Day 4 of My Way on The Way of St. James: Part 1
By my fourth day on the Camino de Santiago, I was exhausted and becoming run-down. It had been over a week since I had my last good sleep and the one in Villamayor de Monjardin was the worst. I discuss it briefly in my book, Camino de Santiago In 20 Days, and won’t go into all the details here. I’ll just say that sleeping in the same room with washrooms that serviced about 25 people was the main contributing factor.
On my last post, On the Camino de Santiago: Estella to Villamayor de Monjardin, Spain, I had concluded my third day with one that had weather that ranged from cold and rain to warm sunshine. Most importantly, I had walked through one of the most important stretches on the Camino — the scenic and historically important Roman Road before Lorca.
Now, I’ll resume with photos from my journey. If you have my book, I’m on page 59 in the chapter, Day 4: Sometimes, It Only Takes One Or Two Pricks To Do The Job. If you don’t have my book, please enjoy this post anyway, and I hope you learn more about walking the Camino de Santiago, The French Way or Camino Francés (map from Wikipedia Commons).
I left Villamayor de Monjardin on a cool, early May morning, with overcast skies, and scattered showers. The Iglesia de San Andrés, with it’s seventeenth century Baroque tower, stood prominently in the village.
The castle, San Esteban de Deyo, sat upon Mountain Monjardín and could be seen from many kilometers away. If you missed it from my previous post, here’s more information on the history of Villamayor de Monjardín, on this excellent page from Monjardín.tk. Did I say it was cold? Okay Randall, quit your whining. It gets far worse in later days.
Most of the landscape between Villamayor de Monjardín and Los Arcos was farmland and scrubby hills. There were less vineyards, and those present were smaller than on the previous day.
A favorite photo of mine showing the solitude on the Camino. Because I had a late start, and was most likely the last person to leave Villamayor de Monjardín, I had a lot of catching up to do. Here, I could see for kilometers ahead with only a few pilgrims on the path.
I’m sorry, but I’m behind with my posts on preparing for the Camino. Actually, to this point, I’ve only done one: My Camino De Santiago Hairbrush. My discussion on boots will be another post. It amazed me how many people brought their worn boots from home, with over an 800 kilometer, or 500 mile, walk ahead. As I wrote on page 16 of my book, in the chapter, Gear Reflection and Shopping, Can Someone Lend Me $1,000?, “My rule with boots was important – break them in, but don’t wear them out.”
I know some of you may not agree, but I think the scrubby landscape on the hills, with their varied species of plants, had their own charm.
In the background, on top of the hill, is what looked to be a monastery. I believe the ruins in the middle are an ancient pilgrims hospital.
In this area, the poppies were not in bunches like the previous day, but sparse and scattered.
I never did find out what these tall, wispy shrubs were. If anybody can help me, I’d appreciate it. I didn’t see many of them, and this patch was the most prominent in the area. They were in full bloom and I admired them as I walked by.
After the 11.5 kilometer walk to Los Arcos, with only stopping for a few moments to rest, I was cold and dead tired. My energy had depleted and, I hate to admit this, but I was in a pissy mood. I had my break under the overhang of the church. According to Gitlitz & Davidson on page 114 in their wonderful book, The Pilgrimage Road To Santiago, construction of the Iglesia de Santa María began in 1175, and lasted 600 years. Little remains from the early years.
After talking with a nice couple from Québec, Canada (page 60), I followed them inside the church through this entrance.
Honestly, I didn’t expect much from this church. I didn’t know anything about it and had not heard of Los Arcos until just before walking the Camino. I was very surprised with the beauty and peacefulness of the interior, and my spirits were instantly lifted. Please excuse my video quality. I was using my point-and-shoot Nikon and probably not that well. I promise my camera work will be better on my next Camino.
Before the organ began, the church was very quiet. Footsteps echoed throughout. The sound of the organ was magical, and I looked around to find the origin. As I wrote on page 61, “I glanced up and saw the player of the eighteenth century organ perched above the nave, or main hall. I immediately went to the mezzanine, where I watched and listened with enchantment.” When I was there, the mid-seventeenth century murals were undergoing a restoration. They were beautiful and can be seen a little on the second video. Sadly, I never took any good photos.
This crucifixion scene was inside.
I also wrote on page 61 of my book, “It was such a great thrill to visit the church, and I never expected such a beautiful one in the small town. It was a shame most pilgrims passed it by.”
A peaceful scene from a bridge over the Odrón River.
Looking back through the Portal Castilla.
If you’re further interested in Los Arcos, please check out fernandezdearcaya.com, or Gitlitz & Davidson’s aforementioned book, The Pilgrimage Road To Santiago. On my next post, ON THE CAMINO DE SANTIAGO: LOS ARCOS TO VIANA, SPAIN, I’ll travel through a landscape rich with poppies, mustard, and other flowers in bloom, as I continued to battle tiredness in an attempt to make it to Logroño for the night. If you have my book, Camino de Santiago In 20 Days, I really appreciate your support. I hope you enjoyed this post and thanks for your time.
