite this, they’re remarkable in the distances they cover and the streams they cross. They're not alone in their age group, either! If you look back at some of my photos, you’ll see many other walkers in their seventies. Some might need to take a taxi or bus for longer stages now, but many still manage to walk them and have been doing so for years. I spoke to Pete, a Dutch man, who told me that some years ago, he walked from his home in the Netherlands all the way to Santiago—a journey of 2,500 kilometers!

I soon caught up with Jean-Michel and Suzette and got a photo with them in the dark before saying “au revoir.” They cheerfully replied, “goodbye.”

By mid-morning, I reached Salamanca, just before too many tourists descended. I visited the cathedral and took an audio tour of both the new and the old sections. I also got a stamp for my credential.

I skipped the art museum included in my ticket because, honestly, I’d had enough by then. Maybe I’ll go back tomorrow and see if they'll still let me in with my old ticket.

Lunch came next, followed by finding my room in a posh hostel tucked away in a block of flats. At first, I couldn’t figure out how to get inside. I called the advertised phone number but got no reply. Just as panic was starting to set in, an older gentleman with a walking frame emerged from the door. We couldn’t speak each other’s language, but with my limited Spanish, he understood I needed access to the hostel. He kindly started pressing buttons on the intercom until he reached the right person—a lady who owned the flats in question. After some back-and-forth conversation, which I didn’t fully understand, the gentleman explained in Spanish what had been discussed. I gathered that the lady was coming down to meet me.

When she arrived, she started speaking to me again in Spanish. When it was clear I didn’t understand, she said “completo,” meaning they were full. At that point, my heart sank, but I quickly showed her my reservation on my phone. After a moment of realization, she pulled out a piece of paper and said, “Martin Van Eker.” Relief flooded through me, panic over!

Everything was fine after that, and she turned out to be lovely. The only issue I later discovered was the bathroom's automatic light switch. It worked well except when I was in the shower, where I was suddenly plunged into complete darkness. To bring the light back, I had to open the shower door and wave my hand until the sensor picked it up. I eventually figured out I could wave my hand over the top of the door instead. However, the sensor only kept the light on for 30 seconds, so I had to keep waving or continue showering in the dark!

Yesterday, I decided to make some changes to my schedule. I want to take a rest day and then catch a bus farther north to avoid some long, flat, and boring sections. I also restructured my planned stages to make them more manageable.

Tomorrow, I’ll relocate to the albergue in Salamanca for my second night. Then, on Monday afternoon, I’ll take the Alsa coach about 100 kilometers north to the starting point of the Camino Sanabrés. I’ll stay overnight at the albergue in Granja de Moreruela before resuming my walk on Tuesday morning. 

I hope to start my blog again on Tuesday evening with updates on my first day along the new route.