Stage 12 – the day I spent digesting Ages’ Legendary Burger

Start: 6:09, 4 ºC, very cold

End: 11:40

Distance:  19/275.4 Km

Stayed at: Happy Hostal Carrales

OST: Heavy Samba, Elio e le Storie Tese

More walking.

In this case, walking to Burgos, the first real stopping point of the Camino.

For two reasons:

1. Burgos is an excellent touristic destination on its own. Great Tapas bars (keep your Micheline guide handy!)
2. Burgos is the last major city until Leon. And, if you ask me, Burgos is far more interesting than Leon.

Many pilgrims (or some, no idea) take a break in Burgos to drink, party and drink some more. Some pilgrims stop here, before the second phase of the camino begins.

That is… La Meseta. Hundreds of kilometers of wheat fields and open skies.

The Wise Pilgrim app calls the next phase the “Mind” part: so far, you’d have been walking to tune you body, but now, with La Meseta, a different type of challenge awaits.

Well… I had no idea what that meant. Burgos had excellent tapas, and that was enough.

As a nice bonus, an American pilgrim I met in Espinosa ended up introducing me to her group of friends. Lovely people, some of them are still lurking in some whatsapp group.

It’s good to make friends on the Camino. I was so busy “delivering” that I forgot what it meant to have a cold one with friends at the end of the day.

I had forgotten that a long time ago.

Next stage: Stage 13: Burgos – Hornillos del Camino