Day 2 Hornillos del Camino - Castrojeriz: The Good Samaritan Experience

Dear Lord, Archangel Raphael in Charge of Travel / Pilgrimage & My Guardian Angel Jakob,  Please come with me and grant me safe passage on the Camino this day. Bless me with energy, health and strength. But most importantly bless me with sight that I may truly see what I am supposed to see, hear what I am supposed to hear and feel what I am supposed to feel on The Way of Saint James. Amen

Starting off Early and Energized

I liked that prayer and decided to make it a daily morning ritual. Energized by the events of Day 1, I awoke early and was on the Camino by sunrise at about 9:30 am. I tended to my blister and it was a non-issue. I had a little "morning hurt" but other than that was well-rested and ready to take on the 20+ km / 13 mi over rolling hills I had planned that day. As I exited Hornillos, I saw a cross on a hill to my left. I took that as a sign from my Guardian Angel that he was with me and I felt warm, empowered and not at all alone.

The Parable of The Good Samaritan in 2012

Rock cairn and Templar Cross near San Bol

My Guardian Angel said one of my life guiding principles was to open my heart and reach out to others. Essentially, Love thy neighbor as thyself as told in Luke 10:25-37. To me, this is the essential tenet of the Christian faith. It is simple and at the same time all-encompassingly powerful. It also crosses all faiths.

I was given the gift to live this on Day 2. Along the way, I saw Salvatrice about 1 km / .6 mi in front of me over flat areas but not another soul until off in the distance I saw a man with a bicycle walking towards me. People can do The Camino on bike and horseback too.

Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out money and gave it to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

The man stopped. I wished him a "Buen Camino" & he began telling me a tale in Spanish. I understood the gist but inquired "Habla Ingles" to which he said no. OK, I will give this a shot I said to myself. He told me a story of how he was on Pilgrimage when he was mugged in Leon, had his gear, wallet, money & credit cards stolen. He had been going for days with no money for lodging or food. Leon was 8 days walk and a good 4 days bike. He needed to get to Burgos which was 1-2 days away.

I listened to his story and simply asked "Donde quiere para mi - dinero, movil, comer, bebir" (What do you want from me - money, mobile phone, to eat, to drink?). His expression changed from worry to gratitude. I gave him enough money for lodging and food. He thanked me profoundly and we went our way.

Yes, I did the human thing and gave him and his bike the once over to see if his tale passed the sniff test. It did for the most part but I also figured if the alternative "he was out in the middle of nowhere using a ruse to beg for money" was true he needed money far more than I did. Like a Good Samaritan, I had mercy on him and I met his needs. He was grateful and I too felt a deep sense of satisfaction. Shortly up the road, I passed a rock cairn with a Templar Cross. I interpreted that as a divine sign that I was acting with my life purpose and then felt an even greater feeling that I was sanctified by acting in obedience to the Word of God in my life.

Some people do the pilgrimage frugally and simply by intention. I decided that my intention would be somewhat the opposite. The Spanish were in an economic crisis. I would spend money as generously as I could with local businesses to help then out.

And to complete the story, I arrived in Castrojeriz and heard a pilgrim talking about passing this person by and blowing him off saying "He had problems of his own." Further, I happened upon Salvatrice who told me she passed by and saw me helping the man out. Salvatrice left before me. I saw her in front of me for a better part of the morning until she disappeared over a hill. I never once passed her. I never saw her pass me. Point 1 on why I think she most likely was an angel.

It's Medieval, Primitive and I Like It

Entering Hontanas with its 14th century church

One feeling I noticed as I walked in the countryside going up to 10 km / 6.2 mi between any sign of village life is how warm, safe and inviting I felt as I saw a village on the horizon. These villages dated from the 10th century. I reminisced how the medieval pilgrims must have felt then. They were tired, hungry, thirsty and perhaps lonely and the sight of a village offered lodging, food, beverage and fellowship. This represented hope, safety and comfort in medieval times and the same thing to a pilgrim in 2012. I therefore felt a kinship with all who had walked The Way before me.

God's Messenger to Me: Dogs

A friendly dog greeted me at San Anton

My Guardian Angel told me that dogs had a special place in my life journey. I sensed my Guardian Angel had quite the sense of humor in driving the point home. As I entered each village that day a dog greeted me with a smile and a tail wag. That also happened with regularity at every village and important town along The Way. This was a nice touch that made an amazing journey even more amazing.

The History

San Anton ruins of a monastery, church and hospital 1146

Today was an amazing day as I passed many tangible medieval ruins for the first time on The Way. I left Hornillos and found myself on the Spanish Mesa. It was truly like walking through a postcard and about 2.5 hours later I entered the town on Hontanas which had an amazing church dating from 14th century. Once I left Hontanas, I happened upon a field where I paused to reflect "What was this? And when was it what it was? What would it have been like to live here at that time?" 

Minimal Ruins from a 12th century village Valdermoro 

It turns out this was once a village documented in the 12th century. Apparently this remnant of a structure was once San Vincente church which would have been the focal point of the village. The village was in a beautiful wilderness. I imagined the villagers of the time taking note of the beautiful countryside assuming they had time to do such a thing between daily hardships and constant worry of a Moorish invasion. I hope they did.



Shortly after the mesa hillside that once was Valdermoro came the impressive ruins of San Anton. I came upon these with no advance knowledge and thus the discovery was even more awesome. It dates from 1146 although the building ruins date predominantly from the 14th century. It was quite an impressive complex including church, convent, hospital, mill, orchard and accommodations for pilgrims. An interesting note is that San Anton was at its peak during a time of a plague caused by barley poisoning. The disease could be cured by eliminating barley, increased intake of wine and vigorous exercise (eg pilgrimage). Apparently, we modern pilgrims aren't that different than those from medieval times in wine consumption and exercise!

Entering Castrojeriz

Beautiful 14th century church entering Castrojeriz

13th century Vigen del Manzano Church in Castrojeriz

After San Anton, Castrojeriz was a pleasant and short walk. It was a beautiful town with a church and convent as you entered the town and an imposing castle high atop a hillside. This was an important town dating from 912. The Romans fortified it to guard the road to their Galician gold mines. It served as a protected way station and commercial center for pilgrims. It was the home of powerful counts. In 2012, I merely hoped it had accommodation and a good meal.

I first was looking for a small hotel where I could shower and enjoy some privacy. Lo and behold, no hotel was open here so I found the local alberque. The place had a bit of rules which I was made to read and sign; things like doors locked / lights out by 10pm, lights on 7:15am and a few others. No big deal and I kind of chuckled a bit at the rules imposed on an 3 grown adults in the middle of winter in a town with not much going on at 10 pm anyways.

The Sant Estaban Castrojeriz Albergue was nice and had an interesting albeit story attached to it. These two amazing pilgrims brought photographers along to document their journey. The albergue was filled with amazing photographs of them. Sadly, the two were killed in a train crash from Santiago to Madrid the day after they completed their Camino. It gave one pause to be thankful for each moment and live in the present for tomorrow is guaranteed for nobody.

I decided to at least stake out a good meal and found an award-winning restaurant with an amazing roast lamb on its menu. I paid something like 25 euro / $31 for a 4 course gourmet dinner including a rock star bottle of wine. I dutifully made it back to the albergue before 10pm and fell soundly asleep.

My Tunes for the Day

This was a favorite that I added to my iTunes mix. I was walking alone and the beat is perfect for a trekking cadence to keep one moving. I also listened to this for the entire Camino and never got tired of it. I often sought it out for my first song of the day.